Mindfire Whitepaper On Accompanying Mobile Apps

How are Accompanying Mobile Apps increasing Business Revenues?
Research Paper A Mindfire Solutions Whitepaper
Table of Contents
1 2 Executive Summary .........................................................................................................................................3 Introduction ......................................................................................................................................................4 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 3 Objective .....................................................................................................................................................4 Scope ...........................................................................................................................................................4 Mindfire Solutions - Creating a favorable environment for app development ...........................................5 Target Audience ..........................................................................................................................................5 Methodology ...............................................................................................................................................5
Mobile App Economy: Changing face of Business ..........................................................................................6 3.1 How Mobile Phones and iPhone have changed our lives............................................................................6 3.1.1 Customers are changing their service expectations ............................................................................7 3.1.2 Businesses are changing the way they operate ..................................................................................7 3.1.3 Smartphones & iPhone predominantly have brought about these changes on a global scale ...........8 3.2 3.3 The Mobile Industry in Figures ..................................................................................................................11 Differentiating EMA and AMA ...................................................................................................................14
Business Applications: What can you possibly develop? .............................................................................15 4.1 4.2 4.2.1 4.2.2 4.2.3 4.2.4 4.2.5 4.2.6 4.2.7 4.2.8 4.2.9 B2C Mobile Apps .......................................................................................................................................15 B2B Accompanying Mobile Apps (AMA) - Case Studies ............................................................................16 Create and Share Files ............................................................................................................................17 Notes and Tasks......................................................................................................................................19 Capturing Ideas.......................................................................................................................................20 Business Intelligence ..............................................................................................................................22 Business Process .....................................................................................................................................22 Mobile Sales ...........................................................................................................................................24 News and Research ................................................................................................................................25 Mobile IT.................................................................................................................................................26 Communicator Apps ...............................................................................................................................26
4.2.10 Productivity Apps ...................................................................................................................................27 5 Success Factors for Mobile App Development ...............................................................................................29 6 Suggestions .......................................................................................................................................................30 7 References ........................................................................................................................................................31
www.mindfiresolutions.com
Accompanying Mobile Apps
info@mindfiresolutions.com
1
SEE SECTION 3.1, Pg 7 AMA Overview: Changing face of business
Executive Summary
This whitepaper seeks to demonstrate the reality of Accompanying Mobile App (AMA) and iPhone usage in businesses world over and the need for Software Product companies to quickly adapt into the new way of engaging with their users. As businesses increasingly get into the mode of On-to-Go connectivity for a better customer experience, Enterprise Apps and Accompanying Mobile Apps are slowing getting into the balance sheets of the company, positively impacting revenues. Two different types of apps have been identified as particularly relevant in the B2B space. It is important to understand how Accompanying Mobile apps are different from Enterprise Mobile Apps. 1. Enterprise Mobile Apps: Enterprise apps are used within the organization as efficiency boosters for the organization to be more efficient, agile and responsive to need of the hour. 2. Accompanying Mobile Apps: Accompanying Mobile apps are interpreted as an extension of existing software product.
SEE SECTION 3.3, Pg 15
Differentiating
EMA and AMA
Accompanying Mobile Apps are changing the way Software Product Companies do business.
Statistics reveal that almost all industry verticals have become more inclined towards co-existing in the mobile iPhone space too, even though the presence is just with an iPhone app. Similarly, research does reveal that almost all work/productivity apps available on the Apple iTunes store has been developed by software product companies. Details about the benefits of developing an Accompanying Mobile App in the Case studies section.
Statistics on usage Smartphone, Apps
Accompanying Mobile apps are enabling businesses worldwide across industry verticals. In addition to their existing traditional lines of business, operating in the mobile space has enabled them benefits discussed above. The whitepaper takes a closer look at few significant types of B2B apps by Software product companies and tries to analyze the Before vs After picture.
Case Studies
SEE SECTION 5, Pg 30
Once an organization makes a decision to enter into creation/development of an Accompanying Mobile App, it is equally important to ensure that the effort is streamlined and guided towards success. View more about the critical success factors which affect Accompanying Mobile App development.
Critical Success Factors
SEE SECTION 6, Pg 31
The whitepaper recommends critical success factors which are considered as foundational to the growth of next level of revenues from iphone/mobile apps:
Suggestions
2
2.1
Introduction
Objective
This whitepaper aims to: Introduce Accompanying Mobile Apps as a concept which exists but is not named yet. Understand business impact of enterprises developing mobile version of their software product. Learn from the industry case studies of companies who have developed iphone apps of their products. Demonstrate how Mindfire Solutions can help in the Mobile app consultation and development. Show what things to be kept in mind while going ahead with the app development. Develop a set of recommendations related to Accompanying Mobile Apps.
2.2
Scope
This is a strategic and exploratory document which aims to: Provide guidance about possibilities of using iPhone and other smart phones as a platform to engage with customers. Provide though provoking ideas on how iPhone apps can actually convert to a revenue generation source in addition to existing lines of business of a software product enterprise. This document does not delve into the intricacies of revenue impact of each of the companies who have implemented AMAs. It also does not seek to promote idea cloning. The scope of the document is limited to sharing of ideas available with iPhone app store and as available on the web and other reference sources. This document does not give detailed advice about the financial benefits of developing and implementing an Accompanying Mobile App. It does not include how the app development would be funded. Information regarding the leading Mobile App consulting and software development firm, Mindfire Solutions, is depicted as is. The scope of the document is limited to the expertise of Mindfire in Mobile App development area only. All the areas in which Mindfire develops software other than Mobile technologies are out of scope for the context of this whitepaper.
2.3 Mindfire Solutions - creating a favorable environment for app development

