So I was browsing my kids’ large lengthy app collection and it’s quite embarrassing really, the number of apps that we own. I did a quick scan and an interesting price pattern emerges.
Early on, I purchased/downloaded a lot of free and $0.99 apps for my kids but now I’m more apt (ha, ha!) to spend money on educational apps. I know some parents scoff at spending more than $2.99 on an app, and yet these same parents spend hundreds of dollars on books or toys for their kids.
Why is this? Who did we learn this from? Have we become so used to free, inexpensive content that the price point of the app drives our decision on whether or not we purchase it? Shouldn’t it be about the educational experience our child is about to engage in?
With that in mind, here are three reasons why I’ll happily spend more than $2.99 on an app:
1. Apps cost $$ to make.
I’ve been doing my own research and the amount of work, people and time involved in developing an app is enormous. Besides making the app, you have to market it correctly and that also takes time and money. Because we have a propensity for cheap apps, a lot of creative, passionate educationally minded people who make apps won’t be in it for the long term because they will never break even. As a parent I find this scary. I want apps for my kids that challenge them in unique ways and in my experience; independent companies/developers do this very well. They challenge the norms and push boundaries but they won’t be in it for long, if the $0.99 app trend continues.
2. Think of apps as a long term investment.
My favourite app, Injini, has a very high price point at $29.99. When it first came out, it was $49.99 and a lot of people thought I was nuts to pay that much for an app. However I justify the cost based on an in-game per app basis (yes, that’s a mouthful!) because it has 11 games within the app. This roughly equates to $2.72 per game and that is a reasonable price to pay for 11 high quality games. In addition, my kids have been using the app for almost a year and they still play it. The app has more than paid for itself.
3. The “One and done” mentality.
For whatever reason, we think of apps as one and done, meaning once our kids have played them they move onto something else so we’re not willing to spend a ton of money on apps. I’ll pay $2.99 or more because I’ve researched the app and I know my child is looking for new content that addresses an educational need. I’m looking for apps with educational stickiness and usually those apps come with higher price point. If I need to, I’ll also set a weekly budget on apps. I would rather pay more for two high quality educational apps than four low quality apps that my kids walk away from within a day.
There you go – my three reasons on how I justify the cost of my apps. Now tell me, why you do or don’t spend money on apps? Tweet me @weebootMom or let’s chat on FB at Weeboot.
Andrea Benton is a passionate techie Mom, who has two young children, both of which love tablet technology. She blogs about tablet technology for parents and childcare providers. Follow Andrea on Twitter @weebootMom
