Mobile Productivity Blog

New mobile technologies can spell trouble unless you've got the right tools.

Recently we’ve seen dramatic evolution of mobile technologies, which begs the question, how does a company keep up with all the new devices and operating systems hitting the market?

Many companies have mobile applications that they use to interact with customers, partners, and employees. When things change in the industry (which we know happens on a constant basis) it makes it difficult to ensure that those applications will work with the newest technologies. With mobility comes a sense of urgency, and when your users procure the newest device or OS and your application does not comply, you have a problem.

When these complications arise, if an organization has built their own applications in-house, it can become quite difficult. Upgrading applications for new device types and operating systems is typically time-consuming and labor intensive. And for companies that built and released one-off iPhone apps within the last year, re-creating those applications for BlackBerry, Android and iPad is a tremendous amount of work.

In just the past couple of months we have had multiple device and OS releases including Froyo (Google’s Android OS), BlackBerry OS 6, Apple 4.0, and Windows Phone 7, as well as many devices with different screen resolutions, features and hardware specific to those new operating systems. As each of these big-players adds more to their repertoire (both hardware and software), applications need to accommodate the latest and greatest features and functionality. But keeping up with these advancements are tough. Each time a new device is added or an OS is changed, the code needs to be updated.

The key in this situation is being able to quantify the cost of maintaining your current applications while developing new ones to meet the needs of users a month, 6 months and even a year from now. If you’re going to develop multiple applications for multiple device types, then choosing the right development tools is key to containing costs and expanding your mobile applications offerings. That’s where a mobile application development platform comes into play: use it to configure one application and run that app on multiple operating systems. Device compatibility and ongoing support for the next generation of devices and operating systems is baked-in to the solution.

By utilizing a mobile application development platform, you can rest easy. Companies that provide those technologies exist solely to simplify your mobile development process by making it fast and easy to update applications and by ensuring compatibility with new technologies as they emerge onto the market. Pyxis Mobile currently provides a multi-platform solution that allows you to easily deploy a custom application on Blackberry, iPhone, Android, and WinMo. Can your app do that?

Hidden Costs of TCO

So I've talked a lot about the importance of a strategy when deploying mobile applications in the corporate enterprise. One of the main reasons that a strategy is so important is that enterprise mobility costs money. It can either cost a reasonable amount of money that provides a lot of value in return...or it can cost a lot of money that provides not-so-much value in return.

Here is a list of the big-ticket costs associated with building just ONE mobile solution for ONE type of device...let's say, CRM for the BlackBerry curve:

• Project analysis and planning
• Selection and training on development environment (BlackBerry JDE, Eclipse, Microsoft Visual Studio, etc.)
• Application development (knowledge of J2ME programming language required)
• Testing
• Plug-in development and data mapping
• Server and infrastructure hardware and maintenance costs
• Security modeling and assurance
• End-user training and documentation
• Support and quality assurance for roll-out of the final product
• Ongoing quality assurance, troubleshooting and testing of new data sources, configurations, etc.
• Annual maintenance and upgrades for server, plug-ins, development environment, etc.

When developing one mobile application on one type of mobile device in-house, a company can create a reasonable cost estimate based on the above-listed big-ticket development, IT and support needs. However, any company developing a mobile application today needs to incorporate shelf life into their equation because devices are evolving rapidly and will continue to do so. So that means that we need to project costs over time and take into account future development needs, device changes and new back-end data sources. Those are factors that add uncertainty to your cost estimate. We also need to account for new user groups that emerge as mobile technology continues to create widespread change in the way people interact with vendors and evolve personal purchasing behaviors.

Consequently, in addition to the costs listed above, hidden costs include:

• New user groups and new demand for apps
  
• New device types and replacement devices
• Mobile OS upgrades
• Changes to back-end data sources and database management software upgrades
• New device hardware (like touch screens, GPS and front-facing cameras, etc.)
• Changes to compliance and regulatory requirements
• Emerging security threats
• Demand for new functionality and expanded feature sets
  

Taking these hidden costs into account illustrates the necessity of a well-thought out mobile strategy that meets today's demand and positions you well for the future. By developing and executing such a plan, you are going to be able to put development tools in place that will grow with you and meet future market demand.

Have you deployed more than one mobile solution and are you having trouble keeping up with new technologies? Do you have a mobile strategy that's worked? Tell us about it!

Development of additional applications for other user groups

"Once consumers have a taste of constant connectivity it is extremely difficult to do without it." – Seeking Alpha.

