docs: Updated readme file and add contributing and release file

CONTRIBUTING.md

@@ -0,0 +1,90 @@
+# Contributing to mParticle Apple SDK
+
+Thanks for contributing! Please read this document to follow our conventions for contributing to the mParticle SDK.
+
+## Setting Up
+
+1. Fork the repository and then clone down your fork
+2. Commit your code per the conventions below, and PR into the mParticle SDK main branch
+3. Your PR title will be checked automatically against the below convention (view the commit history to see examples of a proper commit/PR title). If it fails, you must update your title
+4. Our engineers will work with you to get your code change implemented once a PR is up
+
+## Development Process
+
+1. Create your branch from `main`
+2. Make your changes
+3. Add tests for any new functionality
+4. Run the test suite to ensure tests (both new and old) all pass
+5. Update the documentation
+6. Create a Pull Request
+
+### Pull Requests
+
+* Fill in the required template
+* Follow the [Swift API Design Guidelines](https://swift.org/documentation/api-design-guidelines/)
+* Include screenshots and animated GIFs in your pull request whenever possible
+* End all files with a newline
+
+### PR Title and Commit Convention
+
+PR titles should follow conventional commit standards. This helps automate the release process.
+
+The standard format for commit messages is as follows:
+
+```
+<type>[optional scope]: <description>
+
+[optional body]
+
+[optional footer]
+```
+
+The following lists the different types allowed in the commit message:
+
+- **feat**: A new feature (automatic minor release)
+- **fix**: A bug fix (automatic patch release)
+- **docs**: Documentation only changes
+- **style**: Changes that do not affect the meaning of the code (white-space, formatting, missing semi-colons, etc)
+- **refactor**: A code change that neither fixes a bug nor adds a feature
+- **perf**: A code change that improves performance
+- **test**: Adding missing or correcting existing tests
+- **chore**: Changes that don't modify src or test files, such as automatic documentation generation, or building latest assets
+- **ci**: Changes to CI configuration files/scripts
+- **revert**: Revert commit
+- **build**: Changes that affect the build system or other dependencies
+
+### Testing
+
+We use XCTest framework for our testing. Please write tests for new code you create. Before submitting your PR, ensure all tests pass by running:
+
+#### Build and Test
+```bash
+xcodebuild -workspace mParticle-Apple-SDK.xcworkspace -scheme mParticle-Apple-SDK-iOS test
+```
+
+#### SwiftLint
+```bash
+swiftlint
+```
+
+Make sure all tests pass successfully before submitting your PR. If you encounter any test failures, investigate and fix the issues before proceeding.
+
+### Reporting Bugs
+
+This section guides you through submitting a bug report for the mParticle Apple SDK. Following these guidelines helps maintainers and the community understand your report, reproduce the behavior, and find related reports.
+
+To notify our team about an issue, please submit a ticket through our [mParticles support page](https://support.mparticle.com/hc/en-us/requests/new).
+
+**When you are creating a ticket, please include as many details as possible:**
+
+* Use a clear and descriptive title
+* Describe the exact steps which reproduce the problem
+* Provide specific examples to demonstrate the steps
+* Describe the behavior you observed after following the steps
+* Explain which behavior you expected to see instead and why
+* Include console output and stack traces if applicable
+* Include your SDK version and iOS/macOS version
+
+## License
+
+By contributing to the mParticle Apple SDK, you agree that your contributions will be licensed under its [Apache License 2.0](LICENSE).

README.md

@@ -2,6 +2,8 @@
 
 # mParticle Apple SDK
 
+A single SDK to collect analytics data and send it to 100+ marketing, analytics, and data platforms. Simplify your data integration with a single API.
+
 This is the mParticle Apple SDK for iOS and tvOS.
 
 At mParticle our mission is straightforward: make it really easy for apps and app services to connect and allow you to take ownership of your 1st party data.
@@ -232,6 +234,10 @@ Just by initializing the SDK you'll be set up to track user installs, engagement
 
 - [SDK Documentation](http://docs.mparticle.com/#mobile-sdk-guide)
 
+## Contributing
+
+We welcome contributions! If you're interested in contributing to the mParticle Apple SDK, please read our [Contributing Guidelines](CONTRIBUTING.md).
+
 ## Support
 
 Questions? Have an issue? Read the [docs](https://docs.mparticle.com/developers/sdk/ios/) or contact our **Customer Success** team at <[email protected]>.

RELEASE.md

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+# Release Process
+
+This document outlines the process for creating a new release of the mParticle Apple SDK.
+
+## Automated Release Process
+
+We use GitHub Actions to automate our release process. Follow these steps to create a new release:
+
+### Pre-release Checklist
+- Ensure all commits are in the public main branch
+- Review `sdk-release.yml` in the repo for specific workflow details
+- The release job deploys the most current snapshot of main branch release tag to main branch
+
+## Step 2: Release via GitHub Actions
+
+### What the GitHub Release Job Does
+
+1. **Initial Setup**
+   - Verifies job is running from public repo and on main branch
+   - Creates temporary `release/{run_number}` branch
+
+2. **Testing Phase**
+   - Runs unit tests for iOS and tvOS platforms
+   - Validates CocoaPods spec
+   - Validates Swift Package Manager build
+   - Updates kits and runs additional tests
+
+3. **Version Management**
+   - Runs semantic version action
+     - Automatically bumps version based on commit messages
+     - No version bump if no new commits (e.g., feat/fix)
+     - Generates release notes automatically
+
+4. **Artifact Publishing**
+   - Publishes to package managers:
+     - Pushes to CocoaPods trunk
+     - Updates Swift Package Manager
+   - Creates GitHub release with artifacts
+
+
+
+### How to Release
+
+1. Navigate to the Actions tab in GitHub
+2. Select "iOS SDK Release" workflow
+3. Run the workflow from main branch with "true" first to perform a dry run
+   > Important: Always start with a dry run to validate the release process. This will perform all steps up to semantic release without actually publishing, helping catch potential issues early.
+4. If the dry run succeeds, run the workflow again with "false" option to perform the actual release
+   > Note: Only proceed with the actual release after confirming a successful dry run
+
+### Important Notes
+
+- **Release Duration**: Expect ~30 minutes due to comprehensive test suite across platforms
+- **Platform Requirements**: 
+  - Tests run on macOS runners
+  - Multiple Xcode versions may be tested
+  - Both iOS and tvOS platforms are validated
+- **Code Reusability**: 
+  - Reusable GitHub Actions are defined in the [mparticle-workflows repo](https://github.com/mParticle/mparticle-workflows)
+  - This enables other platforms to reuse similar jobs
+
+## Post-Release Verification
+
+After a successful build through GitHub Actions, verify:
+1. Public repo has a new semantic release tag
+2. New version is available on:
+   - [CocoaPods](https://cocoapods.org/pods/mParticle-Apple-SDK)
+   - Swift Package Manager
+
+## Troubleshooting
+
+If you encounter issues during testing, check:
+- Xcode version compatibility
+- Platform-specific test failures (iOS vs tvOS)
+- GitHub Actions logs for specific error messages
+- CocoaPods trunk status