

What have been the main challenges so far?
At the beginning trying to decide how to set up was the first challenge ? should I be a sole trader or a limited company? But what appealed to me about limited companies is how it?s a separate entity to me, so there?s no room to muddy the waters. Initially, getting clients was tough to do on a freelance basis too ? because a lot of teams prefer having project managers in-house permanently. I have a lot of experience in the industry though so eventually we found some clients. Another challenge is getting funding, because the video games industry is still relatively new and the people holding the purse strings don?t necessarily understand it. The biggest challenge though has been competition ? it?s tough trying to stand out in the app store.What does your competition look like?
Our competition on the app store ranges from one-man bands to much larger companies at the other end of the scale. The app stores aren?t segmented, you?re all in the same bucket, so essentially it comes down to your relationship with people that control the stores and marketing money. We can?t compete pound for pound on marketing spend, but there are some things we can do. We make great effort with our social media community, and that?s been a godsend because we can speak directly with customers. Hopefully that creates goodwill with them, and they will be heralds for us ? word of mouth recommendation is worth a great deal.How do you make sure you stand out?
How has KPMG Small Business Accounting helped your business?
If it?s not coding or art work, it?s me that takes care of it. I?m not bad at finances, but it?s also not something I particularly want to do ? the fee I pay KPMG Small Business Accounting more than makes up for the free time, and gives me the flexibility to focus on other areas of my business. It?s also great to have an internationally recognised name behind me, so that when I go in for investment there?s that much more confidence in my reporting.What would be your advice for a small business like yourself entering the app store?
Focus on what you believe in and what you love. If you love what you?re doing, it?s definitely going to shine through in the product. Also, don?t be afraid to learn from the competition.This article is part of a wider feature series called Problem Solvers, a collection business stories, brought to you in partnership with KPMG Small Business Accounting, showing how small business owners have overcome potentially harmful problems with their companies. See what other businesses and problems we?ve featured before.
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