Mobile connectivity is like sliced bread, the wheel, microwaves; once you have it, you don’t want to know life without it. It’s like every invention that has made life easier, except on a greater and more technological scale. Word of mouth is one of the most effective ways to have your product or brand represented, and when mobile employee sing the praises of their mobile apps, non-mobile employees are listening with envy.

Herein lies the issue: when one employee becomes mobile and talks about the benefits, it has a ripple effect throughout the office...and pretty soon, everyone is going to want to have what they have. The problem for mobile and non-mobile offices alike is that mobile is now everywhere and everyone is already talking about it. So the awareness has been created, the demand is already there and your employees are already saying "wouldn't it be great if I could get ______ [fill in the blank] on my mobile device?"

In the past 18 months, iPhone and iPod touch users have downloaded over 3 billion applications (on the iTunes Store alone!). Today’s society has definitely gone app-happy. BlackBerry, Windows Mobile and Google have launched their own app stores to snag users in this market. Smaller, independent marketplaces have also emerged, like GetJar, which offer applications for all different types of smartphones in one place. All signs are pointing to one trend – the increasing adoption and utilization of mobile technologies.

What does this mean for your mobile strategy? Simply that one mobile app isn’t going to be enough to meet the needs of all your different employee groups, your business and supply chain partners AND your customers. Your company will need several applications to meet the needs of all these different user groups. While your sales force or field service agents are the likeliest candidates for company mobility, other employees will want – and would benefit from – mobile applications as well. Managers, executives, strategic business partners, and customers all have unique mobile needs that can help increase business productivity and brand loyalty.

As mobile demand grows, your company will need to meet it. To do it best, create a well thought-out strategy that takes advantage of the breadth and depth of mobile technology available today. Do you have a mobile strategy? Are you facing increased customer and/or employee demand for mobile applications? Let us know...

Expansion of an application to multiple device types/platforms

You just developed an application for BlackBerry devices and deployed it. Everyone loves it! Well, almost everyone. In the excitement and the hype of creating your application, you forgot to survey your employees to determine which devices they use on a regular basis. Unfortunately, those individuals not using a BlackBerry are feeling neglected and left out of the decision making process. While the majority of the people in corporate America have BlackBerrys, there are some people who use iPhones and Android devices - and your cool new app doesn't work for them. 

And then there are your customers. Lots and lots of customers use iPhones. In fact, maybe more customers use iPhones than BlackBerrys. And what about this new Android thing you've been hearing about? Is it really true that one in ten smartphones sold today is an Android phone? That's huge! What do we do about that?

Well, the first thought might be to build more apps. But that will cost time and money...a lot of it. It's time to stop, think and plan. Assess your needs - today's AND tomorrow's needs. Because failing to anticipate your customers' and employees' mobility requirements can cost your company a lot of money.

Take for example the BlackBerry 8700, which relied on RIM's trackwheel navigation system. The 8700 was available as recently as 2007 but you can't buy one today. The track wheel has been phased out completely and replaced with the trackball. As the 8700's that are used by employees are replaced by newer BlackBerry models, the software running on them has to be re-written and upgraded so it's compatible with the trackball navigation system and the OS that powers it. And look at the iPhone. In just the past couple years, we've seen three different models and three major operating system upgrades. The fourth should be here by the end of the summer. How long are today's devices going to be available and what happens when the devices your company and customers currently use are no longer available?

New hardware, software and even entirely new device platforms have all emerged over the past 12 months and they've had a major impact on the market as well as consumer behavior. The pace of evolution is not slowing. What are some of the difficulties you're running into today? What do you think is around the corner for new mobile devices and software - and how are you going to deal with it?

Total Cost of Ownership & The 4 Factors of Mobile App Development

The total cost of ownership for mobile applications is driven by four very real and very important factors that need to be evaluated by any organization seeking to deploy an enterprise grade application.

The Four Factors:

• Development
• Deployment
• Maintenance
• Upgrades of applications over time
  

With every new technological development in the mobile industry, users become more demanding and corporations increasingly rely on mobile applications to serve key roles in customer service, sales force automation, field services and direct marketing. The following factors should be considered in order to estimate the TCO over time of any mobile initiative:

1. Cost of developing a single application for a single device type – i.e. the cost required to develop a marketing application for only the iPhone
2. Continued support, upgrades and administration of an application
3. Expansion of an application to multiple device types and/or device platforms – i.e. a sales force automation application that works on BlackBerrys and developing it for the iPhone as well
4. Development of additional applications for other user groups – i.e. take your sales force automation application (which is your first app) and integrate it with account data to build an app that gives clients access to their own account information (two), then use account activity and transaction information to power a marketing application that incentivizes clients to drive more business to your firm (three). And don't forget your managers and executives - they need an app that takes sales data and rolls it up into performance reports.
   

