Studio Neat on integrating Apple Pay directly into an app
Studio Neat is the development studio behind Slow Fast Slow, a video-speed-control app that switched from paid to ad-supported last year. Countless app developers before them have made this switch, but Studio Neat took one unusual step; the only ad in the app was for another of the studio's products. That product is the Glif, a tripod mount for the iPhone that allows for more stable video and still photography.
Rather than bother customers with ads for crappy iOS apps they wouldn't want, Studio Neat targeted users who were already interested in iOS video and directed them to a product that served one of their needs. It's a clever take on in-app advertising, one which has had strong short term results for the company.
Revenue saw an uptick when Studio Neat made the ad-supported switchover, with each Glif sale putting money exclusively back in the developers' own pockets. In the first 379 days the app was available for US$1.99, the company saw revenue of $9,464. In the two months following the switchover from paid to free, traffic from the app led to $5,591.35 in direct revenue. That's a noticeable bump.
Now Studio Neat is adding Apple Pay support to the app in hopes of making it even easier for users to directly purchase the Glif from them. Here's their reasoning, directly from their blog announcement.
We had a real head-slapping moment a few weeks ago: why didn't we use Apple Pay?! It seemed like the perfect use-case, so indeed, we have done just that in version 2.2, available today in the App Store. If you have an iPhone 6 or 6 Plus, you can now purchase a Glif directly in the app using your fingerprint. The future is now.
Integrating Apple Pay into the app wasn't too difficult, but it wasn't trivial, either. In a future post we will dive into the nuts and bolts of how we implemented Apple Pay. As far as we know, we are the first "indie" company to utilize it in an app.
To further entice users to buy a Glif via Apple Pay, Studio Neat is offering free shipping if you buy through the service directly in the app. We're curious how much impact this change will have on sales for the company, but the move seems perfectly targeted towards impulse shoppers. You can try out Slow Fast Slow yourself right here. If you like what you find, and you've got Apple Pay, Studio Neat is ready to help you with your next purchase from directly within the app.
