Mobile Commerce, SEO & Social Media Blog

Creating Mobile Apps is Getting Easier—but is that a good thing?

Recently launched service AppMakr offers customers the ability to create a mobile phone application for their brand or website in 27 seconds. What else can you do in 27 seconds? Maybe take out the trash, but only if you hurry.
AppMakr isn’t the first service of its kind. The technology and business worlds have recently seen a fast-growing trend of companies that provide easy mobile app creation. Others such as MobileAppLoader, AppWizard and SwepApps claim to drastically simplify development of mobile apps. According to AppWizard’s website, the service “gives anyone the ability to design and deploy simple iPhone Applications.”

Critics of these new services, however, bring to attention the fact that “anyone” can now create a mobile app has negative consequences, such as flooding of app stores that obscures useful apps from established brands. This article will explore the debate over ease in creating mobile apps and how to decide if a 27-second app is right for your brand.

“What else can you do in 27 seconds? Maybe take out the trash…”

Read on:

• How AppMakr has Changed the Process of Creating Mobile Apps
• The Case Against Self-Service Mobile Creation
• Choosing Whether or Not to Create Your Own Mobile App

How AppMakr has Changed the Process of Creating Mobile Apps

According to AppMakr’s creator, PointAbout, the process of creating mobile apps typically takes 2-3 months and costs $50,000 to $150,000. Each company must invest a lot of time into making sure their app runs across many platforms. PointAbout maintains that this lofty investment is unnecessary, and that the company’s “write once, run anywhere” philosophy enables its clients to maximize the reach and return-on-investment of their app.

Basically, PointAbout has created a substantial, generic app that can be populated with any client’s:

• RSS Feeds from Blogs or Website Content
• YouTube videos
• iTunes Content
• Photos
• Tweets

Once filled with a client’s content and customized with their logo and color scheme, the generic app becomes a custom marketing tool.

“This generic app that can be populated with lots of content.”

The Case Against Self-Service Mobile Creation

Now that these services have boiled down the high costs of mobile app creation to less than $500, most small businesses, bloggers, or even Average Joes can afford to utilize the tool. However, some technology followers say that self-service mobile creation harms, instead of helps, the mobile world.

Critics cite 3 major concerns:

1. The iPhone App Store will be overrun with low-quality apps.

   AppMakr doesn’t guarantee that Apple will approve every app it generates, but the service does provide a set of detailed guidelines and tips. The proliferation of fast services like AppMakr makes some question the quality of the hundreds of apps that could possibly overrun the market, making it difficult for consumers to find what they want.

2. RSS Readers do the same thing, only better, by picking up RSS feeds and condensing them into one app.

   Mashable writer Christina Warren asks, “Why would I want to download that, even for free, when I can just…view it in a great RSS app…? How obsessed with a site do you need to be before you’ll clutter up your home screen with its logo? So, no offense to AppMakr, I just don’t see the appeal of the trend it’s riding.”

3. Counterfeit Mobile Apps challenge real brands.
   Some counterfeit apps are being used to scam consumers. Brands are essential to online trust, and users often feel secure downloading a branded mobile app because they assume that particular brand has endorsed the app. However, that’s not always true, and some scam artists have been taking advantage of that brand loyalty. Mobile app publisher Monseta has recently been flagged for improperly using brands—the company uses well-known brands like Barnes & Noble, eBay, and even Bank of America to lure people into downloading the apps to their phones. However, once downloaded, the app just runs ads that generate money for Monseta.

   Even worse, counterfeit apps could also enable phishing, spread viruses, or steal personal information. With an app branded with a well-known bank like Bank of America, it’s easy to see how consumers could be fooled.

“Before making the decision, you must consider your goals.”

Choosing Whether or Not to Create Your Own Mobile App

In light of the criticism of the growing ease of creating mobile apps, a question arises: should your brand take advantage of a service like AppMakr?

Reasons you might want to consider ignoring the critics:

• While the RSS app option is certainly more efficient for high volume readers, some consumers might only be interested in a few blogs or sites and would rather have direct access to an app for each site.
• Less tech savvy consumers might be daunted by the process of using an RSS app, and would instead prefer to be able to download individual apps.
• The format of a populated, generic app works well for some. For example, a media specialist with a blog and active flickr and YouTube accounts might wish to combine the three formats for a personal tool that promotes his or her expertise.

For Seth Godin, it was a perfect solution. A marketing guru and blogger, Godin has amassed a following of tens of thousands of marketing professionals. Godin himself is a recognizable brand that can draw users to download the app and read his short, insightful blog articles on the go.

Creating mobile apps is a now a snap; but as with any business tool, you must consider your target audience and goals, instead of others’ opinions, when making decisions on whether to utilize a new service or technology to market your brand.

Cassie Wallace Cassie Wallace uses Google Reader, but will still download Seth Godin’s app just for the forehead logo. Want content written for your Brand that shows up #1 on Search Engines and brings you new customers? Contact us.