Cost of developing a single application for a single device type:

 

The costs are straight forward and somewhat simple to estimate depending upon whether or not a company decides to outsource development or build an application in house. There are plenty of boutique firms that companies can hire to develop a custom application and they will quote a price up front based on the scope of the project.Alternatively, a company can develop a mobile application in house. This would mean that the cost is based primarily on internal operating costs with marginal budget required for hardware. What is the best approach for your company? Before allocating resources to the development of a single application for one device type, like many companies have done with iPhone apps, consider your long term mobile needs. A company should ask itself these questions:

• Is this the only mobile application we're going to develop?
• What about other device types?
• If we’re developing an iPhone app, should we make it available on Android (the operating system by Google)? And what about BlackBerry since it still holds 42% of the US market?

 If you think that you'll need to develop more than one application or that you'll need to deploy to more than one device type, then it's worth considering a mobile enterprise application platform (MEAP). A development platform will enable you to cost effectively build and deploy an entire suite of mobile applications for a variety of user groups. ...but I'll go into some more detail on that topic in my next blog!

Integrated Applications - What will we see next?

Smartphones have been a ubiquitous part of our culture for what seems like forever (okay, maybe it just seems like forever to us Generation Y'ers, but long enough that we can justify saying things like “Do you remember when...?”). Popularity of these smart devices has grown exponentially in the past few years in the general consumer market. In the past smartphones were predominantly used by business professionals who needed access to data while they were traveling. Instead of carrying multiple items, like a cell phone, a wireless networking card and a laptop, to organize their life, professionals could use one device to stay connected to the office.

Now consumers have started to demand more out of these devices, showing their need to stay connected to people and information in their lives. Smartphones do a great job of satisfying those needs and once people make the leap from cell phone to smartphone (whether it be iPhone, BlackBerry, WinMo, or the new Android devices) they don't go back. Personally, I have found that having a smartphone simplifies and streamlines my life, but my devices haven't always organized information in the most convenient way. Now we're seeing that integration and organization in mobile software applications and also on the OS level with the Android and Windows Phone 7. The new trend is towards data-driven navigation that integrates multiple data sources and seamlessly organizes information.

For example, instead of having multiple email and social networking accounts linked individually to your phone, ALL of your messages are organized in one location. This can include device specific messages (i.e. BlackBerry Messages), SMS, MMS, various email accounts, instant messengers, Facebook alerts and messages, Twitter @mentions and direct messages, and much more (depending on your device and applications you have installed). Smartphone developers have seen this trend of convenience in the market and have been working it into all of the newest designs.

In the past, consumers were happy enough having a device that could do a bunch of basic stuff, like connect to email and organize contacts. But now people want to have everything and do everything, all at the same time and all at a fast speed. They don’t want to log in and out of many different applications in order to run others. They don't want to manage multiple email inboxes. They don't want to have to read an email from a friend in one location and their recent twitter update in another. They DO want simplicity, which in the case of mobile software comes in the form of integration.

What’s the easiest way for an application to meet consumer demand? Well, most application-specific mobile apps aren’t advanced enough to properly integrate and organize data - but a few can. The most successful and beneficial apps allow you access to update and read social media as part of an intuitive workflow. For example, with well-built mobile software for conferences, not only can you see event, speaker and exhibitor information, but with integrated feeds to Twitter you can live tweet and follow pertinent conversations involving attendees, all without exiting the conference app. Be on the look out for integrated applications like this - it’s what the consumer want so the industry is going to provide it.

Right now, Pyxis Mobile provides integrated applications of all kinds. For example, in our UpperClass application, we provide Facebook integration so that students can update their status without having to exit out and then open another software application. Think about this, you’re a student registering for classes via UpperClass and you want to let your friends know what you’re taking for classes or ask them what they’re taking. Without leaving the application you can post to Facebook and immediately skip to the next item you're working on. There is no interruption of work-flow.

Another great example of social media integration is Pyxis Mobile's latest App from Scratch V winners who built a Boston Marathon Tracker Application. In addition to Facebook and Twitter, it even integrates Foursquare so that supporters can monitor their friends and family members who are running the race, track their positions and times, and send messages or alerts through all the social networking sites. How cool is that!!?

Where do you think the industry is going? What do you think the next move is going to be? Are you and your applications ready for integration?

