1) create the concept in your mind first. This costs $0. Try to think through it deeply enough that you really understand what challenges the designer will be

1) create the concept in your mind first. This costs $0. Try to think through it deeply enough that you really understand what challenges the designer will be up against. 2) Figure out what the simplest thing you can launch that is still cool is. $0 3) Have a designer do the design and iterate a few times if necessary. This will cost a bit. 4) Build it. 5) Advertise it. I like stumbleupon a lot for this b/c you can get a lot of people to at least see the first page of the app and maybe use it a bit. If you get a lot of "thumbs up" ratings, your cost per display goes way down b/c they serve it free some of the time. Focus on apps that solve a specific problem that you or someone you know has.