Five Questions With: Michael D. Croft

Michael D. Croft is the CEO of IT company eSavV Technologies, which recently released a new report – “Could Mobile Apps Become Obsolete?”

Croft, who has 15 years professional experience in the computer science and technology industry, talked to PBN about the report, the different types of mobile apps and what they have to offer businesses.

To read eSavV’s full mobile app report, visit: www.esavv.com/

PBN: Let’s start with the obvious question, in light of your recent report: Can mobile apps become obsolete?

- Advertisement -

CROFT: Mobile apps as we know them today could become obsolete. Currently, most mobile apps are what we call “native mobile apps” and only work on a specific mobile operating system (OS) such as iOS (iPhone, iPad), Android, Windows Mobile etc. The fact that most mobile applications today must be built for a specific mobile OS creates challenges for businesses and consumers. A business needs to create multiple versions of the same mobile app for their customer base. Consumers who switch smartphone or tablet brands may find the apps they had previously are not available or work differently on their new devices. In the technology world interoperability is the goal.

Mobile-application technology is changing and Mobile Web Apps may be the next generation of mobile apps. A mobile Web app is not built for a specific mobile OS; it is built for a mobile browser. This means any new smartphone or tablet with an internet connection can run a mobile web app. This is good news for businesses as they only need to create one version of the mobile app to run on multiple mobile devices. This reduces costs, time-to-market and increases their consumer range.

Mobile Web app technology is still in its infancy and is not as powerful as native mobile apps technology, but this is changing. New mobile Web app technology allows for offline capabilities, RWD (Responsive Web Design), and push-notifications may soon be available via WebSockets (IETF RFC 6455). These features were previously not available or only offered by native mobile app technology.

PBN: Can you explain a little bit about the different types of mobile apps?

CROFT:There are actually three core classifications of mobile applications; native mobile apps, mobile Web apps and hybrid native Web apps. A native mobile app is built for a specific mobile operating system. For example, a native iOS mobile app will only work on an iPhone or iPad and specific versions of those operating systems. If you want your mobile app to run on an Android, then a specific Android mobile app version must also be built.
A mobile Web app is an app that is built to run on a mobile browser. This means that just about any new smartphone or tablet with internet connectivity can run a mobile Web app. In theory, the same mobile Web app can run on multiple mobile operating systems and therefore multiple smartphones and tablets running those operating systems such as iOS, Android and Windows Mobile.

Hybrid native Web apps are the more complex of the three core types. Hybrid native Web apps are mobile Web apps wrapped by a native app container. This means you get the benefits of mobile device ubiquity with the core functionality of the mobile app but can also target a specific smartphone or tablet. This seems counter-intuitive and you may be wondering why anyone would choose to build such an app? The answers are cost and marketing. If a large majority of your current demographic is iPhone users, but your Android users are growing, you may choose to keep costs down by developing a mobile web app, but for marketing reasons you want to publish a version to Apple’s app store and another version to Google Play and therefore would create a native iOS and Android wrapper respectively.

PBN: What sort of businesses should really think about investing in a mobile-specific app?
CROFT:
Unless your customers are not smartphone or tablet users, any business can benefit by implementing a mobile application as customers are transitioning to mobile at lightning speed. And it is not just about customers, it is also about your staff. Mobile applications are becoming commonplace in the workplace. Businesses are building their own enterprise mobile app stores where staff can download task-driven mobile apps.
People carry their smartphones more than their wallets – and smartphones are becoming our wallets. Your customers and potential customers want information about your business at their choosing. It really comes down to providing convenience and efficiency. If your customers must call your business for updates or information, a mobile app would allow them to be self-sufficient by enabling them to check on purchases, status updates or general information on their smartphone 24/7. If your customers need to place orders, check status, get directions, review specials or submit information, a mobile app can make the process quick and fun.
Your staff can leverage business mobile applications to complete tasks anytime and anywhere. BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) is a growing practice among companies who are adopting the consumerization of IT. Proprietary enterprise app stores allow your staff to download company-specific, task-oriented mobile applications for their personal smartphones or tablets. These apps are typically connected to a central system (a Web Service Cloud architecture) where real-time information is quickly and easily shared between staff, departments, branches, suppliers and partners.

PBN: When is having a business-specific app a better option than just having a mobile version of your website?
CROFT:
When you want to create a user experience for a specific customer-facing function of your business. The mobile app should simplify and possibly gamify (a technique that applies game theory to a task) a particular function of your business so your customers can quickly access information or perform key tasks. A mobile app should be more specific to a business function and should provide more convenience. A customer should not need to surf the web to find your website and navigate through pages of information when they are looking to perform a specific, yet commonly performed task of your business.
For example, a bank customer should be able to launch a mobile app and authenticate quickly (the app may store the first levels of a multi-level authentication process) to transfer funds or check balances. A customer who placed an order should be able to quickly see the status of that order or receive push-notifications which are not yet possible from a website. An insured can show a digital ID card from their smartphone or submit a claim complete with pictures of the loss – taken with their smartphone. These types of functions would be tedious or not possible with a mobile website.
Other considerations include costs, time-to-market, performance and maintenance. These are business concerns that should be addressed, however: the end goal is about the customer experience.

PBN: What advice do you have for business owners who are hesitant to take the leap into mobile?
CROFT:
From a customer perspective, I recommend they look at statistics for mobile usage for their demographic. They could even start by reviewing their website analytics which shows how many users are going to their website from a mobile device and which devices people are using. They can expect this number to increase significantly in the coming year. I also recommend they take a new look at their operations and identify customer-facing business opportunities that would offer a better experience as a mobile application. If businesses are looking to be customer service leaders or if their current demographic or target demographic are smartphone users, then they should start the mobile planning process now, or they could quickly fall behind. Customers are going where they have more options.
From a staff perspective, identify tasks that might be more efficient and productive and less error-prone on a mobile device. Do you have staff members using a clipboard and paper for managing inventory or checking equipment? A tablet would be a faster and more secure solution since the information is entered and persisted to a central, secure location accessible by authorized people in the company.
Mobile applications offer increased efficiency, productivity and better customer service. Data can be collected from every employee or customer from their mobile device allowing detailed usage trend data. This data can expose areas where improvements can be made.

No posts to display