I agree. I also think that the poster could have talked with a DO rep. before making this public. It seems like the intention was to "expose" DO. I could be wrong though.
This is a great post. I've been down a similar path. Exhausting myself financially via my first attempt at business . Learned a ton, and realized that I needed time to get somethings in order and returned to working a 9-5 only to return to solo (for the most part) consulting and working on my product.
There was a time where Google was sending them out by mail (they may still be doing this). I've also heard of people signing up and when Google gives them a call (Google usually gives you a phone call to see how everything is going with your new account) they strike a deal with the agent over the phone.
Hey thanks! When I was about 13 I started working on a similar app in C# [1] which was REALLY popular, but the code base was sloppy and I didn't really know what I was doing. I made this utility because there is currently no cross-platform solution, and since it's written in C++/Qt, it will work on most platforms.
The first big jump I got was in March 2012, when I added iPad support (universal binary) and also translated the app store description to Chinese (钢琴). It turns out that people will search for their native word for piano! ;-)
Then it grew slowly over the next 8 months. I continued to add song packs and improve the app. I did some marketing on FB, https://www.facebook.com/tinypiano including a raffle where I gave away $50 iTunes GCs to generate more "likes."
In November, I also got a big bump due to Apple's iPad mini launch & piano commercial (Heart & Soul).
In December, I actually made about as much money as I made the rest of the year. Download #s were high, and AdMob/iAd eCPMs were also at their peak. It was a good month.
Relative to Tiny Piano, my 5 other apps are failures.... Collectively, they make about $50 a day. And that's probably because people who like Tiny Piano search for & download my other apps.
