Hi, I've got a new app that I built that appeals to all of the lazy men (and some women) who really don't give a hoot about their so-called friends on Facebook, but want to send them a birthday message anyway (without actually thinking of them on their birthday). I think it's got a nice marketing angle and targets a large demographic. I would share the link on here for you to check it out and give me marketing feedback, but I'm still new on these boards. It's at apps dot facebook dot com slash b-day-greeter. Anyway, did any of you have success marketing an app on Facebook, and if so, do you have any tips for newbies in the world of application development/marketing? Thanks!
It's perfect for individuals like me who aren't active enough on Facebook to catch peoples' birthdays in time to wish them a happy birthday. And while I care about maybe 20-30 people on my list, the truth is that most of my 400 friends I don't really care about. At the same time, it's still nice to be able to send them a birthday wish. That's why I made the app. I don't really care if it makes money or if I can monetize it directly. If I get a few hundred thousand monthly active users on it, someone who specializes in monetizing applications will want to pay money for it. I actually see quite a solid market for it, and it's got very little competition. There are plenty of birthday calendars out there, sure, but not many applications will schedule your post for you, and d-bag friends like me are looking for just such an app!
I suppose there are a ton of ways to profit from it if you decided that.. E.g a link below the Birthday message that links to a 'money page'. . Eitherway, good luck with it mate.
I also think there is an interesting tension that could be created by an application like this. If your friend gives you a "BFF" custom message via the app and you give him/her a lame generic message, it creates a nice little interplay: "Why didn't you make ME a BFF?" I like that tension, and I like the mockery it makes of the expectation that you should even wish your friends "Happy Birthday" via Facebook. I mean, aren't they at least worth a phone call or even a text message if they are your friends? That's kind of the concept, and I really am trying to develop a sardonic tone with the way I present the application.
Thanks, I appreciate that. We've been discussing a partnership with another company who uses data to suggest appropriate gifts to purchase for your FB friends, based on that individual's likes, posts, etc. Their app is quite clever and took quite a bit more work than mine, I'm sure, but it seems like a great partnership. "Hey, while you are scheduling a greeting for your friends' birthdays, why not find a gift for your BFF's?", etc. etc. I'm kind of just playing this by ear, so it's fun to see what kind of response it generates. Interesting that people on here kind of don't see a use for the app; I may need to tweak how I present it to make the purpose clearer. Thanks, again.
The only thing, is getting it popular. Why not sell the app to other affiliate/cpa marketers? This way, you get instant profit and others can generate money from it, as well as grow them. . Id be intrested, as i can easily push aload of facebook traffic from my fanpages to the apps. Regards
I may eventually sell it, but right now I don't think I'd get good value for it, I'm getting new active users every day, and I'm having too much fun refining my code and making improvements. Once I'm out of the "honeymoon phase" with this app and am sick and tired of looking at the code for it I'll be more inclined to sell. My partner, who did graphic design for it and is helping to come up with a marketing plan if we get that far, is probably more interested in selling it off than I. I mean, without any effort on my part I'm getting new users, so I'd like to see it take off a bit. I'll probably have to pony up and pay for some advertising at some point, but I'm too stingy at this point to push it much until I have a few more cron jobs in place to regularly clean up the database.
Thanks D3M0N. I'm always ready to entertain offers, so feel free to keep an eye on the app and see how it goes for a bit. Maybe test it out and let me know what you feel is not intuitive enough or will drive people away. I love criticism, as it has helped to improve it in the short time I've had it around. I'm not sure whether you are the target demographic for it or not, but certainly if you do a lot of FB marketing you have your finger on the pulse of the everyday user. Have a nice day/night (not sure of your time zone).
Whats your MSN? Would be cool to discuss a few things. Also, i am UK Based mate. So its 12.04am Regards
Hey, I sent you a PM. If you didn't receive it, let me know. It was weird, because it showed that it sent, yet when I look at my sent box there is nothing in there. Not sure if it's a user error or software error on this one...I do think they need to increase the login session time. You turn to sneeze and you've been logged out of this thing!