Infinitely scalable Google Play badge

Time to give a little something back to the community in the form of a Google Play badge that is infinitely scalable (in other words, it is a vector version).

Even though Google is one of the most recognised brands on the planet they are actually pretty terrible at managing their branding and disseminating the necessary files to the developer community to use for consistent branding (at least compared to the likes of Apple) ... and so as we were creating the artwork for a pull-up print banner (850mm x 2000mm in size) and needed a resizable "Get it on Google Play" badge that could scale up to half the width of the banner, it was nowhere to be had.

Sure, Google Play have a developer resource page that lets you create the various badges, but they only ever output as PNG files that look absolutely terrible at large size.

We had the same problem a few years ago when creating signage for our old office that needed a huge Google logo (we were doing SEO at the time).

So, we created a scalable version of the "Get it on Google Play" badge by pulling together a number of different resources. Any developers or publishers needing to create large artwork (for print, usually), feel free to take it and use it as you wish. We claim no copyright over it, but would love a hat tip via Facebook, Twitter, or an email if you find it useful.

Need a scalable version of the "Get it on Google Play" badge?

Financing Your App Idea

Do you have an app idea that's burning a hole in your brain but can't afford to pay to develop it straight away ?

We are currently working on an app financing option that could see your idea start coming to life straight away, while giving you 12, 18, or 24 months to pay it off.

Finance will be provided by a professional, national funding firm backed by one of Australia's largest financial institutions.

App development often takes 3-6 months, by the end of which you will usually have paid for our entire development effort (and commenced our 90-day support period). By using Creative Intersection's App Development Financing, payments can be spread out across a longer period of time, freeing up capital while you promote and market your app.

Talk to Creative Intersection about financing your app idea

A monthly amount is then deducted (via Direct Debit) from your own bank account until the development costs have been paid off.

Terms and conditions will, of course, apply - but if you are interested in having a chat with us about financing your app development, just give us a shout via our Contact Us page.

If you do not need financing, but still want to smooth out your cashflow, remember that we also offer Credit Card payment options at 0% fees (Visa, Mastercard, American Express - via Paypal).

Just Released: 3 New Apps Developed by Creative Intersection

This past fortnight has been a fairly big one for us, with 3 different app projects being approved by Apple (and one of those on Google Play) and subsequently released to the public. We have only released this many apps in such a short period a couple of times before, so we're pretty relieved and have allowed ourselves 20 minutes off before we move on to the next batch of projects already under way and scheduled for release in the next few weeks.

App #1:  Reports2Go (iPad)

Catapult BI's Reports2Go App

This is a Business Intelligence (BI) app used by management teams within large corporate entities to access their Cognos Business Intelligence data using the services of our client (Catapult BI).

It's an iPad-only app, which uses Dropbox as the cloud storage service for the data (documents in various formats such as PDF, DOC, and MHT). The documents are then then shared with authorised users and can be previewed and downloaded for later (offline) review at will via the Reports2Go app.

The app integrates with other BI apps such as IBM's Cognos mobile app to present interactive BI content generated by the Cognos system.

Client website: www.catapultbi.com

App #2: Agent Genie (iPad + iPhone)

Agent Genie iPad and iPhone App

This is a Real Estate Agent's best friend. It allows the agent to create and manage properties for which they hold open house events, and then allows prospective property buyers to register their attendance and interest at those open house events. Marketing and Offer Management is also an important part of the overall system designed and developed by Creative Intersection's team of web and mobile application developers.

Property numbers are limited for the free account version, with an unlimited number of properties able to be created if the agent subscribes to the Agent Genie service online (using the ChargeBee subscription system).

The Agent Genie app is a Universal iOS app, meaning that it works on iPhone and iPad, and the online administration interface runs via any web browser.

Client website:  app.agentgenie.com.au

App #3: Out2Nite (iPhone + Android)

Out2Nite iPhone and Android App

Out2Nite is a social networking app for iPhone and Android handsets, and uses a central database and local GPS/geolocation technology to allow users (signed in using their Facebook profile) to be notified when their friends are at the same venue (bars, pubs, etc) as themselves.

Client website:  www.out2nite.com.au

If you have an idea or if your business needs a specific mobile tool, give us a shout.

In-App Purchases By Far Exceed Paid Apps

News just in last week from our friends at eMarketer: Free apps with in-app purchases account for nearly all non-advertising revenues.

In other words ... if your app is available only as a paid version you are most likely missing out on a very large proportion of the revenue that you could otherwise be earning.

We have known this for years, based on anecdotal evidence from our numerous clients - which is why our recommendation is often to release a free limited version which allows for the user to experience the main features of your app without risking being sold a lemon (after all, there are a lot of try-hard and me-too apps on the App Store - both Apple/iOS and Google/Android).


Interestingly, while the Google Play Store (Android apps) has been picking up quite a bit of market share, it's almost exclusively (98%) for apps that are free to download and which then offer in-app purchases. Apple users aren't far behind with 92% of revenue from the Apple App Store being from free apps with in-app purchases. For Apple, that's a 15% increase in 11 months and is creeping ever-closer to 100% for either platform.

The lesson here is to remember to think about how you're best going to earn back the development costs and like any business, it pays to understand your customers' spending habits.

If you have a great idea for an app for iPhone, iPad, or Android handsets and tablets and would like to discuss it with us confidentially to see if it can be done (and how best to position yourself to make a profit from it), give us a shout.

QR Codes Already Look Old-Hat

So, you've heard about QR Codes ? ... You know - those cool little squares of dots that you can scan with your mobile phone to find out more about the poster at your local bus stop.

They work by encoding a piece of information (usually a URL or phone number) into a picture that can be recognised by an app and decoded for use by the end-user.

Example of a generated QR Code which generates an SMS message on the user's phone (courtesy: kaywa.com)

QR Codes are neat and are finally starting to get a bit more traction in Australia, having been massively popular particularly in Asia for a couple of years.

The Next Generation of Interaction

Now there's a new player emerging and it promises to let you interact in an even more personal way with "real world" objects.

Most tablet and smartphone devices (Android, Windows Mobile, Apple iOS etc) use a technology known as "capacitive touchscreens". This works - basically - because the human body is slightly electrically conductive, allowing the device to detect changes in the electrostatic field of the screen when it is touched by your fingers or a special stylus (Wikipedia explains it much better).

You can even buy gloves that let you use your smartphone in cold climates by conducting electricity from the tips of the outside of the glove through to your fingertip.

So, if electrical conductivity of the human body can be used to control your phone, why couldn't a piece of similarly conductive material be used to do the same thing ?

In fact, it can. Just print a pattern on the paper (a playing card or a magazine, for example) using a special capacitive ink and the pattern - when pressed against a touchscreen - will register as if a very complex hand was touching the screen.

Then all you need is to have clever app developers like Creative Intersection build an app that can read those patterns and translate them into actions within the app.

Example of Touchcode (courtesy: nukotoys.com)

As a long-time member of the Printing Industries Association of Australia, we are already in talks with local printers to provide this technology under license from its German inventors.

If you too can see some potential for this technology (or the Good Ol' QR Code), combined with an app for iPhone/iPad, Android phone or tablet, or Windows mobiles & tablets, call us for a chat.