Mindfire Solutions is one of the best iPhone app developers available in the world. For over 9 years, Mindfire has assisted in conceptualization and developed Mobile apps for various industries, primarily software product companies. Mindfire has enabled enormous benefits for businesses and consumers because of the expertise and depth of skills of its mobile development consulting team.
Mindfire, as it is called in short for Mindfire Solutions, has a long experience in Mobile apps development using iPhone SDK, Blackberry, Symbian, Windows Mobile, Palm, Brew and other technologies. Mindfire wants to use this whitepaper to draw the attention of those who read it to the criteria which is needed for Accompanying Mobile apps to succeed. We encourage our readers to:
Get informed about the latest and happening things being done in the industry vertical they are in. Try to give a thought to their existing software product and think which portion of the system would be most needed by customers on the go so that they can feel instantly connected. Identify critical areas, prioritize and promote existing and interoperable technical building blocks to share and reduce costs of AMA development. Focus on the user experience while launching the AMA hence qualified software development and consulting partner is very essential.
2.4
Target Audience
This white paper would be most beneficial to you if you are: A Software Product Company /ISVs/SaaS/Service Providers (And you have a software product which you sell your clients). If you are in this category, you would have the most compelling reason to have the most used, critical portion of your business on iPhone so that your customers get connected to you on-the-go. An independent consultant or Freelancer who creates mobile apps for profit or for clients in Software product companies/ISV/SaaS.
2.5
Methodology
This White Paper is the result of a combination of: First Hand data collected from over 150+ Mobile App development clients of ours Interviews conducted with Mindfire Mobile App Consulting and Development Team Online Research and References (Surveys, Independent Case Studies, Newspaper reports)
The goal has been to synthesize the wide variety of information available in a rapidly developing field into a format that inspires readers to look to the future and makes them aware of how AMA can increase revenues.
This whitepaper is a research initiative produced by Mindfire Mobile Development practice to discuss and analyze how Accompanying Mobile App can benefit work for Software Product Companies/ ISV/ SaaS enterprises. Share knowledge about what is feasible to be done by these businesses in Mobile/iphone app space. Sharing information so that businesses can take a fresh look at Accompanying Mobile Apps. Spreading awareness of apps which have been developed by Software product companies and how these are helping the growth of revenues and brand for the enterprises. Recommend a neutral decision making environment, transparent enough to smoothen the Accompanying Mobile App adoption curve.
3
3.1
Mobile App Economy: Changing face of Business

