For clients
Sell the studio, keep a monthly.
Most people do not want a developer. They want an app on the stores that makes their business easier. Slipway is the conversation you have with them, the package you deliver, and the checklist you walk through on a screen share.
What you actually sell
- 1. Discovery, one sitting. They talk. You run it through Slipway. They leave with a named product, screens, and a price.
- 2. Design + listing package. A complete spec, store copy inside the official limits, privacy language, and a launch checklist. Typical fee in the US: $1,500–$4,000 depending on niche.
- 3. Build, with a partner if needed. You can wrap a web app (Capacitor is the usual path) or hand the brief to a developer. Do not promise native Swift/Kotlin if you do not ship it.
- 4. Store submission, together. The client (or you, as a contractor) owns the Apple and Google accounts. You sit with the playbook and tick boxes. First submissions often come back once. Budget a week.
- 5. Monthly retainer. Copy updates, seasonal listings, new screens, crash triage with the builder. $200–$600/mo is a calm range for a local business app that is not a social network.
A quiet revenue sketch
Not a forecast. Just the arithmetic if a few local clients stay.
- Retainers / month
- $1,400
- Packages / year
- $4,800
- Sketch / year
- $21,600
Who owns what
Put the Apple Developer and Play Console accounts in the client’s legal name whenever you can. You can be an Admin. If you hold the accounts, write a transfer clause — otherwise you are stuck supporting an app you no longer want, or they are stuck with an app they do not control.
Digital goods (subscriptions, unlocks) must use Apple IAP and Play Billing. Real-world services — lawn care, salon deposits for an in-person appointment, featured directory spots that are advertising — can use ordinary cards. Get this wrong and review will bounce you.