No matter what industry you are in, you will have competition. There are many apps in the app store. Most likely, it already exists in one form or another, and this is better than your idea. Most likely, you do not have a truly unique idea, but a sharp turn on what someone else is doing. Buy your application (this is probably only 99 cents) and see how they do it, this may give you some new ideas on how to improve your application. Maybe you just do the same, but you are going to do it cheaper. You now have a product plan.
- Start by looking at all of the sample code that Apple issues through Connection Developer.
There are many reusable bits that you can copy and paste into your own application ideas, but basically it serves to convey your goals . Many times you will see something in the header or documentation file, but you really don't understand how you should use it. Play with it, make changes, make improvements, run it with the tools and check for memory leaks, etc. The more you play with Xcode, the more familiar it will feel. Now is the time to start collecting some keyboard shortcuts. Read like crazy, remember all this until your brain explodes.
- Create something that you know you are going to throw away.
This basically means “all together” or “proof of concept” of your idea. This helps turn all your thoughts into one project, and not scattered in the demo source that you see and play. Ultimately, it will not be an application that is sent to the App Store, but you can copy and paste into your “real” application. It is also a way to try new ideas without playing with your real project later. Git helps with tremendous branching ability here, I highly recommend using it.
Take everything you learned using the sample source code and build your proof of concept and build your production application. Do not release it on the App Store until you test it on the device and run it through the tools several times to make sure you have kinks, the last thing you want is bad reviews. For God's sake, do someone else experience it! The development of Lone Wolf is great if you are creating something open source, but if you are sending a closed source product, you need another set of eyes, I don't care how perfect your ivory tower is.
Congratulations! You sent your application and it was accepted! Now go to the horn and contact everyone you know, tell them that your application is being sold and tell your friends. Email the blogs you read, get your app or game viewed by a trusted source. Build a few word of mouth. Blog about it, Tweet about it, so that the whole world loves you to solve your problem :)