Developers making money?

Hi Everyone,

I hesitated before making this post but though it time to compare notes. This is to all of you who have tried making a business out of developing AppSheet Apps. Has anyone been successful?

I have been using AppSheet for several years and am pretty adept at most things here now. (there are many of you here of course who blow me away with your abilities i.e. Alexi and Multitech-Visions, etc.) I have developed many apps for personal usage and even a comprehensive CRM for my other business where I do estimating, contact management, invocing and receivables. I love AppSheet and could sit here creating Apps all day LOL.

But I have basically no success in convincing others that my Apps can improve their business workflows. I have tried selling CRM, inventory control, inspection apps, etc, etc. It reminds me of another business I used to own where the cost and effort of customer acquisition was just too high. Im dismayed.

So, are there any of you with success stories or tips that you could share with me publicly or privately. At this point I am ready to pack it in and only use AppSheet for personal needs.

Thanks for everytning
Glenn

6 11 1,848
11 REPLIES 11

Hi Glenn,

You may be interested in joining our Slack channel.

im looking for appsheet freelancers, can u recommend?

Is the mentioned Slack channel or some other forum still active for discussing topics related to charging for AppSheet-based apps? (When I select your link, I just get a GCC Access Denied page.)

GreenFlux
Participant V

Hey @Glenn_Thorne ,

Donโ€™t give up hope just yet! I had the same struggle at first, trying to explain/sell AppSheet to clients. But lately, Iโ€™m seeing jobs posted where the client is specifically requesting experienced AppSheet devโ€™s-- some even looking for full time developers.

A few tips to help you get started:

  • Stand out by developing your niche; AppSheet + ?
    • target a certain industry (engineering, finance, etc)
    • learn a popular API, in-depth (Shopify, Square, eBay)
    • learn some other integration platform Integromat, Zapier, etc
    • apply to the developer/partner program for the other platforms
  • Build an online presence outside of whatever freelancer platform you use
    • include links in your proposals, with samples of your work, website, etc

You might also want to consider looking for a developer position with an agency. That way you donโ€™t have to deal with the sales end.

Thanks for the good advice. I am interested in API and Zapier but have yet to find good introductory tutorials or example resources for this. If you can point me in the right direction that would be great.

I will certainly be taking your other advice. Iโ€™ve already joined your slack channel. Awesome.

G

MultiTech
Participant V

To add to the hope, I just want to expand upon this:

Indeed they are.
As knowledge about AppSheet expands into the business world, fueled by their acquisition by Google, this has brought AppSheetโ€™s potential into the view of Big Business. Companies like Facebook, Twitter, Amazon (just to name the big ones - not to mention the dozens (hundreds???) of โ€œLargeโ€ companies interested, as well as the thousands of smaller companies) are all just starting to learn about this little platform called AppSheet. 3X_d_5_d51363a862e7ab883241c312ac5d7f271579cdd3.gif

And they need a SME like you

3X_5_6_56fadf47d6fa0cf1d709ade7b3dfa8a37ebffcdc.jpeg

My two-cents...

  1. Businesses are looking for helping systemising their routines and controlling how their staff work.  The thing I sell the most of is timesheet systems, simple clock in / clock out stuff.  Don't try to sell them on anything too specific otherwise you're just competing with Salesforce, Monday.com, Zoho etc.
  2. Appsheet's biggest selling point is its ability to deploy quickly.  So don't go down the route of trying to create one super-douper app that suits everyone.  In the end they'll come back wanting it customised anyway...
  3. Scrum is a useful struture to get clients into thinking in terms of incremental updates.  Though it can be a lot of overhead for simple jobs. 
  4. "The lean startup" book is a really good way to understand what you shouldn't build.  IMHO you're most likely to loose clients based on all the good work you did that they didn't need or never used.  This video is almost as good as the book
  5. Get new clients by quoting a fixed price on a simple app first.  Then once they're hooked they'll give you a huge list of updates and changes
  6. Plan to do about 10 times more marketing than you think you'll need

 

Hope this helps ๐Ÿ™‚  Feel free to checkout my wesbite for some ideas.  Or DM me if you want a chat

 

Simon@1minManager.com

Likewise, I have developed a timsheet app for clock in/out that i have deployed to my clients simply to make the payroll processing easier and more cost effective.

Noah_Beach
Participant II

I too had a problem making appsheet work as a business. In the end I think appsheet shines in personal use, personal business where you actually control the business operations, or working to slowly implement appsheet into your organization you work for. Appsheet is a Wonderful tool for LEAN thinking like Paul Akers 2 second lean. Just realize most businesses will fail. Most fail because of a lack of constant improvement. Appsheet provides an edge for businesses to improve who want to. it can be frustrating trying to convince people of improving flow in their business. However this opens the door for you to start a business that beats your competition due to their failures.

I understand your challenges with trying to monetize your AppSheet apps. It can indeed be a tough journey. Much like the complexity of financial strategies, finding success in app development also requires a well-thought-out approach.
Just like when you're exploring how to do a backdoor Roth IRA, where careful planning and understanding of the process are essential, the same applies to building a profitable business around app development. One key aspect is identifying the right market niche and understanding their specific needs. Much like the intricacies of a backdoor Roth IRA, attention to detail in your app's functionalities can make all the difference.

Skip2MiLu
Participant V

Does anyone have any advice on how to manage a customers data?

I get a lot of potential customers asking about the privacy of their data, but at the same time both them and myself are also interested in developing the app with incremental updates with new features and capabilities at increased monthly user price. So this usually means I would need to be able to connect to their app and data when developing. 

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