Smart Phone Apps - Does Your Business Need One?

By Doug Munro 

     With all of the smart phones (iPhones, Androids, BlackBerry's) being used by consumers today it seems you can download an app for just about any conceivable purpose. Many online functions such as stocks, banking, weather, and even ordering flowers, that have been traditionally assigned to computers are now being performed right from an individuals phone. There is no doubt that smart phone usage is increasing at an incredible pace, in 2009 alone, worldwide smartphone sales reached 174 million units!
    So as a retailer, is the time right to make the investment and launch an app for your business?
First, keep in mind that if you have a website it will be viewable from a smart phone already, so some of your customers may already be browsing your website from their phone and possibly even placing orders. Unfortunately, most websites are not optimized for a 4" screen so what might be user friendly on a 21" computer monitor is not quite so easy to navigate on a smart phone. Yes, you can optimize your website for viewing on a smartphone, but even doing that is not the ideal solution. The real strength and advantage of a custom written smart phone app it is designed from the ground up specifically for ease of use on a particular device.
     However, before jumping into the pool and rushing out to launch your own app, there are a lot of pros and cons to be considered, here are a few based on our own experience.....
     Pros - √
    Customer Loyalty - In theory if you can convince a consumer to select your app over others offered, actually download it, and most important keep it on their phone the chances are extremely good that you will be their retailer of choice for future purchases. Let's face it, once they have it on their phone it can be a very convenient way to order or access product information when they don't have access to a computer.√
     Leader of the Pack - A smart phone app tends to be a major investment for a typical retail shop (or at least until someone designs a mass market affordable version) so it's probably a safe bet that having one will set you apart from your competition in the eyes of some of your customers. In simple terms it's trendy, particularly for the younger "Smart Phone Generation". √
     Instant Communication - Smart phone apps allow you to send instant "Push" messages right to users of your app. In simple terms a push message is like a text message and generally pops up right on their screen, potentially a great way to notify them of promotions, reminders, etc. As well, an app will allow more subtle communication in the form of "pull" messages, ones that only pop up when the user actually opens the app. √
     Cons - X
      Initial and Ongoing Cost- This is the big one as it can be fairly substantial, typically running into thousands of dollars with no guarantee of generating "additional" business or seeing a return on investment in a reasonable length of time. X
     Marketing -Be prepared to spend time and money!
While your website can be found by anyone using a search engine the same cannot be said of a phone app. It will fall entirely upon you to get the word out and generate interest. You cannot rely on anyone stumbling across your app on say the iTunes app store. Here's an eye opener...last count pegged the available apps for the iPhone at close to 300,000! Talk about a needle in a haystack. X
     Distribution- Getting your app on to a consumer's phone is a challenge, trust me on this one. First you have to let them know about it, secondly they must see some value in it, and lastly they have to invest the time to find and download it. The process requires a little effort initially on the part of the user. X
       OS Incompatibility - An app written for the operating system (OS) of an iPhone will not work on an Android or Blackberry smart phone, and vice versa. Each smart phone OS requires its own app. X
       Ongoing Commitment - Keeping an apps' offers and products current takes time. Launching a smart phone app is probably not a great idea if you currently have a website and find you simply cannot invest the time required into maintaining and marketing it properly. X
Score so far, Pro's 3, Con's 5. So what's the verdict?
Let's look at a case in point, one close to home. In October of 2010 we launched our own iPhone app with high hopes and our fingers crossed. It is now five months later and where are we at?
In a nutshell, it has not grown our call center business as much as initially hoped and the lion's share of our growth continues to be seen from our website. If I were to evaluate our iPhone app's performance to date strictly from the point of revenue generated I would honestly have to say it's a very poor investment in the short term. However, I suspect that in the longer term it may prove to be very similar to doing online business in the sense that in the infancy of the internet many retailers jumped in early and invested a lot with little return initially. Yet in today's world having a website is as critical to many businesses as having a phone number. It simply took the consumer a bit of time to become comfortable with purchasing online. So on this one my fingers are still crossed.
If, after reading the above, you decide that you want to take the plunge, here are two suggestions that will help you develop or purchase a smartphone app that the consumer will see value in and choose over completing apps.
1) Give it away!
If you visit the iTunes app store there are now dozens of applications available to purchase products. Some of them are free, but many cost $0.99 - $2.99 to download. Trying to recoup the development cost of a retail app through selling it is a mistake; the goal must be to get your app widely distributed. As a retailer you are in the business of selling your product, not selling smartphone apps. As the number of users of your app grow so will your sales revenue.
2) Content, Content, Content!
Remember, regardless of the retail field you are in the competition for customers is almost certainly fierce, so you need an edge, a reason for a smart phone user to choose your app over you competitors.
The answer is simple, CONTENT!
Basing your app around content and providing information about the product you sell will provide users of your product one more reason on to download your app. Another case in point, our own iPhone app features over 300 pages of flower information and trivia with content updates on a regular basis. Again, the initial goal is to get your app onto a user's phone. In the longer term they must have a reason to use your app on a regular basis, or they will delete it or simply forget they have it. So in this case, just like a website Content is King!

