Archive for November, 2010
With the New Year rapidly approaching, businesses are looking to improve the efficiency of their workforce and to increase both their top and bottom lines. According to an IDC report, 48% of the companies surveyed plan to spend corporate IT dollars to make their enterprise applications mobile in 2011. This spend will create a new competitive landscape between firms, as the race for enterprise mobility solutions heat up. The key to successfully mobilizing back-office systems is to use the perspective of the employee looking into the back-office system (SAP, PeopleSoft, ERP), and getting the information needed to better perform work, thus improving operational efficiency. With the evolution of the mobile enterprise, it is no longer an optimized solution to just push information out to the workforce; this is a key distinction in strategic planning that must be made. Here are five tips to improve business efficiency by mobilizing the investment your firm has made in their back-office in the New Year:
- Focus on real use cases of your employees in the field. Regardless of the industry, business processes and the operational environments are different. These business nuances can make the difference between success and failure when mobilizing the enterprise.
- Create an enterprise mobility steering committee. It is important that the cross-functionality of the key stakeholders be highlighted to incorporate the broad knowledge base of your organization.
- Focus on the mobilization of the most active and valuable parts of your business, whether that’s logistics, field service, manufacturing, or sales. This is the 80/20 rule and will help to maximize your return on investment for your company’s enterprise mobility project.
- Define flows, both process and information. Look for latency, or disruptions, caused by your workforce not having the information held in your back-office at the point of performance.
- Select a true partner in enterprise mobility. This partner will focus on your business, and do a best-practice GAP analysis to find the optimal impact for your enterprise mobility project. Leaders in enterprise mobility will offer a holistic approach to mobile business strategy, provide your firm with a strategic mobile roadmap, and define a staged approach to implement a successful enterprise mobility project.
As leaders in enterprise mobility, Smartsoft Mobile Solutions has implemented enterprise mobility projects for Fortune 50 companies. Our breadth of enterprise mobility offerings, focus on customer needs, and strategic approach to enterprise mobility has made Smartsoft Mobile an award winning enterprise mobility partner.
For More Information Check Out:
Best Practices: Leadership in Enterprise Mobility Part 1
Best Practices: Mobile Project Implementation
Best Practices: Defining Mobile ROI in Retail
Tags: Enterprise Mobility, IDC, Leaders in Enterprise Mobility, Mobile Application Development, Mobile Business Strategy, Mobile Strategy, Partner in Mobility, Project Management, ROI, SAP, Smartsoft Mobile
Posted in Application Development, B2B Mobile, B2C Mobile, Enterprise Mobility, SAP, Solution Delivery | 3 Comments »
It is finally here, November 26, 2010 or Black Friday 2010 will be the biggest sales day of the year for many retailers. Mobility and specifically mobile commerce is expected to have a huge impact on Black Friday 2010. And just in time for the holiday, e-tailing giant eBay, launched a barcode scanner inside its mobile application over the past weekend, with a goal of greatly improving last year’s $1.2B in m-commerce sales.
Scanning functionality will be a key feature in best-in-class mobile commerce applications. Due mostly to the price sensitivity of consumers caused by the current economic environment, retailers will be putting out their best deals on products during this critical “first shopping week” of the 2010 holiday season. The ability of customers to scan barcodes at a brick and mortar location then automatically compare hundreds of offers of that specific item for price and quality will add a new level of complexity for merchandisers and businesses this year.
Mobile advertising is four-to-five times more effective than online advertising on average, according to InsightExpress. Many large big-box retailers have upped their mobile advertising spend by 5x or more, including: Best-Buy, Macy’s, Walmart, and Toys”R”us. Best Buy is running ads within TheFind application, giving consumers discounts to products for which they are looking and shopping. TheFind Mobile is the first shopping app to seamlessly connect, using Facebook, with research and purchases made online with the way a user actually shops inside a store, along with retail’s best bar code scanning and price comparison engines.
The key trend to notice right now is retailers are embracing barcode scanning and partnering with innovative mobile application companies to enhance their customers shopping experiences. As leaders in enterprise mobility, Smartsoft Mobile Solutions has anticipated this conversion technology and is offering innovative products to clients using the latest in barcode scanning technologies.
For More Information Check Out:
The Impact of Mobility on the 2010 Holiday Shopping Season
Best Practices: Leaders in Enterprise Mobility – Part 2 Device Knowledge
Best Practices: How Should a Retailer Select a Strategic Mobile Partner?
Tags: 2010 Holiday Season, B2C, Barcode Scanning, Black Friday, eBay, Leaders in Enterprise Mobility, m-commerce, Mobile Business Strategy, Mobile Commerce, mobile retailing, Mobile Strategy, Smartsoft Mobile
Posted in Apple, Application Development, B2C Mobile, Devices, Enterprise Mobility, Mobile Commerce, Mobile Marketing, Solution Delivery | 4 Comments »
Google is the first mobile platform to announce a true mobile payment solution imbedded into its operating system. Mobile payments will allow Smartphone users to swipe their phone at a payment station in a store, and pay for a good or service. This technology has been a missing link for mobile commence solutions. Google’s next version of its Android Smartphone software will support a technology that lets people use their handsets, instead of credit cards, to pay for goods at restaurants and stores. Google CEO Eric Schmitt said during this week’s Web 2.0 conference that support for the technology, dubbed Near Field Communications, will be integrated into the next version of its Android software, “Gingerbread”, which he said will be introduced in a few weeks. While near Field communications is not a new technology, its use in enabling mobile payments is very new in The United States. Near Field Communication or NFC, is a short-range high frequency wireless communication technology which enables the exchange of data between devices over about a 10 centimeter (around 4 inches) distance. It will only be a matter of time before other platforms such as Apple’s iPhone and Microsoft Windows Phone 7 have their own mobile payment solution. Both platforms have been rumored to be incorporating this technology in 2011.