How Mobile Phones and iPhone have changed our lives
A decade back, no one would have thought that a small device would become so much inseparable from our lives ten years later. Over these years, mobile phones have gradually evolved into highly sophisticated gadgets with amazing computational capabilities on the go.
The emerging Collaboration Mobile Economy consists of businesses dedicated to changing the very way in which we live. Tools to improve efficiency, lower cost, and collaborative consumption now serve as the driving force of enterprises, creating a whole new kind of economy. Arguably, the most significant progress thus far has been made in the workplace.
With this global acceptance of Internet and mobile, traditional work environment of isolated offices have given way to intricately stringed and networked enterprises. This networking over the web and mobile is catalyzing major changes in how we do business. Mobile and cloud computing technologies have made roaming connectivity and real-time collaboration not only possible, but commonplace. There is a steady and continuing shift toward shared workplaces, both public and private.
3.1.1 Users are demanding superior web experiences and highly satisfying, convenient, on-thego mobile site speeds regardless of their mode of access.
Customers are changing their service expectations
Users are demanding superior web experiences and highly satisfying, convenient, on-thego mobile site speeds regardless of their mode of access. Localytics, an app analytics firm, reported earlier this year that one-quarter of downloaded apps are only opened one time. In the July 2011 iSurvey report published by Equation Research in association with Compuware, it clearly spelt out the changing expectation levels of users. We have cited the survey findings as is with due credit to the surveyors. Key findings are:
Mobile users expectations for mobile website speed continue to increase. 71% of global mobile web users expect websites to load as quickly, almost as quickly or faster on their mobile phone compared to the computer they use at home up from 58% in 2009. However, almost half (46%) said websites load more slowly on their phone. Nearly 60% of web users say they expect a website to load on their mobile phone in 3 seconds or less and 74% are willing to wait 5 seconds or less for a single web page to load before leaving the site. 50% are only willing to wait 5 seconds or less for an application to load before exiting. 57% of global mobile web users had a problem accessing a website in the past year and 47% had a problem accessing an app on their phone. More than 80% of mobile web users would access websites more often from their phone if the experience was as fast and reliable. Mobile users do not have much patience for retrying a website or application that is not functioning initially a third will go to a competitors site instead. The majority of mobile web users are only willing to retry a website (78%) or application (80%) two times or less if it does not work initially. A bad experience on a mobile website leaves mobile web users much less likely to return to, or recommend, a particular website. Nearly half of mobile web users are unlikely to return to a website that they had trouble accessing from their phone and 57% are unlikely to recommend the site.
3.1.2
Businesses are changing the way they operate
Both B2B as well as B2C enterprises today are keen on engaging the customer and building a relationship with him rather than closing him a sale and closing the account. After-Sales is equally important as sales today and in majority of the organizations, this is the key driver which dictates business strategies. Often customer service software is installed to maintain customer database and take care of existing customers. Apart from
having software to improve the service quality, there are other strategies which should be studied and implemented. Feedback: Organizations have realized that the best person to say if their service is excellent, mediocre or pathetic is the customer itself. Hence feedback mechanism is being strengthened in any type of enterprise as we speak. Mobile based easy-to-fill feedback forms to clients through an iPhone/Mobile app, gets this done conveniently. Mobile apps if developed, promoted and installed on users iPhones would reduce the chances of recording an experience feedback getting missed. Complaint Book of Records: Maintaining and acting upon complaint book of records, missed opportunity analysis, Learning and Failure point analysis are few of the methods which organizations are using to enhance customer satisfaction levels. This is where enterprise level apps come into picture where data entry using mobile apps is possible by a field sales person and the same app displays all data points in a dashboard for the CXOs, on-the-go, anytime, every time. Reaching Out: Organizations are reaching out to users with innovative viral ideas which ensures that users are attracted to the offering, start using it for a very less or no price and keep being engaged and connected with the organization. Mobile apps are getting this done successfully.
3/4th of iOS and Android apps dont connect to a backend server
3.1.3
Smartphones & iPhone predominantly have brought about these changes on a global scale
The best part about a mobile phone is that it has become an inseparable component in our daily lives. And the best part about a Smartphone is that it is smart enough to handle the communications not just by voice or text but also being able to connect to the cloud, being able to connect remotely to servers or directly processing the results in the native client itself and displaying the results. In fact, recently Gigaom published an article which mentioned that 3/4th of iOS and Android apps dont connect to a backend serverii. Ryan Light, creative and marketing director at Kinvey, said Kinveys research has found that apps that connect to backends receive higher rankings and more downloads, because theyre likely dynamic with more fresh content and are more social and contextual.
As a result, all the idle time of a person while in a cab, in the escalator, in a flight and all such places without conventional access to a laptop, is aptly taken up by Smartphones.
And that is the reason why more and more enterprises have been jumping into the bandwagon of smartphone apps.
App Store boasts over 100,000 apps. Contrast that with the roughly 10,000 apps in the Android Market, or the approximately 1,000 apps available from Microsoft's Windows Marketplace for Mobile, and you can easily see that Apple is by far the leader in the app store arena.iii Apple's Phil Schiller, senior vice president of worldwide marketing, recently pointed out that Apple receives more than 10,000 new app submissions each week. According to Mobclix.com, more than 100 million apps are downloaded from the Apple app store each month. Doing the math based on the number of iPhone users, which mean that iPhone users download an average of 11 apps per month.
Analytics firm Localytics also went a step further to analyze the average session lengths. iv The research revealed interesting insights into user experience with tablets. Arguably, iPad being the most sought tablet the research took into account iPad users only. Few key observations from the research: Getting a news app onto an iPad users device seems to generate extremely long interactions between app and user iPad users appear to be playing short, more casual games, rather than in-depth time-consuming ones Sports apps may be used more to check scores than to truly delve into sports stories and news iPads and tablets appear to be very conducive to deeper, more informationpacked experiences, such as reference and health apps These levels of interaction do have an important message to app creators and marketers knowing your audience, users can help pick the right type of app to generate the most engagement possible. While a business tool may be a very useful app to create for your clients, an engaging news app can generate up to three times the engagement per session.
Localytics also looked at data on sessions per app per month, separated by app vertical, to see which type of app receives the largest number of user interactions per month.
Some key observations: Sports and entertainment apps remain relatively poor at generating user engagement Despite long user sessions, reference apps appear to be rarely used The iPads reputation as a reading and gaming device appears well deserved
Enterprises are hopping on to the mobile apps bandwagon to ensure their 24X7 accessibility to their users. Businesses are getting ready with the browser based mobile apps, native apps and accelerator based apps. We will get into details of Enterprise apps and Accompanying Apps in a later section. Details of the percentage of mobile internet users compared to conventional internet users are given in the section below.
3.2
The Mobile Industry in Figures
Few weeks back, Socialcast, released a research article which summarized pictorially the mammoth numbers of the mobile app economy. The reference sources used by them used Gartner, Forrestor and other widely accepted research reports. The illustrations below have been taken from their source with due credit to them.v
(Data Source: Illustration obtained with permission from SocialCast.com)
3.3
Differentiating EMA and AMA