By Doug Munro, CEO
Doug Munro is the CEO of Grower Direct Fresh Cut Flowers, a Canadian flower retailer with 40 franchised locations. In addition to their 'brick and mortar" stores Grower Direct operates a call center and e-commerce site which provides worldwide delivery of fresh flowers.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6195967

The Top iPhone Apps - What's the Secret of Their Success?

By Linda Jacobson Ph.D. 

   Earlier this year, Apple released its list of top iPhone apps at the one billion download mark. Downloads just hit two billion, making Apple's "All-Time" Top Apps label even sillier than it was at the time -- but that aside, it's a very interesting list and there are a lot of good lessons to be learned from it.
We know that developers of some top apps have earned from $350,000 (Pocket God) to $800,000 (iShoot). Some have probably earned much more. It's difficult to estimate income even if the number of downloads is known, because app pricing bounces around a lot. Koi Pond has been downloaded about 900,000 times and Enigmo over 800,000. Even at, say, a dollar a time, that's very good money.
How to get access to this giant cash cow? Here are some tips, based on our analysis of Apple's twenty top paid apps:
   Get in early
The iPhone 3G came out in July 2008. Almost half of the top apps had been released by August. The rest were all out by the end of 2008, except one that came out in January 2009.
Timing is everything. Of course, some of this is just a matter of physical reality -- if you sell 5,000 apps a day for 100 days, that's 500,000 sales; if you only have 5 days, you can only reach 25,000. But there's more to it than that. There are simply so many apps now (over 50,000) that it's very difficult to be seen. Apps that came out early, and gained traction, had a huge advantage over competitors, and that kind of advantage is often maintained long-term.
   Entertain the masses
If you want to save the planet, enlighten humanity or improve people's health, you'll get your reward in heaven, but you won't have a winning iPhone app. Every one of the top paid apps is a toy of some kind. Fourteen are in the Games category, 4 Entertainment and 2 Music.
Interestingly, this entertainment is generally not mindless. Most of the games are complex, requiring skill and concentration, and quite a few have many permutations or constant updates (Pocket God). Complex games include Pocket God, Fieldrunners, Texas Hold'em Poker and Monopoly. The simpler games, like the memory matching game Bejeweled 2 or the skateboard app Touchgrind, still require skill and concentration.
Only a few, like Koi Pond, require little mental effort, but even this one has many options and constant movement. Nearly all the apps have great graphics and plenty of movement.
There were only 2 entirely silly and pointless apps, namely the simulated beer app, iBeer, and the self-explanatory iFart Mobile.
   There's a surprise in every package
Ocarina, the ancient flute simulation, is a real surprise. Who would have thought an obscure musical instrument would have ranked so high? The app developers are just as interesting -- a high-flying crowd of musicians and computer scientists from places like Stanford and Princeton. Could it be that there is still a place for real quality and innovation on the Internet? Happy thought.
   Develop for the device
Using the accelerometer seems to increase an app's chances of success. Most of the top paid apps are accelerometer-intensive, or use other novel or unique iPhone features.
The message here is that successful app developers take advantage of the device's novel or unique functionality. The iPhone is mobile, it has a touchscreen, it has an accelerometer. Develop for the device! Apps that act as though they're on a regular desktop computer are likely to be less successful.
    Have the right background
It really helps to be an experienced software developer, preferably with a background in Internet games. Most of the companies and individuals who distinguished themselves have a long track record in this market. In some cases, it was just a matter of taking an existing business model and making the logical leap to iPhone apps. In others, the app was the start of the business and in some cases it could also be the end of the road.
   Don't be a one-hit wonder
Four of the top paid apps were orphans or close, with only 1 to 2 apps per developer. Far more common, though, were developers with stables of 3 to 10 apps. Only 1 developer had more than 10 apps. Successful developers leveraged existing products and apps, building on one to create others - but adapting an app to make very similar spin-offs (iBeer, iMilk, iSoda, Magic Wallet), while smart, seems a little too opportunistic. The app developers that have developed several unique, compelling games are far more likely to have multiple successes.
In fact, 3 companies (Freeverse, Pangea Software, Electronic Arts) each had 2 top-twenty apps. All 3 are big or biggish companies, implying that it takes significant resources to product a winning app.