Boston University - Embracing New Ways of Learning

Here at Pyxis Mobile we have a wide variety of users. Because our mobile enterprise application platform - or MEAP - is so flexible and powerful, we can build just about any type of application in a fraction of the time it would take a programmer to do it. Recently, Pyxis Mobile teamed up with Boston University to help them extend their coursework beyond the classroom walls and onto BlackBerry® smartphones.

“As a renowned institution, we look for ways to increase our students’ ability to learn and to transcend the boundaries of the classroom into the real world,” says Scott Stewart, Research Associate Professor and Faculty Director of BU’s MS in Investment Management (MSIM) program, and former fund manager at Fidelity Investments. “We are delivering mobile access to the tools used by the very professionals our students seek to become. My students have real-time market data, quotes and charts, analyses, and advanced decision-making tools available to them at all times. There is no better way to learn than through hands-on experience with what takes place in everyday professions.”

Imagine being one of these students. For most professionals who graduated from college over 10 years ago, this wouldn’t have been a plausible opportunity! The application connects students to high-level investment research to support live portfolio management, and enables them to replicate the role of equity analyst in the field. By having this real-world experience while being enrolled in a classroom setting, the student is gaining many skills for their future professional endeavors.

Besides these features, the application also allows for a collaborative research discussion board and access to student investment research and portfolio holdings. Powered by Pyxis Mobile’s Application Studio and featuring their Configure Once, Run Anywhere™ technology, the application works on all BlackBerry® smartphones.

Top analyst firms predict that by 2013, mobile phones will outnumber PCs and function as the most common web browsing device. While I find mobile browsing still to be a bit cumbersome, mobile browsers ARE getting better. Judging by the improvements that we've seen over just the past year or two, I can believe that these predictions will come true! Almost every student owns a mobile device or a smartphone, they are part of our everyday life. Without these devices, college students today are lost. Their mobile devices are like an extension of their body. So what better way for BU to greatly enrich their students’ educational experience and enhance campus life than to push the boundaries beyond typical use of this “personal” mass medium? The college student demographic is driving this industry forward and there is no looking back.

Todd Christy, CTO and President of Pyxis Mobile recalls, “When BU School of Management and Pyxis began discussions, we were both immediately on-board. BU has always had a stellar reputation for advancing learning techniques and pushing its students to be among the best the nation has to offer, and we couldn’t be more pleased to deliver this application to BU students.”

So what’s next? Will other schools jump on board with this innovative learning experience? Do you think this is the next level of learning? Let us know!

Getting the Most out of Mobile Sales Applications

Let’s take a moment, close our eyes, and think back to the 1950’s. These were the times when everyone smoked cigarettes, kids played outside until the streetlights went on, dinner was on the table at 5:00 (typically smothered in butter), and hats and suits were the daily uniform at work. And for the majority of these stereotypical 50’s folks, the occupation of choice was --yep, you guessed it, sales!

Whether it was door-to-door or corporate sales, there was one thing that stood out about these salespeople: their briefcases. Picture one of them with his large briefcase, carrying copious amounts of paperwork about his customers and forms to fill out. What a pain! If you told them that in 60 years, that briefcase would be replaced by something the size of a deck of cards, what do you think they would have said?

Sales is an out of the office, mobile profession. Welcome to selling on-the-go. This concept has been around for a long time, but thankfully as technology advanced, so has the sales profession. Laptops, smartphones, CRM software – these are all common to modern day selling. The challenge is that when they are visiting clients or prospect, their customer data is generally still in the office. Many will print out customer data, try to memorize the data, or even take notes on the data before they go to meet with a client, but the problem with these solutions is that they are not “real time”. Things can change without any notice and without live, real time data, the salesperson is going to be at least partially blind.

We’re in the age of the “CrackBerry” and having a smartphone in this profession is a must. But why? Well, having one of these devices provides the individual with the opportunity to carry LIVE information (not on paper, not on a laptop, not scribbled on your hand; that is a lot of work and uses many resources) without carrying a large object. Smart phones can put customer info in the palm of your hand at the point of contact. They can present interactive CRM and sales data (name, address, phone number, interests in the company, notes of customer interactions in the past, products, analytics, etc) that allows quick review of information prior to a meeting and increased intelligence during the meeting.

If you’re in sales, you NEED this data to be highly accessible to you at all times. With today’s global market you never know when you might need to see this information. But this isn’t all that a salesperson needs. To optimize your sales meetings, having access to comparative and analytical data shows your customer or prospect how you’re positioned in the market place. You can have the ability to access the data in your product warehouse to see real time inventory and product pricing data.

