The Apple Strikes Again.
Developing an app can be stressful. Especially if you are new to it all. Learning new code, following along with tutorials, trying to make sense of what feels more like gibberish than anything else all adds up to a daunting task. This is my story of diving into app development.
June 2017- I begin looking into the likelihood of purchasing an app through one of the “we take care of everything” app development companies. I start off by asking friends and others in the church world that have successful apps online on the iTunes app store. (Example: West Logan COG or Gateway ). Prices vary but they all sway towards the “over our budget” level. One friend mentioned $300 down and about $100 a month and others echoed that as well.
Late June 2017- I decide that I will take it on with very little knowledge of XCODE (Apple’s developer software) or Swift (developer language). I was armed with Photoshop skills, a borrowed Mac Air (from Tom, another team member), and the fast free knowledge you can find online.
2 months. Countless hours of YouTube. Many headaches, strained eyes, and my wife telling me that I was going to go blind from staring at the screen for so long. I accomplished it. Submitted it. Got shot down miserably and my soul was crushed. I let the dream die and decided to move on.
This is what I was left with from Apple in the end.
- 4. 2 Design: Minimum Functionality
I finish up all the steps to finalizing, customizing, and submitting my app. Boom. I submit the app. Thinking it would be good to go. Don’t count on it.
Two things stand in my way:
- Rating I gave was ages 4+. I had unfiltered access to in internet which could allow to inappropriate content being delivered to youngsters. The problem was that I was using a WebView to pull up a permanent YouTube link to our Live Stream. It allowed users to search and gave them access to whatever.
- I had a WebView that allowed people to give directly in the app. Apple is fully against this. You can have it open in a web browser (Like Safari) outside of the app but don’t allow them to give in the app.
So I figure these are two reasonable things to fix. I sit down and fix the two issues. Run test after test (both on XCODE and my devices).
Resubmit at about 11:30 PM on Tuesday, April 3rd, 2018. It goes into “Review” and I get excited. I don’t hear anything all evening and finally at 10:04 EST on Wednesday, April 4th, 2018 I receive the dreaded message to check my iTunesConnect account.
- 2. 1 Performance: App Completeness

So, in a nutshell, if you want an app up be accepted on the app store by Apple you must:
- Be willing to spend many hours trying to figure out things that looked like jibberish.
- Be able to follow directions and watch YouTube videos in order to learn.
- Spend some money to get a head start on an app like I did with the Universal IOS App.
- Step away when you need to. Don’t get burnt out and if you feel that you are step away for a day, a week, a month, or a year even but don’t give up.
- If you get something resembling an app that runs well… SUBMIT IT!
- If it gets denied, revamp and try again.
- If they give you the option to get a phone call take it. When you talk to them tell them that you have tried everything and that nothing changes. If you app doesn’t crash make sure you mention that.
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David Bowling
Youth Pastor, Husband to Katie, Dad to a beautiful daughter. Jack of all trades, master of none. 8 years of church tech on a budget.