   Don't be too hung up on price
The de facto standard iPhone app price is $0.99. This level was quickly established in the App Store as the place where most buyers seemed happy. Possibly it's due to the standard cost of iTunes music.
In any case, most of the winning apps command better prices, with 13 of the 20 priced from $1.99 up, and 4 of them commanding the majestic (for iPhone apps) price of $4.99 on the day we did the analysis.
    You don't need Lite or Free teaser apps
Here's a very interesting factoid. Only 2 of the top twenty apps (iHunt and iShoot) have a free or lite version, at least at the time of writing. Both developers are individuals rather than companies, and it's interesting that the bigger outfits don't see the need for teasers. The implication is that if it's worth buying, people will pay for it.
The freebie iShoot Lite had 2.4 million downloads in January, and there were 320,000 paid downloads. So it's quite possible that the free app drove sales of the paid app -- but it's also possible that there might have been more paid downloads had the free app not been available.
    You don't have to be a huge company (although it helps)
Could it be that success in iPhone apps depends on having massive, sophisticated, expensive marketing strategies? Not necessarily.
There's no question that it helps to be Internet savvy and have deep pockets, but the winning app developers were an encouraging mix of sizes and types.
Four of the 17 developers are big multinational companies -- Apple itself (Texas Hold'em), Electronic Arts (TETRIS, Monopoly), Activision (Crash Bandicoot) and SEGA (Super Monkey Ball). Then there are a bunch of mid-sized companies and, happily, also 7 small groups and 4 individuals.
iFart Mobile is an interesting story. It was developed by an Internet marketing guru who understood how to work the system and get incredible publicity by producing a pointless app that he must have known would easily generate controversy, laughter and interest.
The Internet mythology of smart guys working evenings or weekends, or out of the garage, and hitting the jackpot, lives on. The little guys in this group are John Moffett (iHunt), Ethan Nicholas (iShoot) and, so far as we can tell, Shinya Kasatani (Pocket Guitar). These guys might not be the next Steve Jobs, but they have been successful to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars, just a dollar or two at a time. Pretty impressive.
    Controversy is useful, but by no means essential
iFart Mobile in particular, and to a lesser extent iBeer and iHunt, are quite controversial and almost certainly gained a lot of publicity because of this. You can almost view the controversy in the ratings -- while most of the 20 top apps have a dominant rating of 5 stars, gradually dropping down, these 3 controversial apps had large numbers of ratings for both 5 stars and 1 star. So this distribution of rating might not hurt an app, and might show a developer that the app has a lot of potential to create buzz.
The other top apps did not seem designed to attract controversy and this obviously didn't hurt them.
Five-star ratings are neither essential nor possible for top apps
You can't please all of the people all of the time -- so the more ratings there are, the lower the odds of a 5 or even 4.5 star average. None of the top apps had 5 stars and most had 3 to 4 stars. iHunt had only 2.5 stars, because a lot of people hated it.
It takes a LOT of downloads to develop a lot of ratings
Although probably millions of people collectively downloaded the 20 top apps, the highest number of ratings (Fieldrunners) was 1,479 and the lowest (Pocket God) was 226. Most users don't provide ratings, and even fewer write reviews.
Given that people like to be part of a happy herd, it's almost certain that savvy developers actively promote positive ratings and reviews.
    The theme doesn't have to be classic or familiar
Classics like Texas Hold'em, Monopoly and TETRIS (all developed by public companies) did feature in the 20 top apps. The other apps were sometimes familiar, sometimes not, but none of them really adapted a big-name, well-known game. Pocket Guitar, of course, used a well-loved instrument with great success. But to balance that, Ocarina catapulted an obscure ancient flute to fame.
    Quality counts
There are many, many, many iPhone games with themes not dissimilar to the top games. There are dozens of guitar simulations. There are 5 other iFart apps. So just having a good idea isn't enough.
The iFart apps are an interesting illustration. Almost uniformly, they have not developed a following, and the comments are mainly negative -- not because they're vulgar and silly, but because they're not very well executed and users don't like them.
    Now you know some of the secrets. Happy programming!
Findanapp is a simple, searchable database of all the iPhone apps we can lay our hands on. Our site has details of over 59,690 apps, and counting.