Two different types of apps have been identified as particularly relevant in the B2B space. It is important to understand how Accompanying Mobile apps are different from Enterprise Mobile Apps. The differentiation lies in the way makers perceive it and there is no difference from the perspective of the user businesses. 1. Enterprise Mobile Apps: Enterprise apps are apps which are created or procured to be used within an organization. These become easy collaboration tool which connects the entire workforce on to go. Needless to say these are efficiency boosters for the organization to be more efficient, agile and responsive to need of the hour.
2. Accompanying Mobile Apps: Accompanying Mobile apps are interpreted as an extension of existing software product. Lets take the example of a classic app whose update has been released as we write this whitepaper -
Enterprise Mobile Productivity app from Mobile Flow LLC.vi Fieldforce for Jive integrates Fieldforce
mobile productivity app with Jive 5 to make life easier and more productive for todays increasingly mobile professionals. With Fieldforce with the Jive Apps Market, enterprises will be able to extend the power of the Jive 5 social enterprise out into the field and likewise, those mobile field professionals who increasingly rely on their smartphones as their primary productivity tool can now easily share with their colleagues back in the office. This is an Accompanying Mobile App when we look at it from the creators (Mobile Flow LLC) point of view. The reason is Mobile Flow already has a base software product which is independently a source of revenue for the organization. When they release a mobile version of their product, this opens them up to much greater audience/users, a completely different market altogether. The revenues from their base system are now accompanied by revenues from their mobile version of their software product. It is just an extension of their existing system with an aim to engage greater number of users more frequently. This is an Accompanying Mobile App for their business. The same app when looked at from the users point of view becomes an Enterprise Mobile App. The user organization buys the app licenses, they get shared server space and backend and they use it as an on-demand plug and play solution in their enterprise. The user organization boosts its productivity by using their smartphones and can collaborate.
Business Applications: What can you possibly develop?

This section gives an overview of the Accompanying Mobile Apps created by handpicked companies catering to different categories on the iPhone app store. Innovative and fresh content, classy user interfaces and good performance of the apps below have ensured significant business revenues for the creators of these Accompanying Mobile apps. We would analyze the B2B section in much greater detail as that is more relevant to the scope of this whitepaper.
4.1
B2C Mobile Apps

These applications revolve around making life easier and richer for consumers and deepening the relationship between consumers and businesses, so that consumers feel they have more say in what they consume.vii
4.2
B2B Accompanying Mobile Apps (AMA) - Case Studies

B2B Accompanying Mobile apps can be created in almost all businesses depending on the needs and preferences of the users. For example, if an enterprise is into Software product development of its CRM/ERP package, an Accompanying Mobile App can be created with a subset of the features as discussed in the image below.
This whitepaper discusses 10 different categories and the Accompanying mobile apps in them below. Due to limitations of space and time, applications have been handpicked at random in each of the categories. Inclusion or Non-inclusion of apps in this whitepaper does not mean superiority or inferiority of any app in anyway. This is an indicative list and not an exhaustive one. This is an attempt to take examples and learn about the app, the company which created it, cases, benefits and key challenges so that our whitepaper audience can see the value addition to their businesses because of Accompanying Mobile apps.
4.2.1
Create and Share Files
Case Study 1: SharePlus: SharePoint Mobile Client

The company which created this Accompanying Mobile app is SouthLabs. Their expertise lies in the development of mobile software applications as well as regular software development. Product lines include mobile clients for enterprise document managers and line of business applications. One of their innovations is SharePlus, which puts SharePoint data of your enterprise reachable to you all the time on the go.
There are a host of things which can be done including syncing up Sharepoint lists and libraries automatically and editing them offline and syncing back to SharePoint when online. Best part about the app is SharePlus works with your current SharePoint credentials, so you won't have to ask for special permissions to use it. SharePlus doesn't also require any server side components. The app is rated 4+ in iPhone app store and costs $14.99.
Case Study 2: Drivve: DM (Document Management) App