A mobile sales application brings real time critical data, not just a picture of the data. They help to better serve your customer and increases customer satisfaction. Mobile sales applications are simple to use and provide you with information that creates a more fluid and seamless relationship with your client.

Our recently signed on client BlackRock describes why they purchased a mobile sales application:

“We wanted a mobile solution that would support all sales systems from one mobile platform instead of a point solution from each vendor,” says Gary Bigley, Managing Director at BlackRock. “Pyxis Mobile provides a robust and scalable platform that integrates with the variety of business systems we use today, but also can integrate with other systems we’d like to mobilize in the future.”

Client AIC discusses their successes with their mobile sales application:

“We chose Pyxis Mobile because we feel it is the best in class application,” says Miles Radoja, AIC Vice-President, Sales Administration. “We knew that user adoption would be strong because of its popularity in the financial services industry and it turns out that it has been far better than we planned for. Feedback from the field has been extremely positive. Every wholesaler has jumped into this with both feet, and there hasn’t been any resistance from the field in using it.”

Are you currently using any mobile applications to facilitate your sales needs? What difficulties do you find when out in the field?

Ask the Experts - Pyxis Mobile in 2010

This week I had the opportunity to sit down with a couple of experts here at Pyxis Mobile.  We’ll be speaking with Pyxis Mobile president and CTO Todd Christy and Pyxis Mobile’s director of software, Arun Nagarajan. I set out on a mission to pick their brains about what is going on in the mobile industry and where 2010 will bring us. I found out that it’s true, great minds DO think alike!

Yesterday we talked about where Todd and Arun think the industry will be this year, but what is 2010 going to bring for Pyxis Mobile?

For Todd Christy and his team, user experience in enterprise solutions is a big focus. Their goal is to provide a compelling user experience which makes things easy and shows off the Pyxis Mobile solutions. Todd explains that a broader demographic is reached when there is a focus on enterprise.

Arun agrees; he’s focused on enterprise platforms. “Our customers are making applications that we could never even conceive.” There is a deep and broad need for mobility and limiting to making applications is not broad enough. Pyxis Mobile provides a Configure Once, Run Anywhere™ experience which Arun explains runs with no code on many devices and hopes to see innovative additions such as receipt expense upload via camera phone pictures, market data, and being able to find the nearest ATM (via the device’s GPS).

Arun explains a product feature term: Content Authentication. This means that you can use Pyxis Mobile to deliver a publicly accessible application (like a marketing app), but also provide a password protected section of the application that customers/employees can use to view their personal content. This feature makes it possible for wide application distribution, but with highly focused content available to specific user.

This is the end of our Ask the Experts blog series. Thanks for joining us! If you're curious about any of the topics we've discussed or have a question/topic you'd like us to ask for next time, leave a comment and we will include your question in the next round of interviews. If you’d like to know more about the solutions that Pyxis Mobile can provide for you please email info@pyxismobile.com or call 781-997-0300.

Ask the Experts - 2010 Industry Landscape

This week I had the opportunity to sit down with a couple of experts here at Pyxis Mobile.  We’ll be speaking with Pyxis Mobile president and CTO Todd Christy and Pyxis Mobile’s director of software, Arun Nagarajan. I set out on a mission to pick their brains about what is going on in the mobile industry and where 2010 will bring us. I found out that it’s true, great minds DO think alike!

We’re two months into 2010, so, I had to ask them: "What’s going to happen this year in the industry?" Todd and Arun were able to give me a little insight on what they think this year has to offer us. Todd describes 2010 as a “watershed year” for Android. That there will be clear signals as to who the audience is for these devices, what level they are at, and what their market share will be. He predicts that hardware innovation will pick up faster than usual, resulting in more devices being released. More hybrids, slates, smartphones, and targeted purpose devices. And changes in their OS will make RIM’s user experience one to envy.

Arun sees three industry leaders who have the most momentum and hold the most market share: RIM, Apple, and Google/Android. He predicts that the weaker ones will fall off the radar (WinMo, Palm, Nokia, Linux [LIMO being the weakest]). Rather than being application heavy, he thinks 2010 will be a trend toward a better constructed mobile web. Right now, the application stores provide reviews, discoverability, and monetization. He believes that the mobile web will take the fore front and will start to provide these benefits and that rich client applications will slip into the background.

So, what are your opinions of 2010? Share them and any questions you may have with us in the comments below!

Tomorrow Todd and Arun sound off about what everyone can look forward to from Pyxis Mobile in 2010. Come back and join in on the conversation!