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Overcast’s 2014 Sales Numbers

Speaking of sales numbers, a must-read article by Marco Arment on how Overcast did on the App Store in 2014:

The biggest unknown in the App Store is what happens after the launch has settled down. I don’t know what 2015 will bring, or where sales will bottom out. (With past apps, February was always my worst month, and not just because it has fewer days.) Promisingly, sales in the last 6 months have stayed within a fairly narrow range and aren’t showing a clear downward trend, although the bumps in November and December can be easily attributed to temporary boosts from Serial and Christmas.

Marco worked on Overcast full-time for about 15 months. Apple made $70,343 from Overcast in 2014.

Overcast is a fantastic podcast player that does things other podcast apps can’t do. Marco found a niche big enough to sustain a business and managed to build a product that is useful and commercially viable. I believe that Overcast is a great example of how innovation in apps can still be possible and profitable.

And I can only nod in agreement at the last sentences:

I can work in my nice home office, drink my fussy coffee, take a nap after lunch if I want to, and be present for my family as my kid grows up. That’s my definition of success.