A Franco-American-German team at Drivve obsessed with enhancing user experience in the world of document/content management led to the creation of this iPhone app. The companys expertise lies in developing Document Management systems and generating revenues from sales, support and maintenance of the product. One of their innovations is Drivve DM which enables easy document management on the iPhone. Drivve DM is a robust yet feature-rich and secure document management and workflow on the iPhone platform with user-friendly UI. The app makers claim that anyone who has worked with Drivve DM
knows that weve developed one of the most robust yet user-friendly Web 2.0 applications for business. Drivve DM for iPhone is a mobile extension of that experience, exploiting every possible iPhone and iPad feature so you can easily find, view or workflow your documents from anywhere at any time. Staying seriously connected to your business has never been this easy (or cool).
The app is rated 4+ and is available for free download. Here Accompanying Mobile App has been not been used to generate direct revenues. However allowing a portion of your system for free piques interest in the audience and people are likely to buy the core version of your product. Here AMA assists sales of your existing product.
Case Study 3: iCMS: Content Management System app

Flatirons Solutions has made available a read-only CMS for public use. If you would like to use iCMS with your EMC Documentum system, the iCMS Server is available at no cost.
Colorado based Flatirons provides consulting, systems integration, engineering, and program management services to commercial and government clients. They provide products in enterprise content management, XML publishing, air traffic management, and analytics. The iCMS application allows licensed users to securely access Content Management Systems (CMS) such as EMC Documentum directly from their iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch devices. The app is rated 4+ and the Read-Only version of the app costs nothing. This is a classic case of generating user awareness by sharing without a fee so that your users can keep getting the benefits of the read-only version and if they are ready, they would pay to use the complete system separately.
4.2.2
Notes and Tasks
Case Study 4: OmniFocus for iPhone

OmniPlan is a professional-grade project management application designed by The Omni Group for the Mac allowing business professionals to manage projects of any complexity. OmniPlan 2.0s enhanced feature set includes new cross-resource collaboration, sophisticated scheduling, enhanced task and resource management, multiple filters and baselines, and improved printing options.
The company launched its Accompanying Mobile app since it felt that iphone would bring in the next level of revenues for them. Winner of the 2008 Apple Design Award for Best iPhone Productivity Application, OmniFocus brought task management to fingertips. Keep track of tasks by project, place, person, or date. Bring up a shopping list, agenda items to discuss at work, things to do at home, and any other lists you need. The app is rated 4+ and is available for $19.99 per download at iTunes.
Case Study 5: Things for iPhone

Cultured Code created a beautifully focused and amazingly intuitive task manager. Things offers the perfect balance between ease of use and powerful features. Effortlessly manage to-dos, notes, due dates, and projects. A smart today list and the scheduling feature allow you to work as effectively as possible - every day. You can even sync wirelessly with the desktop version of Things (sold separately) using Wi-Fi.
4.2.3
Capturing Ideas
Software Services companies usually create Accompanying Mobile Apps which they feel would add value to the users. Not always the intent is to generate revenue but intent is to genuinely assist users in having a value added app in their iphone. In the meanwhile, stirring and generating interest for greater business inquiries happens automatically. Hence a majority of apps created by Software Services companies/ISVs are needless to say, free to download and use.
Case Study 6: iAirbag (Life Saver App) for iPhone

This app is developed by Mindfire Solutions. iAirbag is one of those boring little free apps that may just save your life. It detects accidents and helps help reach you before time runs out. iAirbag detects motion, or rather, the lack of it. You switch it on when you start driving or moving - on your bike, in your car, on a train, whatever. You turn it off when you reach your destination safely. However, imagine something goes unexpectedly wrong during travel and you are unconscious, or unable to move, or call for help. And you are perhaps away from sight, or traffic is light on the road, or
it is night and nobody realizes you are lying to the side. Hope and life are slipping away. That is when your iPhone can save you. iAirbag detects the unexpected stillness and swings into action. It initiates a call to a pre-set number and helps help reach you before time runs out.
Mindfire Solutions is a 12 Year old Mobile Software services and consulting company and have been working in Mobile app development since the last 10 years. They were ranked as the 4th best iPhone App development company by BWDA Inc. Mindfire employs over 750 employees in its workforce. The app is rated 4+ and is available for free download.
Case Study 7: iBlueSky (Mindmapping) for iPhone

UK based Tenero Software is a new age app development company established in 2008 launched iBlueSky, which creates beautiful mindmaps and helps us jot down thoughts which can be later assimilated.
The app is rated 4+ and is available at $9.99
4.2.4
Business Intelligence
Case Study 8: Roambi interactive mobile dashboards

