I have zero knowledge or experience about making an app, but I did just have an idea for one that might be a winner, bigtime. Would I be better off trying to learn how to do this on my own, finding someone with experience to work with, or just approaching a company that does something somewhat similar and pitching my idea to them? For either (or any) option, how would I even get started?
If you’re starting from zero, your chances of ramping your knowledge and abilities up to useful levels before the app is eclipsed or outdated are pretty close to that same zero.
You might be able to engage a programmer who will turn your brilliant idea into a polished final product without either charging you too much or simply taking possession of it, but that’s between you, your budget, your intellectual property lawyer and blind luck.
You might be able to interest an existing app foundry to take your idea and develop it, paying a flat fee or royalties for your innovation, but that’s between you, them and the best IP lawyer you can find… and blind luck.
Seriously, having a whopping brilliant idea or concept is most times the very least valuable part of bringing a new product or service to the world. It really is 1% inspiration, 99% somebody’s perspiration, and slave labor is now illegal. Craigslist and other job boards are full of posts that boil down to ones like yours here: “Wow, I have this incredibly brilliant idea and I just need some dweeb with mad skilz to actually implement it, for something like free unless I get really, really wealthy from it and then I’ll pay you something.”
The idea doesn’t rule. The comprehensive ability to render ideas into reality rules.
Did you notice that your subject line is very different from your question? Are you asking about making the device, or about making a program which runs on the device?
Yeah just noticed that, sorry - I’ll report it.
FWIW, I caught the difference as soon as I read the post. I did begin with the notion that you actually meant hardware - which is all of what I posted above turned up to 11. Some gigantic fortunes have been lost trying to create competing hardware from cars to computers to cell phones to whatever.
Fixed.
Are you willing to put in the work to learn how to write software? Does writing software sound interesting to you? If so, I’d recommend learning how. www.codeacademy.com is a reasonable starting place. There are lots of resources online to help people getting started out, and while some software developers are elitist jerks, there are also very many who will happily help you with your questions and set you on the right path. It is a golden age for learning how to code. The resources are there, the capital cost is low, and newcomers can make a real contribution.
This is the lowest-risk option. You’re not putting any money up front, and even if you don’t make your app, or it doesn’t succeed, you will have learned a new skill. Most people don’t make a successful app the first time. But they learn something and try again.
Do you have the money to pay someone else to write it? This might be a few thousand or tens (hundreds?) of thousands. Then the second option is open to you. Be wary of this. If you’re new to the industry, you may end up spending a bunch of money on an app that is in fact really cool, but doesn’t have much earning potential.
As for pitching it to a company… that’s simply not going to work. Ideas are worthless. Execution matters. You might find the equivalent of a vanity press who will listen to you, tell you that it’s a great idea (whether or not it is), and milk you until you run out of money to make it happen. At best, you’re at option #2, paying a premium. You’re not going to find some company that will pay you a bunch of royalties just because you were brilliant. Seriously. You’re not even going to find anyone (reputable) willing to meet with you and have you give them your idea for free.
No one with the experience and ability to make your app happen is going to give you the time of day unless you already know them (in which case, why are you asking a message board for help? Go ask your industry-insider friend what to do!), or you demonstrate that your idea has merit by building a prototype and getting people to use it (ideally, a rapidly accelerating number of people with a nice L-shaped curve heading toward infinity on the right-hand side).
This can be a hard realization to accept. As cool as your idea is, it’s not enough to gain attention or make you any money on its own. If you want to get more specific help, step one is to explain your idea. Many people are afraid of doing this, because they think that the idea itself has tremendous value, and worry that other people will steal it. No one is going to steal your idea.