Incredible idea but no programming skills. What would you do?

[GordyR]

This is a totally 'out there' post but i'll cut straight to the point... I had a dream last night.

In this dream I was using an app on my iPhone which was quite simply brilliant. It is such a good idea that I am certain it would become extremely popular in a very short space of time and is the sort of thing that believe it or not I could see being built in to future generations of phones as part of the OS.

I initially dismissed it and chuckled at myself for dreaming it up, however the more I think about it the more I am realising that it's only a matter of time before Apple/Blackberry/Google or whoever have the same realisation and develop it themselves.

Now, I believe the app would be totally creatable given most modern smartphones hardware and capabilities but the problem is... I don't have the first clue about programming, at all.

So the question I am posing to you guys is "What would you do?". Fabulous idea but no 'Know how'. Where would you go if you genuinely wanted to make something out of this and quickly?

Very strange post I know, but I am deadly serious about this.

 

[GordyR]

Great advice so far guys... Thank you. Let me give you a little more detail...

I haven't even began to think of financing yet so lets just assume that revenue would be shared between myself and the programmer. If this was the case he/she would need to be 100% behind the idea of course. How hard is it to find people willing to develop an app with no initial upfront fee? Even if the idea is a brilliant one.

The idea itself (without giving too much away) heavily involves using social networking in a new and unique way and would link directly with the likes of facebook/twitter but without attacking a specific niche. In otherwords - It is something that everyone who uses facebook on their mobile phones would want if it existed. Almost a dramatic new functionality or extension of facebook-type technology that would supplement rather that compete with Facebook itself. Given the nature of the app and of course the viral nature of facebook itself I would imagine getting this thing to spread to be quite easy. (It is difficult to explain just how much so without giving away the idea itself).

Now I would have thought that something like this would be quite complex to develop. With this in mind I am unsure how to proceed as I doubt just any developer could complete the task to a satisfactory level. And if I was in discussions with a developer I would have course have to get them to sign an NDA. How would I know if a develop could complete the task without having explained the idea to them first?

Seriously, the more I think about this the bigger and better it becomes and the greater the potential for added features and/or add on apps is in the future.

Just so that everyone is clear and doesn't think this is just 'pie in the sky' thought spilling. I'm 29 years old and in a very high paying job. Given the possibilities I can see with this idea, it genuinely is something I would walk away from my career for, as I firmly believe the demand for this would be incredibly huge.

 

[GordyR]

Pretty sure Tesco have an iphone app I'm afraid

Sorry, I couldn't resist

Haha...

 

[GordyR]

You have no idea how many people we had with social networking applications, so you really have to special in that area. We had social networking applications for dogs =P, applications that merged all social networks into one application etc.

It really is nothing like any of this. it is not just another social networking app. I knew that by mentioning the social networking nature of the app that this would be exactly the kind of thing that would jump to mind. But please let me assure you that this is something completely new and something that absolutely everybody who uses facebook would want to supplement their mobile facebook experience.

The idea would not compete with facebook but interlink directly with it, adding one extremely simple yet incredibly powerful feature. Currently facebook on a mobile phone is just that... The same experience as you get on a home PC but on a mobile device. This idea expands upon the whole point of using Facebook on a mobile device. I'm genuinely shocked no one has done it yet and even more shocked that phone manufacturers and/or Facebook themselves haven't dont it yet. I am absolutely certain they will as soon as someone else has this lightbulb moment.

 

[GordyR]

Thinking about it... I'm good with photoshop and graphic design and will mock up the UI this evening. This way I should be able to explain and engage any potential developers I contact.

A good 'next step'?

 

[GordyR]

You can also list the technologies involved. Does it use geo-location, game technologies etc This should give better understanding of whats involved. For example would this require an Facebook application as well? Because then you are going require your own host.

It would not require a 'facebook' type application to be built as long as there was someway of integrating it with Facebook itself (by that I mean having it connect with Facebook I suppose). Something which I imagine would be do-able given the expandable nature of Facebook. Please correct me if I am wrong.

The other technologies that the idea uses I would rather not state. The idea is that simple that it's seriously like an 'Oh my god, I can't believe they haven't done that yet' experience once it is explained. And due to it being that simple, if I list the technologies it genuinely could spark someone else off on to the same thing.

 

[GordyR]

Lets talk business. Trust me - I programme for iPhone & Android.

EDIT: Also, I'm very curious as to this idea; possibly even sceptical. I fail to believe that the application you're thinking of hasn't been attemped. Possibly tech limited?

Very interesting to me. Firstly you should be searching for a pre-existing application. Just because you haven't heard of it doesn't mean it doesn't exist

I've been searching all day and so far haven't been able to find anything even remotely along the same lines. I almost can't believe it myself. Drop me your Email in trust with some links to apps you have developed. I will mock up a UI this evening and we can talk soon.

 

[GordyR]

I hate to burst your bubble, but from an outsiders perspective there's about a 1% (generous) chance this hasn't been done before, and if it hasn't, that it is commercially viable and has a explosive growth potential like you suggest. I don't want to take away your thunder, but it's good to put things in perspective, and thinking/innovating are great qualities you should always pursue.

I completely agree. But so far I haven't found anything like it and in all honesty had something like this been available then we would all be using it daily. Regardless I am very level headed and realise that all I have is an idea. Unless I am making money from this then I have no 'thunder' to take.

If it is as fantastic as you say then your key issue is protection. Protecting your idea from the people you engage and then the big boys it might attract. If Google or Facebook get a sniff of a good idea they either buy it or build their own if you don't sell, and their market share will knock you right out of the game. Remember, if you are planning to sell your app then FB and Google already have the upper hand because they will release the same functionality to millions for nothing! So it's the idea you want to protect.

Unfortunately, global patents are expensive. Tens of thousands expensive. And even then, if it's a good idea, they will be infringed or circumvented. You'd need serious collateral to back the idea up and chase those who think they can bully you.

I think it boils down to how solo you want to ride and how much you are willing to share. You could consult a software lawyer and find an individual developer to collaborate with. You could approach a development house who will have the ability to protect your idea but they will want the lions share.

This I fear is exactly where the problem is going to be. And I am extremely thankful for your post. It is clear that I would have to be willing to give a huge amount away to get this done properly and to be as you say protected. Just grabbing a developer, saying devbuild me this then selling the app feels like a sure fire way to fail in the long term as Facebook certainly would just add the functionality to their own Facebook mobile app.

I need to think seriously before I do anthing... Any further advice would be very much appreciated.

 

[GordyR]

Oh, and for such a seemingly important app, do yourself a humongous favour and approach a development team, not an individual - no matter how talented they may be.

Any specific development teams you would suggest? And any idea how I would go about setting up a meeting/presentation to them?

 

[GordyR]

All I can say is, good luck .

I'd bloody need it if this was to go anywhere lol