The process of bringing a successful app to market begins long before the actual software is developed. As with any endeavor that fuses commerce and creativity, the app usually starts with a spark of inspiration and gets fleshed out through market research and intensive planning. This program takes viewers through those initial phases with hip, high-energy visuals and commentary from experts who create apps for a living.

Encoded with permission for digital streaming by Infobase on October 02, 2012. Learn360 is distributed by Infobase for Films for the Humanities & Sciences, Cambridge Educational, Meridian Education, and Shopware. Topics include identifying the target audience or consumer base; studying apps aimed at a similar market; creating a project plan; designing with a focus on ease of use and the customer's ability to share with other users; strategizing to compete against more corporate, big-budget apps; considering various development tools to utilize; thinking ahead regarding platform options; looking at monetization models; distinguishing between apps that deliver a lot of content and those that use little or none; using content management systems; and projecting costs and profitability.

App Market (1:10) -- Getting Ideas for Apps (2:20) -- Uses for Apps (1:28) -- Market Research (2:13) -- Digital Distribution Platforms (1:49) -- Monetization (1:28) -- Content Research (3:10) -- Content Management Systems (2:18) -- Project Plan and Cost Estimates (1:53) -- Software Development and Quality Assurance (2:20) -- Credits: Mobile App Research and Planning (0:48).