Roambi interactive mobile dashboards let you tap, turn and swipe to analyze and share your companys latest information on any iPhone or iPad keeping you connected to your business, anytime and anywhere. Roambi is an innovative app that quickly transforms your business reports and data from many popular business applications into secure, interactive mobile dashboards, instantly delivered to any iPhone or iPad. It lets you easily view and interact with up-to-the-minute company information giving you the insight you need for on-the-go analysis, impromptu presentations and smart decision-making. Roambi puts the pulse of your business, in the palm of your hand.
Headquartered in San Diego, CA, MeLLmo, creator of Roambi, is reinventing the mobile business application to improve the productivity and decision-making of on-the-go employees. They develop and deliver innovative mobile apps that allow users to view and interact with critical business information on-the-go. The app is rated 4+ and is available for free download and use.
4.2.5
Business Process
Case Study 9: Daylite Touch

Daylite Touch is a business productivity manager for the iPhone and iPad, designed to be used with Daylite on the Mac. This AMA is available for free on iTunes and helps in promoting the sales of the Daylite-Mac Software, the base product of Marketcircle. Daylite Touch helps you manage your business and your team, keeping everyone on the same page and helping you stay on track and deliver on time.
When the Accompanying Mobile App comes for free, it increases the number of downloads which happens and there is also a surge in the number of paid inquiries for the base product. This is a great innovation from MarketCircle.
Case Study 9: Billing Touch by MarketCycle

Billings Touch takes the Apple Design Award winning time tracking and invoicing experience from the Mac and puts it in your pocket. It works as a standalone application or as a companion to Billings on the Mac. Billings Touch is available as free download the full version allows you to email invoices directly from your iPhone or iPod touch, and enables you to sync with Billings on the Mac.
This is a perfect example of Accompanying Mobile app developed to assist in the sales of the actual system which Marketcycle has. The AMA acts like a teaser and when user needs more, they buy.
4.2.6
Mobile Sales
Case Study 10: CWR Mobile CRM 4.2 for iPhone and iPad
CWR Mobility is an Independent Software Vendor and the leading provider of CRM solutions. By offering the most advanced, multi-platform mobile CRM solutions - based on the Microsoft Dynamics CRM platform CWR Mobility continues to set the mobility standard for the entire CRM industry. We are committed to continuously taking Mobile CRM to the next level, enabling customers and partners to capitalize on the latest technology trends to make the most out of their businesses. The Accompanying Mobile App, CWR Mobile CRM, makes field sales, service and marketing professionals more efficient and effective. It puts your teams closer to customers and keeps them there. With powerful features for users, unique benefits for IT and unparalleled value for management, its the only mobile solution that truly meets the needs of todays customer-agile company.
This app is rated 4+ and is available for free download and use with sample data. Production use of the complete system requires a Server component. Needless to say, businesses as these are truly harnessing the benefits of an Accompanying Mobile App.
Case Study 11: Sybase Mobile Sales & Workflow

Industry leaders as Sybase also release Accompanying Mobile Apps for enterprise usage. Securely access and update your SAP CRM Sales data from your iPhone, including Accounts, Contacts, Opportunities, Activities, Leads and Analytics. Receive SAP Business Suite Workflow alerts and notifications and initiate and approve pre-defined workflows while on the go.
Sybase is an industry leader in delivering enterprise and mobile software to manage, analyze and mobilize information for business intelligence, data warehousing and database management software solutions.
Sybase would like to have more engaging customers with a higher rate of brand association. It helps put forth the message that Sybase is updated with latest trends and always is in the forefront to ensure customer satisfaction by providing them ease of access. The accompanying Mobile App from Sybase above is a perfect attempt in that direction.
4.2.7
News and Research
Case Study 12: CNBC Real Time

CNBC Real-Time is the only free app that delivers Real-Time quotes before, during and after market hours direct from the NYSE and NASDAQ, Real-Time & Historical Interactive Charts, offering custom timeframes from one day to 5 years, including pre & post market trading. Its all the insight and analysis you need from the network you trust.
NBC Universal is one of the worlds leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience. The Accompanying Mobile App in this case helps in branding of the brand as a brand which cares and shares relevant information at the right time. Needless to say, the revenue impact of this app directly is nil, however the perception impact of a news channel with this kind of app is immense.
4.2.8
Mobile IT
Case Study 13: Junos Pulse

