1 OCM U 1.16 Mobile Apps The Office of Communications and Marketing (OCM)

2 Mobile Web vs. Mobile App

3 About OCM OCM is under the Advancement Office for the University. OCM is charged with maintaining and promoting the university brand and strategic marketing mission, as a whole.

4 Plus & Minus

5 The mobile web process, simplified 1.Take an existing website and retro-fit it to mobile browsers 2.Detect and create ‘styles’ for all (or major) browser sizes HTML 5 will auto-detect and resize pages for you Older HTML 4 or less may look odd if you don’t design for odd sizes 3.Program your mini-website, be content & space conscious 4.Leverage server-based programming 5.Use mobile web APIs to access some device functions 6.Test -> Focus Groups -> Beta Test -> Launch -> Maintain, if you want 7.Things to watch Performance (mobile = 8-10 year old computer) Load time Usage Effectiveness

6 The mobile app process, simplified 1.Design and architect exactly what you want 2.Decide how you want to leverage the device hardware Leverage existing APIs Go beyond the API and go custom (can become a nightmare) 3.Design the initial user interface (it will change before launch) 4.Start programming 5.Test -> Focus Groups -> Beta Test -> Launch -> Maintain as devices change 6.Things to watch Performance (mobile = 8-10 year old computer) Feedback, downloads, purchases, other data If available Load time Usage

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8 So what should I do? Start with something in mind Sketch it on paper (or a napkin, toilet paper, whatever) Open excel or word, create a table/page for every screen, start filling it in Befriend a nerd…ask them about it Do some market research (next slide) Will your investment meet your expectation My boss just wants one = score, kind of Total cost / (size of target market * 0.25 [app users] *0.15 [market penetration]) = estimated cost per success Take the above to a web programmer or developer CIS programming class capstone UofL IT can do both Agencies of record can do both

statistics-2011-all-quality-mobile-marketing- research-mobile-web-stats-su Market research Look for who else does it Is someone doing it better? Who has the largest audience and why? Is there REALLY an audience? Who are they and how techie are they? What have others learned (and failed at)? How many downloads and what did they do to get them? You need to be an expert in your own world Use Google and other stats resources

10 Stats, stats and more stats

11 Building a mobile app / site Mobile app builders - free (they host) - free - free/paid - free, software not webapp - free, software - $40/mo. Be careful!!! Three of the web-based app builders I investigated 2 months ago are now out of business and gone. Research before you buy or try. Are they sustainable? Mobile web builders (4+) - free - free - free - $8- $200/mo. Be careful!!! This is another fly-by-night industry. Research before you buy or try. Are they sustainable?

12 Volunteers? 1.What is your vision?

13 Contact OCM Social Media Contact Jeff Rushton Office of Communications and Marketing (OCM)