It used to be simple. You just needed a website. Whatever you do on the web today, it’s now a nightmare if you want to optimize your presence.
Platforms
You need to be on all popular platforms. iPhone of course, Android because it’s getting huge, WIndows Phone 7 because it’s now Nokia’s OS, Mac, PC, Chrome OS… unsure about others frankly. Try already to be great at those six, not that easy.
App Stores
You need to be on all the above platforms stores, of course. But wait, there is more. You need to submit and manage your app to the mobile carrier app stores, they all have one. That’s only a start, wait until the manufacturers themselves, the Samsung, Dell, HP and Sony have theirs, HP has one with the Palm acquisition… Even Amazon has an store for applications. Bonus startup idea of the day: create a service to help register and manage my app in all those stores in all languages, I can be your first customer.
Form factors
Got an iPhone app? Great, now adapt it for the iPad. Got an Android app? Fantastic, now start building asap the Android 3.0 tablet version, oh and the Google TV friendly version too. And if possible, get ready for when that new Motorola and Samsung Tab II will launch. Yeah it’s in 4 weeks, not a problem, just stop doing anything you’re doing and burn your roadmap, otherwise you won’t be cool and won’t get traction on those new devices. If you’re not there at launch, you’re likely to never have a chance to be in the top 10.
Social networks integration
Facebook launches a new set of features and libraries. Foursquare has a new picture posting API. Twitter now gives you live streaming. Quora launches and the cool geeks are hiding there so you’d better add it somehow asap.
How do you think it will evolve? One platform will win? When html5 is good enough apps will die and web based on all devices will win? How many appstores will we have to register our app to?