My first app,
100sounds, went live 12/12 (and yes, I had to reset the release date, otherwise it was September, which was when I created the profile in iTunes Connect). iTunes uses the earlier date of your profile, or the approval date. So you can't keep resetting it to 'today' to try to be listed as new each day!
I submitted 100sounds before Thanksgiving, and was pleased to get it out before the holidays. So timing is key.
But I've been in Marketing for 20 years so I went all out. I emailed, individually (no blind carbon copies or mass emailing) a ton of iPhone app review sites. I posted on related forums, but made sure my posts were meaningful. My signature included my appname and URL. And I'm extremely reachable to my users...if you look at the reviews on my site, you see a lot of comments on my responsiveness.
My app, I think, was well thought out and adds value beyond what was out there. There are a lot of sound apps but they play 10 to 20 sounds. As a user, I care more about my app screen real estate than $0.99. So I offer 200 sounds in one app. That's a lot better than 10 apps, not to mention cheaper. And you can loop and delay sounds for practical use or practical jokes. And reorder favorites to the top. Then, I didn't call it 200 sounds, I went with 100sounds. Why? I'd rather UNDERcommit and OVERdeliver. We'll keep adding sounds, based on user requests, and keep the name. When's the last time a software developer gave you twice what they promised?
Plus, I got the domain name,
www.100sounds.com, and put up a cool Flash demo. Since there isn't a trial version, I wanted people to see how it works. Originally, I didn't have the demo and I was getting a lot of questions. Those have diminished (while sales have increased) so it makes it a lot easier to support.
Finally, I have to admit I've been lucky. After ten days on the market, my app is #13 in Entertainment.
