Getting a Slice of the Apple Pie

I am not sure how many of you have noticed the widget in the right column that says we are iPhone ready.Not only does this blog have iPhone optimisation making it look great when you view us from your iPhone, but we have also applied to have our own application icon.

To say I was excited when I applied for our iPhone application is a small understatement. Well a large understatement to be honest. At the time a little voice in the back of my mind was saying “but who will be looking for us on the iPhone Apps page?”

I need not have worried at all. The Apple iPhone web app page is the second highest external source of traffic to this blog.

2nd highest traffic source

Of that traffic 60% of viewers look at 2 or more pages, that’s not bad figures at all.

But let’s go back a few steps and explain what this is all about for those that might not be up with all this iPhone nonsense.

The Apple iPhone is a bit of a misnomer. While without a doubt you can make and take calls from it, it would be better to think of it as a mobile internet device first, an application platform second and phone third. Even then the first two would be interchangeable depending on how you choose to use your phone, and I suspect as more and more useful applications are available I will swap them around in my using habits.

To access applications on the iPhone you first download the app using iTunes and an icon appears on your iPhone screen. The design of the iPhone means no scrolling through menus and folders to find what you want, just click on the icon and you are away. To get your blog or application into iTunes, first you have to apply via Apple.

The hardest thing about applying for an iPhone application is to ensure you have your graphics in the format requested by iPhone. This might mean you needing to have a friend with a good graphics program to make you icon as a 128x128pixel png with alpha channel and the Apple page graphic as per instructions. The rest is a matter of filling in a form (include your juicy keywords in your site description) and submit.

Uploaded Images

The added bonus in applying for the application is you get a nice “follow” link from Apple to your main URL as well as your application page.

I am not sure on the time it takes to obtain approval to be available within iTunes (we are still waiting), but the time it took to apply has been amply rewarded in the traffic that has dropped in for a look.

I recommend anyone with a blog that has great content and is regularly updated give it a whirl.

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