To accomplish our goal of making this app a reality, we will need to set up a reasonable and realistic development budget and income model. (Since this is just a school project we will not set up an actual budget, but we will rather look at different possibilities and ways of funding our app before and after release.)
Part of our funding will be secured by our partners: Google and FitBit. Another source of funds is to apply for a government grant, and given the health focus of our app this would seem like a realistic goal. We could also look into possible partnerships with various sports brands like adidas and nike, and advertise their brands within our app.
Once the app has been released (possibly without all planned features due to budget constraints) we will generate income both through ads displayed in our app and through sales of our ad-free version. If the app generates enough income it would be possible to complete and fully implement all planned features. In addition to this we might be able to expand our app with a merchandise store where our users can buy different items with “FortFitness” branding (t-shirts, hats, etc.) but only if our app becomes popular enough.
As mentioned; our app will have two versions, one that is free to download, but with ads and limited functionality (No achievements, not as detailed stat tracking, etc.). The other version will be an ad-free and a fully functional version of the app. The cost of unlocking the app will be about 34,99 NOK. Similar apps were found to have about the same price range.
The marketing will be done by us and our partners: Google and FitBit. Google and FitBit can advertise through their own channels, while we (the developers) can continue the marketing on social media and through promotional videos on YouTube and other video sites. If we are able to gather enough funds we could even try to get a celebrity to promote our app.
There is another way of acquiring funds that is more questionable. Some companies have a great interest in purchasing data collected from users. If the users of our app gives us permission to collect their data, then this is something that could be done although we’re not interested in obtaining funds through this manner given the ethical questions surrounding this topic.
There might be other avenues of income, but these are the ones that we’ve thought about and discussed so far. (Whether or not the approach detailed in this blog post is ideal for our app is uncertain, but it’s probably the model we would aim to use if we were going to develop this as an actual app.)
- Eirik J. Henriksen
The Fort Fitness Blog 