Trent Hamm writes:

the litmus test of money success: you’re making financial choices for a reason

I’m usually a very frugal person, not known to spend money on things without a good reason. Reading Trent’s article prompted me to answer this question: Why am I embarking on this project at all?

Frankly, for a few years now I’ve had an urge in my gut for doing something, I don’t know, something enterprising, but I never had just the right idea. I had lots of ideas and usually even more reasons for not jumping into the idea. I actually started a project with a friend three years ago but we quickly realized that our approach was faulty so we aborted it and learned from it. I’m not a good programmer but I am a great planner and coordinator. I can execute anything – as long as I have a good programmer on my side.

My enterprisey gut feeling remained and I kept looking for opportunities. And recently I had this idea: a specialized iPhone app that can be successful in its own little niche. The marketplace is absolutely huge, so as long as I’m not making yet another flashlight app there will be a chance to sell the app to more than just my closest friends.

My first step of success will be when a few random strangers purchase the app. That will ultimately validate the app. My second step of success will be at break-even: when the sales income meets my startup costs. That will validate my economic planning. The third step…? Well, I don’t expect a niche app to finance a luxury yacht to land my private helicopter on.

But seriously, creating an app is a lot of work. Making it free does not make financial sense unless it’s merely a step toward something else. To me, Audiopad is not a stepping stone — it’s a complete project, planned to be able to stand its ground alone. Of course there will be bug fixes and feature updates, but it’s not meant as a rung on a ladder toward another project.

So why am I, being frugal, spending so much effort on this? Because I believe that this project is realistic and will be profitable. I am convinced that the app is solid and useful, and unique enough to warrant price higher than free. I believe that there is a real market for a solid app like Audiopad, and I believe that the effort will pay for itself eventually. There’s less direct competition in a market niche, and it’s usually smarter to get any piece of a small cake than no piece of a huge cake.

These are my reasons for the Golfbravo project and the Audiopad app. I’m confident that the marketplace will prove me right.