Most commonly used phrase among mobile developers: "Hey... there's an app for that!"
OK. So by now, we've all geeked on to the fact that Mobile is the way forward. With smartphone and tablet sales rising, and social apps coming out of everyone's ears, it's become app-solutely evident mobile marketing is an integral part of the social business mix. Mobile technology has impacted not just how we receive and share information, it has changed the way we live and work.
Social Networking is now the most popular activity on mobiles. Buzzwords like SoLoMo (Social-Location-Mobile) and SoMoClo (Social-Mobile-Cloud) tell us the convergence of Social Media + Mobile is here to stay, and it's only going to grow. A recent report (see below) suggests Tablets will become our preferred computing devices by 2016. How will that affect your mobile strategy?
35 USEFUL APPS and TOOLS - (Which are your favourites? Which ones have I missed?)
Here's a list of useful, popular, most used Mobile Apps, Online Tools and Web Platforms. Look them up. Hit the appstore. Download them. Before long you'll be giving them the 2 thumbs up.
- FlipBoard (iOS) / Pulse (Android) - multi-app aggregator to get all your news in one place!
- InstaPaper - save documents to read them later
- YouSendIt - send / receive large files instantly
- Google Drive and DropBox - cloud-based document storage and easy file-sharing
- a. LinkedIn for iOS - built almost entirely in html5, sexy new iPad-friendly look
b. LinkedIn for Windows Phone (New!) - on-the-go access to your business network - InstaGram - Bought by FaceBook for $1B. Take, modify and share photos - on the go!
- Draw Something - Social Game app acquired by Zynga. It's Pictionary gone mobile.
- FourSquare - location-based social networking site to create geo-tags or "check-in"
- Evernote - Life is full of experiences. Evernote lets you capture, manage and remember everything
- CardMunch - turns Business Cards into connections. iOS only, Powered by LinkedIn.
- TripIt - Personal Travel Organiser, turns all your travel-related info into a mobile itinerary
- Yammer - Enterprise Social Network. Social network on the inside. Connects the workforce.
- Pinterest - Content-sharing social platform. Allows you to pin info and organize it in boards.
- World Clock - (for iPhone); (for Android)
- MeetUp and Eventbrite - Two Event Management (sharing, promoting, selling) Tools
- 2 cool applications for terrestrial explorers Google Earth and sky-gazers Google Sky
- 2 fun apps that recognize the song playing on air. Shazam (iOS) and SoundHound (Android)
- 2 audio apps: SoundCloud easy audio sharing, and Spotify free music-streaming/ sharing (Spotify finally hit Aus / NZ shores on Tue 22 May, 2012)
- 2 blockbuster game apps: Rovio's Angry Birds, Zynga's social game Words with Friends
- Tagged - The social network to meet new people. With mobile apps to do it on the go.
The most-used, must-have apps are the social networks: - LinkedIn (with LinkedIn Today - your customized content aggregator)
- YouTube
- Google+
and Utility (email, weather) and News (business, media) apps.
- Prezi (for zooming canvas presentations)
- MailChimp (create your own e-newsletter)
- Paper.Li (Publish your own newspaper); Scoop.It (Publish your own magazine)
- Skype (Free IM and video-calling)
- Mint ( Manage your money, all in one place. Currently available only in USA/ Canada.)
- SlideShare (Presentation-sharing) + some apps to view, create, share presentations.
There are plenty more apps and tools out there - even DIY apps. Find them. Have a play!
Mobilephones: There’s no other technology that 87% of the world’s population owns. See the stats!
QUALITY CONTENT
7 must-read resources to dig deeper into the mobile scene and know where it is going:
- Excellent slide deck from the Business Intelligence Team (Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry, Alex Cocotas, Henry Blodget) at Business Insider - The Future of Mobile [SLIDE DECK]
- Great write-up on significant, upcoming global mobile trends (Mobile Web, M-Commerce). Handy stats provided with neat graphics by Frederic Gonzalo in Social Media Today - Great Trends in Mobile [INFOGRAPHICS]
- a. Fantastic article on Enterprise Tablets and BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) by Mark Fidelman on Forbes. The Latest INFOGRAPHICS: Mobile Business Statistics for 2012
b. Another thought-provoking piece by Mark Fidelman on Forbes - How Mobile is Rapidly Evolving the World - In-depth study by ComScore using their tool Mobile Metrix 2.0 takes a close look at mobile behaviour. Jon Dube on Forbes: Why Smartphones are the future of Social Networking
- a. Nifty list prepared by Eric Wittlake in Business to Community with a neat [InfoGraphic] titled The Mobile Employee: 10 Things You Need to Know about B2B Mobile Marketing
b. An informative [INFOGRAPHIC] on mobile web usage, mobile advertising, m-commerce and QR codes, by HighTable via Mashable: Mobile Marketing by the Numbers - Matt Rosoff via Business Insider: 13 Amazing Facts about Smartphone Usage Around the World
- A smart blog & detailed report on the advent of enterprise tablets and their eventual rise to preferred computing devices, by Frank Gillett, VP and Principal Analyst, Forrester.
- Blog: Why Tablets will become our Primary Computing Device
- Industry report for CIOs: Tablets will Rule the Future Personal Computing Landscape
EVENTS
To follow the global mobile industry, keep an eye out for these annual events:
- GSMA Mobile World Congress - the biggest industry event!
- Global Mobile Marketing Association's MMA Forums #MMAF
- Great Wall Club - Global Mobile Internet Conference #GMIC
- Mobile Marketing Strategies Summit #MMSS
- Mashable Connect #MashCon
For Web, Mobile and Game App Developers, there are these multi-track events:
- Apple WWDC
- Google I/O Input/Output
- Appsworld
- Game Developers Conference GDC
- DevWeek
- Casual Connect
- Microsoft's Worldwide Conferences - Tech-Ed
BONUS CONTENT
Listen to Deep Nishar, SVP, Product & User Experience speaking on CNBC News about LinkedIn's new iPad app and why 2012 is finally! the "Year of the Mobile User."
Want to get the lowdown on apps? Slide through this e-book on Android apps:
And... a hilarious clip to aptly wrap up this blog post on mobiles:
