Parents

Five Tips for the Development of a Successful Children's App

“A good idea alone is not enough to make a children's App succeed” knows Moritz, founder and COO of goodbeans GmbH. An expert for online services suitable for children, Moritz shares five tips for the development of a successful children's App and points out what to watch out for where the target groups of toddlers and preschoolers are concerned.

  1. Spirit and Purpose of the App: Transferring Knowledge in an Imaginative Way
    Tablet Apps have the potential to efficiently combine fun and knowledge transfer for toddlers. A good children's App cultivates the dexterity of children and at the same time offers entertainment on the go that is equally exciting and challenging. The child should be able to directly influence the developing story, control characters without any technical knowledge and be able to trigger animations or start games.
  2. App Design: Keep it Simple!
    App design plays a crucial role. Especially where children are the desired target group, principle and operation of the application have to be characterised by simplicity, as the display space available is very limited for smartphone Apps. The iPad screen, however, displays graphics in amazing quality. For the animation, this advantage should be exploited. Considering tablet device size, not too many shake and movement mechanisms should be incorporated. Complicated game logic should also be avoided in the design process of toddler Apps.
    • App Content: Identification is Key
      To make an App exciting for children, a strong character that the children can build a relationship to and that they can identify with has to be established. Secondly, a background story leading the child through the App is required. Within this story, the child has to be presented with the opportunity to freely develop and influence its progress.
    • Parents and Apps: Consider all Target Groups
      In the eyes of parents, a children's App has to fulfil a very clear purpose: my child will learn to read the time, my child will be able to play with animals, etc. It should be possible to describe the App with one sentence. Since parents make the ultimate decision to purchase, it is educational Apps that sell better. Any educational content has to be presented to children in an appealing fashion, otherwise the App will be used once and then discarded.
    • App Publicity: Do Not Fear Free Content
      Considering the variety of the applications that are available, App publicity is of paramount importance. To achieve it, providers have several possibilities. Because of the ranking logic, it is important to create a strong push in the beginning, in order to reach a top ranking within the App Store. Additionally, the “Freemium Model” for Apps is of advantage: parents and children have the opportunity to test products for free and then, if they are interested, to buy further content.

 

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