Findanapp is a simple, searchable database of all the iPhone apps, with search tools to allow viewers to find the best iPhone apps for them.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3044094

Smart Phones - Are They Really A Smart Decision

By Samantha Goode 

        First, there was the standard land line phone system; then came the cell phone - a convenient little portable item that everyone adopted a "must have" attitude toward. Progress didn't stop there, however. Now, we have the Smart Phone - the answer to the on-the-go lifestyle that demands immediate access to whatever electronic needs that we happen to have, in addition to the ability to phone our family and friends for a chat whenever the whim presents itself.

To be sure, Smart Phones are capable of extraordinary electronic feats, but convenience - especially that of the technological variety - always comes at a cost, and this one comes with quite a hefty one. The bottom line is that, if you plan to buy a Smart Phone, then plan on paying a visit to the loan officer of your local bank on the way to the store. These electronic marvels are designed to bring true computer capability right to the palm of your hand, but most people will have to put some serious thought into the type of financial commitment that they'll have to make in order to become the proud owner of a brand new bouncing baby Smart Phone.
Pros and Cons of Owning a Smart Phone
Just like anything else, Smart Phones have their bright and dark sides and, depending upon how much you're willing to compromise, they'll either be a great investment for you, or not at all worth the money that you've invested.
Pros

• For those who, until now, had been carrying around a mobile phone and PDA, this combines the two into one unit, without losing any of the capability of either format.
• This is definitely a multi-media friendly device, offering the opportunity to enjoy both audio and video files - or both, if you prefer - without a lot of hoopla.
• Cell phone software companies have taken quite kindly to the Smart Phone and are fully supportive of it when it comes to developing software that's compatible with these units - especially those in the game and entertainment industries.
• If accessories are your thing, then you'll love the number of add-ons that you can purchase to go with your new Smart Phone - including those which utilize Bluetooth technology.

Cons

• Unless you have very good vision, you might have trouble reading the screen on the Smart Phone - it's smaller and the resolution isn't as sharp as that of a Pocket PC.
• Text messaging and other text-related capabilities are compromised as a result of the limited text-entry that's intrinsic to these devices.
• Unlike the Pocket PC, Smart Phones are missing some applications that are critical to some users. Among these are Microsoft products, such as Pocket Excel and Pocket Word.
• You may be told that you'll have nationwide coverage, but the reality is that coverage of that type only includes larger cities with higher populations. As a result, there's quite a menu of non-service areas.

Smart Phone FeaturesMuch like a mini-computer with telephone capability, these devices are often seen as handy little items for meeting most or all of the needs of those who are on the run, but want to have access to their PC and phone service, regardless of where they roam.

• Cell phone service is certainly one of the major perks of the Smart Phone - complete with voice mail. Just as in the case of mainstream cell phone varieties, specific service plans can be purchased for these, depending upon your particular needs and preferences.
• Internet connectivity is also an available Smart Phone feature, allowing you to retrieve wireless e-mail messages and gain access to search engines and other online goodies. Just pop open your flip phone and jump onto the web.
• If you're interested in games, the Smart Phone offers those, as well. A variety of computerized games can be played - either online or through special software - just as if you were using your home PC.
• Office functions, such as certain Windows or other Microsoft programming, are also available, allowing you to create and store files for future use.
• If you're bored and have a bit of extra time on your hands, you can even gain access to online movies through the video feature that the Smart Phone has to offer. Or, if you prefer, you can listen to your favorite tunes as a result of the audio features.
• Photography is also an option when you invest in a Smart Phone. Just as with the mainstream camera phones, these devices offer instant pictures that can be viewed on-screen immediately after they're snapped. These units, however, are more than just cell phone cameras, so if you're looking for something more, think "Smart Phone".

