Yesterday I wrote a SCAM ALERT warning about telemarketers attacking Windows users. Today, I received an email offering to market my apps. I'm always interested in increasing sales of my apps, as most developers are (except for the guy who created, and pulled, Flappy Bird!) I had to download a PDF for the details, so I did, after verifying it was safe to do so.
It turns out the emailer was offering some legitimate methods of marketing. But the heart of the offer was paid reviews. These are not payments for getting an app reviewed on app review websites. By the way, iPhone Life does NOT take payments for reviews and I've never paid for reviews of my own apps. What the emailer was offering was App Store reviews at a cost of $3 to $13 per review, dependiing on if the app is free or paid. App Review packages started at $59 and went up to $899.
The problems with this approach are plentiful. First, it's unethical, which should be enough. Buyers can tell when an app review is fake and it hurts your image. Second, Apple is wise to this approach and they have changed their ranking methods. Apps used to be able to get a solid boost in rankings by getting a lot of downloads in a day. Now, you need consistent downloads over time to get and maintain a high ranking.
Finally, if Apple discovers this 'gaming' of the system, they will remove your apps and delete your developer account. It's simply not worth it. This is not limited to Apple, as the emailer also targets Google Play, Amazon, and other review sites. Fortunately, Apple is more attentive to these machinations.
I should add that the emailer, who went by the name of Daniel Miller, used broken English so that might be an American-sounding moniker to throw people off. I get a lot of these emails and a lot of scammers come from outside the U.S. I'm skeptical of marketing solicitations that wouldn't get a passing grade in elementary school. Would I want them writing my press releases, app descriptions, and emails?
Good Day, am I speaking to No Tie, LLC, (should have a question mark and probably be broken into two sentences)
It's rare to come across developers such as yourself. Is app promotion something you might need, I would like to work on your app RINGTONE DIRECTOR. (Is should be If or change to a question with a question mark after need)
Lot's of developers have worked with me before on a wide range of projects. Without a doubt a larger audience can be reached and marketed to. (Lot's shouldn't have an apostrophe... it's not possesive.)
There will always be developers looking for a shortcut and there will always be scammers preying on those desires. The success of a few developers who seem to have won the app lottery makes other developers jealous. The reality is, success in any business requires realistic objectives, real-world marketing, a good product, and hard work.