Juniper Networks produces high speed, reliable switching routers to satisfy ISP level performance. With networks becoming more relevant in the world we live in today, people at Juniper Networks believe that the network can create a connected planet that unleashes a great wealth of possibility, innovation, and discovery that cannot be measured. As a value added service, made available to their users for free, Juniper Networks created their Accompanying Mobile App Junos Pulse. Junos Pulse for iOS enables secure connectivity over SSL VPN to corporate applications and data from anywhere, at any time. Using Junos Pulse, you can connect securely to your corporate Juniper Networks SA Series SSL VPN gateway and gain instant access to business applications and networked data from wherever you are.
4.2.9
Communicator Apps
Case Study 13: ShoreTel Communicator
ShoreTel is a Internet based commercial, closed-source VOIP company based in Sunnyvale, CA. They have their own web based clients which are used for calls through their exchanges. With this Accompanying Mobile App, they have designed and built its brilliantly simple business communication solution for the iPhone age. With ShoreTel Communicator for iPhone you can be reachable, anytime, anywhere and take full advantage of your ShoreTel UC system to stay connected to your colleagues and customers. ShoreTel Communicator lets you place and receive calls on your iPhone through your ShoreTel UC system and phone network.
As expected, the app is rated 4+ and is available for free download and use. It is expected that this app is free because the intent of this Accompanying Mobile app is to harness another channel in which calls can be made. The popularity of the app in this new channel would mean greater business revenues when people start calling thru Shoretel via iphone.
4.2.10 Productivity Apps
Case Study 14: Replicon Timesheet for iPhone

Replicon, Inc. is a software company providing timesheet and expense management software[1], using SaaS, for automating employee time tracking, project time tracking, expense tracking and resource scheduling.
Replicon Timesheet lets you use your iPhone to enter time and expense information and upload it to SaaS-based versions of Replicon's Web Timesheet and Web Expense software. So it's easier and faster than ever to handle your time tracking and expense tasks. You don't need to be burdened by a laptop when you're out of the office - just launch Replicon Timesheet and enter your data in moments. You can even take pictures of your receipts and upload them on-the-spot.
This Accompanying Mobile App is available iTunes store for free and is rated 4+. Real-time synchronization ensures that data captured in Replicon Timesheet is instantly added to your webbased Replicon solution (paid version).
Case Study 15: MySales by MyTecSoft for iPhone
mySales Business application in iPhone accesses the organizational SAP System via MYTecSoft web services which creates B2B VPNs as required dynamically, which helps to authenticate, secure the connection and serve the data passage flow between iPhone and SAP ERP. mySales Business application only reads the critical sales data (such as sales orders, deliveries and invoices etc) and serves it to user via iPhone User Interface in a logical and decisive format to answer the intelligent questions which would arise to sales professional while interacting with customers. The company MYTecSoft is a provider of SAP IS Cable Solution, ERP Solution and RFID solutions on a global platform. MYTecSoft offer Basis Support SAP Implementation, SAP security maintenance & support, SAP printing & spool management, SAP performance tuning, SAP BW support, Cable Solutions. The AMA helps its users connect to its system on the go. This Accompanying Mobile app is rated 4+ and is available for free download and use in iTunes.
5 Success Factors for Mobile App Development

