Technology

Engaging Customers on mobile devices

2011-09-11T08:58:00.000-07:00

It's been nearly three years now since I have been involved with Adobe Reader team on mobile devices. We have successfully ported Adobe Reader on nearly all major mobile platforms including Android, Blackberry playbook and Windows Mobile7. The journey in mobile technology world is not only thrilling but also gives you an opportunity to think beyond the boundaries of your work. Lots of innovative ideas and brainstorming sessions on improving customer experience on mobile devices makes your office hours enthralling and challenging at the same time.

Recently I was checking out the list of top 10 paid apps on android and iOS platforms. I categorized the mobile apps in two broad categories viz. those apps which solves some business problem and secondly those which just engages users with the amazing experience the app provides. The ideas around which these apps were built were not something unique and vast number of apps built on similar lines co-exists in the marketplace. What is the difference that draws customer attention more on these bunch of apps ?

I laid my hands on few of these and noted few differences that might have caused individual's inclination towards using those apps. User Interface Design is one such attribute that gives shape and color to your idea. The end users firstly come face to face with how the software looks and thereafter comes the intelligence and the feature set. It is analogous to the first impression you create on opposite sex by the way you carry yourself, then be it your clothes or your mannerisms.Right color combination alongside the art work you use creates a lot of impact on the end user. That seems to be one of the prior reasons of Google search bar success and even Facebook over their rivals Yahoo and Orkut respectively.

Ease of use is another attribute that distinguishes a great app from a normal app. In mobile world, it becomes all the more important to not to clutter things in small window space. Too many options, tabs and windows may harm the overall outlook of your app. Ease of navigation across the windows and smooth transitioning makes your mobile app look more presentable. Google search bar in android smartphones is one such example of simplicity and effectiveness. This reminds me of famous TV advertisement by Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor for Tata Docomo's new ad campaign "Keep it simple silly" which has created an impression among the masses.

Discoverability is third such attribute that developers must keep in mind before shipping the final product out in the market. If you are developing an enterprise application for consumers, there is high probability that similar concept or feature set must be already available in the market. You may not want to loose out to flash your USP feature in your application in this highly competitive and volatile market. You must ensure that every effort is put to make your features easily discoverable to your customers.

I can not stop myself from writing about famous gaming app viz Angry Birds, which received tremendous response from users worldwide, with over 50 million downloads in just 1 year of it's release. It's a simple concept that involves employing a sling shot to propel small cannonball-shaped birds at fragile glass and timber houses occupied by green pigs. Now what keeps user's engaging is not the above mentioned factors but also the learn-ability factor that prompts users to align the projectile angles everytime they aim to destroy pigs. With each shot you sharpen your cognitive abilities and improves your performance to reach to next level.

You might have the greatest of ideas but you need much more than an idea to create an impact on customer's mind.

Technology in next decade

2011-09-03T13:20:00.000-07:00

Few months back, I was asking this to one of my friend turned entrepreneur that what is his opinion on technology in IT domain in next few years. He said definitely not cloud computing alone and certainly not mobile technology but something related to two. We discussed for some time and finally concluded that in next few years a new technology with the name of cloud mobile computing will be the talk of technology world. This new technology is nothing but a term for fusion of cloud computing and mobile technology.

I just happen to browse through the rich feature set of Apple iOS5 which is yet to be launched in the market and my eyes were stuck not on all but one feature that is iCloud. This allows you to access your music, photos, calendar, documents and apps from any of your devices.

Many companies have already started work in this direction. Easy access to internet along with smartphone is creating a new business opportunity for both developers and investors. Concepts such as creating and editing photos on your favorite smartphone or tablet, capturing and editing a movie on the run or even designing a new website by just drag and drop of pre-existing widgets in the cloud on your device and continuing the same work on your desktop and laptop from where you left on your handheld device are creating a lot of buzz in the market.

The effects of combination of mobile and internet are becoming globally pervasive and their effects on business and society will be profound. Customers and end-consumers will buy goods and services via mobile devices and communicate and network via social media applications in the mobile cloud. The UID scheme launched in India has opened new avenues for business start-ups to think and come up with innovative ideas in this direction. as mobile is the one belonging that is common between people of different class in the society.

What about mobile Technology ?

2011-09-03T11:56:00.000-07:00

Everyday we see new start-up coming up with business in mobile applications development. To read more click here...