Smart Phone PricingAlthough these have been compared to PDAs on a certain level, Smart Phones are definitely more sophisticated - and more compact. As compensation for these conveniences, however, you must be willing to pay a hefty price. Typically starting at about $600 and ranging into the thousands, Smart Phones may be all the rage, but if you're planning to buy one simply for the novelty of it all, then you should save your money and stick with something a bit less progressive.
Keep in mind that additional costs will be incurred in order to establish phone service and gain internet connectivity. That equates to the price of the unit plus the additional charges for basic services and any special features that you choose to opt for - all of which can add up to an exorbitant amount of money.
The best way to keep down your expenses is to take the time and effort to do some online research before you make a commitment to buy a Smart Phone or specific service plan that you'll need in order to fully utilize all of the features that it offers. By simply typing "smart phone comparison" into the keyword area of any major search engine, you'll have cost and feature comparison information at your fingertips, which will help you to determine which one is right for you - if, indeed, any of them are. Is investing in a Smart Phone a wise decision? Only you can decide.

About the Author
Samantha Goode is a freelance technology writer who loves to provide tips to consumers shopping for smart phones [http://www.a1-cell-phones.com/index.html], pda phone [http://www.a1-cell-phones.com/cell-phone-reviews.html] and blackberry pda [http://www.a1-cell-phones.com/cell-phone-comparison.html].

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/50408

Smart Phone of the Future - A Wish List

By Mark Benley 

     Looking at the sleek, shiny blackberry in my wife's hand, I could not resist asking to have a look-see at what my son had so lovingly sent to her as a birthday gift from the USA. She had been apparently using (and flaunting) it for over a month now and I was really intrigued how she would be using the hi-tech feature rich gizmo ever since I had heard of the acquisition.
As it turned out a few minutes later, she had been using it precisely for receiving calls and listening to music. That's it!
    After some deliberation and weighing out the threat, I managed to muster up enough courage to ask her about making use of other features to which she sweetly replied that she does not want to use it for anything more than what she was doing.
I started to mention something about its stupendous features like the enterprise update, a plethora of facilities like the keyboard shortcuts, the thumb-wheel, escape button, etc she pretended I was talking to someone else!
   This got me thinking. If the smart phones were to function like the basic phones, why have so many features in them? Maybe, the manufacturers would like to come up with something like exact replicas of smart phones with nothing but the basic features.
That was on the lighter side.
   I could not but help admiring the power pack that these modern gadgets have become. We have a large verity of smart phones to choose from. Having seen the various features, I would venture to say that Nokia X6 is my personal favorite with its well integrated mix of features that include touch screen, a 32 GB Internal Memory, dual LED flash 5 MP camera, ARM 11 434 MHz processor, etc, etc.
But then almost all smart phones come with similar features, give or take a few add-ons and apps. Most function like a mini computer in our pockets. So where are we heading now?
    Smart Phone of the Future
For a person on the move, as well as for anyone who functions out of the classic "office", the smart phone of the future will have to reach out much beyond features like increased capacity of gaming, camera, music, memory etc. There have to be more features that are useful to a professional who would like to carry an all-in-one gadget that has the following features-

• Voice Commands - There has to be a better quality voice convert software or apps that make touch screen or using a keyboard, mouse etc redundant. This would make the smart phone of the future write or listen to your emails or give dictations while on the move and also connect for you on voice recognition.
• Scanner Functionality - What do you do if you find something that you are interested in scanning? The camera lens should double up as a scanner or should be able to take a clear picture of an A4 size paper typed on font of size 12.
• Project Screen - How would it look if you were capable of projecting a picture or real time screen shot on the nearest wall? This would give a fillip to the quad band usage and video conferring.
• Satellite Based Connectivity - Although AT&T and some other phone manufacturers are already working on it, on the smart phone of the future you would be able to make or receive calls from anywhere on earth!
• Higher Battery Life- With the power hungry features and apps, there is a need to have a faster charging, longer lasting hybrid batteries.
• Slim USB Ports - In addition to the Bluetooth technology, this would ensure better transfer or storage with sideways integration of smart phone of the future with other multimedia devices.
• Lighter, Cheaper Hand Sets - This is one characteristic that would always make a big difference in any niche market.

Adding these features, would definitely make the gen-next smart phone of the future a worthwhile investment.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/5199052