As is evident from the 15 cases we analyzed above, Accompanying Mobile App development as an extension to an enterprises business model is new and picking up fast as more and more enterprises are getting more and more innovative in the way they are attempting to reach out to their users. This is an emerging market and as with any emerging market there are significant opportunities and significant risks. However a dynamic market needs an environment that favours innovation and calculated risk taking would ensure that the mobile app development for your organization becomes successful. Let us take a look at the critical success factors for commercial Mobile application development. First let us take a look at the technologies which are essential to build mobile/Smartphone apps.
Development Tools: Xcode, Interface Builder, Dashcode, Quartz Composer, AppleScript Studio, Automator, GCC, GDB, PackageMaker, Instruments, Shark, CHUD Tools, OpenGL Tools Development Languages/ Frameworks: JavaScript, PostScript, RealBasic, Perl, Python, Ruby, XML, XSL, AppleScript, OSScript, Darwin, BSD, X11 and others. Databases: PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite, Valentina, Sybase, OpenBase, 4D, Informix, Lasso Open Source: WebKit, WebObjects, WxWidgets
Legacy and Other Development: Expert in OS Mac OS 8, 8.6, 9.x, Open Transport (OT), AppleTalk, QuickTime, CodeWarrior 7/8/9/10, Project Builder, MPW
The first preference of yours should be to select partners with expertise in these technologies so that cross-platform app development is made possible. Creating apps in one platform and not being able to port it to another platform can mean complete new development in the new platform thereby increasing your expenses manifold.
Second, it is imperative that you draft the requirements after gathering feedback from your users on what features they would like to access on the go and accordingly choose the features for the app development. That way the acceptance of the app, once it is published on the iTunes store will be phenomenal.
Third, it is advisable to choose a partner with a varied development experience who has proven expertise in migration of apps from one platform to the other.
Fourth, your Accompanying Mobile App development partner needs to be knowledgeable in your domain which would enable them to provide consulting services and share with you benchmarks in your domain. Also, if you are a Software Product company, you would need to look out for partners who have strict Intellectual property rights and who have proven background, solid history of business operations and fair dealing with all past customers.
If you have any queries, please feel free to run your idea through us and one of our Accompanying Mobile App consultants will get in touch with you.
6 Suggestions
It is evident from the research that Smartphones and tablets are doing the same thing to business which the Web did almost a decade back - revolutionizing the way people interact and operate. Staggering growth of mobile apps indicates the way business would shape up for tech-savvy customers. They need everything on the go. A software product that needs its user to be chained to desktop, or can be accessed only via full web browsers, does not fit in with today's mobile-data access expectations. People want that all software
they use should also have data and functionality accessible on the go - easy and quick. Your software system - whether desktop or SaaS/online - NEEDS an "Accompanying Mobile App" today.
Business Benefits of entering the Mobile App Economy Increased sales/market share from existing customers looking for greater convenience Higher customer satisfaction and loyalty since you are more 'available' on Mobile (on the Go) Ablity to control your lean period of sales better with 'Special Offer' campaigns Increased revenue from an entire new set of customers who are young, more social media and tech savvy Increased respect from Clients for the innovation spirit of your enterprise. It propels you beyond your competition's reach and uniquely positions you.
iPhone is arguably the most sought after mobile device in the whole world with plethora of extraordinary features and astonishing appearance. It is the first smart phone which has crossed the revenue of more than $13.5 billion till the first quarter of 2011. iPhone app development has revolutionized the way businesses operate. This is evident from the official statistics released by Apple Inc. With more than 10,000 new app submissions each week and more than 100 million apps being downloaded from the Apple app store each month, it is evident how power the medium of mobile communication has become.
With that being said, it is being increasingly competitive for enterprises because businesses are continuously innovating and reaching out to their users with Enterprise Apps, Accompanying Mobile Apps, B2C apps and what not. In such a situation, every enterprise should prioritize their goals, get the requirements straightened through feedback and select the proper software development partner. Done correctly, an iPhone app can be a tool for branding or even be another significant parallel revenue stream for businesses. .
7 References
i
Survey Research on What Mobile Users Want undertaken by Compuware and Equation Research, July 2011 Article on 3/4 of iOS and Android apps dont connect to a backend by Ryan Kim on Gigaom. 2011 iii Article on App Store Statistics as Misleading as They Are Impressive by Tony Bradley, PCWorld Magazine iv Research Article on Games, News Apps Top iPad User Engagement Categories by Localytics Inc. August 2011 v Article on Mobile Affairs by Socialcast, September 2011 vi Press Release of latest version of Fieldforce application released October 3, 2011 vii Whitepaper on Mobile Commerce: Opportunities and Challenges, GS1 Mobile, 2008
ii
You may contact us at Mindfire Solutions by email directly at info@mindfiresolutions.com for information.

Mindfire Whitepaper On Accompanying Mobile Apps

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Mindfire Whitepaper On Accompanying Mobile Apps

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How are Accompanying Mobile Apps increasing Business Revenues?

Research Paper A Mindfire Solutions Whitepaper

Accompanying Mobile Apps

SEE SECTION 3.3, Pg 15

SEE SECTION 3.2, Pg 12

Statistics on usage Smartphone, Apps

SEE SECTION 4.2, Pg 17

Critical Success Factors

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Accompanying Mobile Apps

2.3 Mindfire Solutions - creating a favorable environment for app development

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Mobile App Economy: Changing face of Business

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Customers are changing their service expectations

Businesses are changing the way they operate

Accompanying Mobile Apps

3/4th of iOS and Android apps dont connect to a backend server

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Accompanying Mobile Apps

The Mobile Industry in Figures

(Data Source: Illustration obtained with permission from SocialCast.com)

Accompanying Mobile Apps

(Data Source: Illustration obtained with permission from SocialCast.com)

Accompanying Mobile Apps

(Data Source: Illustration obtained with permission from SocialCast.com)

Accompanying Mobile Apps

(Data Source: Illustration obtained with permission from SocialCast.com)

Differentiating EMA and AMA

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Business Applications: What can you possibly develop?

B2C Mobile Apps

Accompanying Mobile Apps

B2B Accompanying Mobile Apps (AMA) - Case Studies

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Create and Share Files

Case Study 1: SharePlus: SharePoint Mobile Client

Case Study 2: Drivve: DM (Document Management) App

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Case Study 3: iCMS: Content Management System app

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Notes and Tasks

Case Study 4: OmniFocus for iPhone

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Case Study 5: Things for iPhone

Case Study 6: iAirbag (Life Saver App) for iPhone

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Case Study 7: iBlueSky (Mindmapping) for iPhone

Accompanying Mobile Apps

The app is rated 4+ and is available at $9.99

Case Study 8: Roambi interactive mobile dashboards

Case Study 9: Daylite Touch

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Case Study 9: Billing Touch by MarketCycle

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Case Study 11: Sybase Mobile Sales & Workflow

Accompanying Mobile Apps

News and Research

Case Study 12: CNBC Real Time

Accompanying Mobile Apps

Case Study 13: Junos Pulse

Case Study 13: ShoreTel Communicator