From the Oddlabs blog:
Many game developers, indie or not, view the Mac as a freak that no one cares for or wants to be associated with. They look at statistics that show only 5% of desktop machines are Macs and say: “Why waste a lot of time and money for only 5% of the market?”
Consider this:
- Out of the several hundred thousand downloads of Tribal Trouble. the Mac is responsible for 23%!
- Out of all sales of Tribal Trouble, the Mac is responsible for 47%!
Not bad for 5% of the market.. And we haven’t even done any paid advertising that has been directed solely at Mac users.
What this shows is that not only are the Mac users easier to reach, they also convert at a much higher rate.
This is not a secret. Wil Shipley talked about this in 2005. Developing for a platform where the users appreciate design and good software will reap dividend (if your product doesn’t suck).
This is why I question people who make silly decisions. Like not to support the Mac when porting software or deciding to go Android-first when developing for mobile platforms. Go where the money is – where the money truly is.
And yes, it’s not an easy ride. As I said, your product has to not suck. And if you’re entering a crowded market (like games on the App Store), you may have to work a little harder to get noticed but these people do not mind paying money for quality software. That has to count for something.
