Mobilize Your Business with Mobile Apps! Pt.3

WorldLink’s VP of Mobile Technology, Mike Hall, spoke at a recent Verizon Mobility conference on the topic of Mobilizing Your Business with Mobile Apps. Over the last few weeks we’ve looked at some key points from that discussion including market statistics, native mobile apps versus mobile web sites, business cases, and small business trends.

In the final installment of Mobilize Your Business with Mobile Apps I thought I would keep it light and offer up some good old fashion advice.

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Mobile Apps

In this exploding mobile market there is a slew of useful and certainly non-useful mobile apps available for download. When it comes to your brand it’s crucial to develop an app that is beneficial to your consumers. So many businesses get caught up in the idea of an app that they forget to actually pay attention to the needs of their customers while creating it. The app represents your company, make it count!

Here are a few tips to keep in mind when developing your mobile app:

• Don’t just summarize your web site
• Solve a problem, make something easier
• Reward for use!
• Use location-based discounts
• Always provide guidance to your store
• Payment screens catered to the device
• Include access to your Facebook and Twitter
• Tell your friends about your app!

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Mobile Vendors

*Disclaimer: WorldLink Apps is a mobile app development company.

The app market is still considered a fairly new industry, and with that you have a lot of people trying to capitalize on the new, hot trend. One of the biggest mistakes we’ve heard from our customers is hiring the cheapest developer you can find. Do your research and make sure you are completely comfortable with the company’s capabilities before you sign that contract.

Here are some tips:

• Find a mobile vendor who has proven multi-platform experience
• Find a vendor who has their lead technical engineers here in the US
  • For close communication
  • For project risk reduction
• Don’t just focus on price
  • Phase the quantity to keep costs down
  • You can always find a cheaper bid
  • BUT, you will get what you pay for!
• Think long-term mobile strategy partnership!

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Conclusion

The numbers don’t lie your customer base is mobile, and if they’re not, they will be very soon. It’s not too late to determine your mobile strategy with a proven vendor. There are no signs of the industry slowing down anytime soon, so don’t think you’re too late. Plan your mobile strategy today!

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Recap:

Mobilize Your Business with Mobile Apps! Pt.1

Mobile Your Business with Mobile Apps! Pt.2

Visit WorldLink Apps

The Frisco RoughRiders Launch “New & Noteworthy” Mobile Application

The Frisco RoughRiders, the Class AA affiliate of the Texas Rangers major league baseball club, teamed up with WorldLink Apps to launch an extensive mobile application for the iPhone, and iPod.

Loaded with a large number of location-based features and team information, the app is used by RoughRiders’ fans to better enjoy the game day experience.

The RoughRiders home field is Dr Pepper Ballpark, a unique, innovative, and award-winning baseball park that is well-known for its “fun factor” and family-oriented environment.

The application was recently deemed “New & Noteworthy” by Apple and is available for free on iTunes.

Download here!

Key Features:

Arriving

• Guide me
• Arrival time
• Traffic reports
• Alternate routes
• Parking
• Mark my car!
• Stadium map
• Find my seat
• Find concessions
• Find restroom
• Find pro shop
• Founder’s member
• My Riders account
• FAQ

Pre-Game

• Game day preview
• Announcements
• Schedule
• Standings
• Roster
• Coaches
• Statistics
• News reports
• Predict the Score!
• Fan events
• Charities

Game Time

• Listen Live
• Riders blog
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Facilities report
• Trivia game
• Fan survey

Post-Game

• Find pro shop
• Find my car!
• Arrival time home
• Traffic reports
• Celebrate!
• Sponsor deals

Screen Shots

Madjef’s MusicLab App – Quick Tip Guide

Our most recent music venture, Madjef’s MusicLab, is now available on iTunes for the iPhone and will soon be available for the iPad. The brains behind the beats, Madjef, put together a brief Quick Tip video to help you through the song creation process. Check it out below and let us know what you think about the app.

Download the app!

The Top iPhone and iPad Apps of 2010

iTunes recently released their list of the Hottest App Trends of 2010 out of their pool of over 300,000 mobile applications. Apple can confidently move into 2011 knowing they dominated the app market this year.

With over 300k apps in 20 different categories there really is an app for everything. So check out the list below of 2010’s shining stars. The apps listed are the overall winners in each category. For the full list of standouts per category head over to iTunes.

Top Free iphone apps

1. Facebook
2. Angry Birds Lite
3. Word With Friends Free
4. Skype
5. The Weather Channel
6. Paper Toss
7. Bing
8. Rock Band Free
9. Talking Tom Cat

Top Paid iphone apps

1. Angry Birds
2. Doodle Jump
3. Skee-Ball
4. Bejeweled 2 + Blitz
5. Fruit Ninja
6. Cut the Rope
7. Gamebox 1
8. The Moron Test
9. Plants vs. Zombies
10. Pocket God

Top Grossing iphone apps

1. MLB.com at Bat 2010
2. Angry Birds
3. Call of Duty: Zombies
4. Bejeweled 2 + Blitz
5. FriendCaller 3 Pro
6. Zombie Farm
7. TomTom U.S.A.
8. Tetris
9. Plants vs. Zombies
10. Doodle Jump

Top Free iPad Apps

1. iBooks
2. Pandora Radio
3. Netflix
4. Google Mobile App
5. Solitaire
6. Movies by Flixster
7. IMDb Movies & TV
8. Kindle
9. Google Earth
10. Virtuoso Piano Free 2 HD

Top Paid iPad Apps

1. Pages
2. GoodReader for iPad
3. Numbers
4. Angry Birds HD
5. Keynote
6. Glee Karaoke
7. WolframAlpha
8. Pinball HD
9. Friendly Plus for Facebook
10. Star Walk for iPad

Top Grossing iPad Apps

1. Pages
2. Numbers
3. Keynote
4. LogMeln Ignition
5. Scrabble for iPad
6. Documents To Go Premium
7. Angry Birds HD
8. Real Racing HD
9. Plants vs. Zombies HD
10. Proloquo2Go

What were your favorite apps of 2010?