Three of the four largest mobile phone carriers in the U.S. have formed a joint venture to turn phones into digital wallets, allowing subscribers to pay for groceries and other retail items using their phones, instead of credit cards or other methods. On November 16, 2010 AT&T Mobility, Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile USA, with a combined 220 million U.S. customers, announced Tuesday that they have formed the Isis mobile commerce network, with service expected to roll out in some markets within 18 months. The network, based on open standards, will welcome any mobile carriers, banks and retail outlets that want to join, said Michael Abbott, Isis’ CEO.
Many mobile application developers will incorporate this new functionality in mobile retailing applications. As Leaders in Enterprise Mobility, Smartsoft Mobile Solutions is currently incorporating many technologies into their products to give their customers enhanced functionality and features including Near Field communications technology.
For more information check out:
The Impact of Mobility on the 2010 Holiday Shopping Season
Best Practices: How Should a Retailer Select a Strategic Mobile Partner
Best Practices: Leadership in Enterprise Mobility Part 1
Posted in Application Development | 5 Comments »
To have a solid partner in mobility, an enterprise must trust that the partner is keeping up with industry trends not only current trends but forecasting those trends into future projections, to keep you not only informed but also alert you when necessary to the rapidly evolving mobile landscape. The growth on tablets as a category of mobile devices is a certainty, but when building mobile enterprise applications, one has to consider operating system adoption trends. The main reason for focusing on these trends is the fact that, not only are your customers included in these numbers, but your employees are as well. There are many reasons for the growth of the Android platform, the major one being the operating system is used by multiple manufactures so the market is saturated with the Android operating system. The mobile analysts at Smartsoft Mobile Solutions anticipate this trend to continue, as Apple’s iPhone penetration will be limited due to the tight manufacturing control of the device. The iPhone will be a major player due to the application portal Apple has created, but global market penetration is expected to range in the 15-19% range. This leaves roughly 80% of the global operating system pie up for grabs. Microsoft’s new offering, Windows Phone 7 is an interesting addition to the mix. Windows Phone 7claims to increase user productivity 20%. Whether the market will adopt this new operating system remains to be seen. What is certain is a report just released by Gartner for Q3 2010 operating system sales. Android, which has seen 628% growth over Q3 2009, and is now the No. 2 Smartphone OS worldwide. There were some 20 million units sold to end users (that’s you and me) in the third quarter, compared to 1.4 million in the third quarter of 2009. Once can gain the insight that basic “feature phones” are going to be a thing of the past soon. Here is theGartner breakdown of Q3 sales by operating system:
How does this impact your enterprise? Your customers and employees will use these devises. Your firm needs to be aware of these trends, and plan for the mobile evolution displayed in these figures. This means planning the mobilization of your workforce using these consumer grade devices, and mash-up back office systems to get the information needed by specialized employees at the point of performance. Your customers will view your company’s offerings through multiple operating systems. Customer centric companies will thrive in this rapidly evolving mobile environment. The key is focusing on which operating system will fit your target market and then building mobile applications that not only add value to your customers, but increase the reach and stickiness of your brand. The product group at Smartsoft Mobile Solutions is prepared for the paradigm shift in mobile operating systems, and as a result the mobility needs of your firm will be as well. Dan Homrich, CEO of Smartsoft Mobile Solutions, views this paradigm shift this way, “The growth in open source operating systems tells us that the software and specifically applications will dictate functionality, instead of the current situation of hardware dictating function”.
For more information check out:
Best Practices: Leaders in Enterprise Mobility Part 1
Best Practices: Defining Mobile ROI in Retail
Mobile Marketing – Trends
Tags: Android, Business Strategy, Device, Gartner, iPhone, Mobile Application Development, Mobile Business Strategy, Mobile Marketing, Mobile Operating Systems Trends, Mobile Strategy, Smartsoft Mobile, Windows Phone 7
Posted in Apple, B2B Mobile, B2C Mobile, Blackberry, Devices, Enterprise Mobility, Google, Mobile Commerce, Mobile Marketing, Windows | 3 Comments »
Today, the mobilization of back-office systems is at the top of many IT budgets, as well as strategic goals. Businesses have the desire to leverage the investments they have made into their back office systems, including: SAP, Oracle/Peoplesoft, Salesforce.com, QuickBooks etc… Leveraging the previous investments that a firm has made into information technology and using that information in a way that was not even planned during the software/hardware installation is now reality. The ability to mobilize the office, pulling back-office data and turning that data into useful information for the worker is a maximum value-add for the enterprise. True leadership in enterprise mobility comes from not only understanding an individual firm’s business processes, but also understanding the end-user of the mobile application. An understanding of the end-user, the working environment, and unique informational needs allows for mobile application development tailored to the user. This enhanced user experience, created by leadership in enterprise mobility, creates a mobile enterprise allocation with a rich user experience. This user experience increases adoption of the mobile application at a 7x rate, thus dramatically increasing the firms ROI. Several levels of thinking go into creating a strong user experience, a component in enterprise mobility leadership:
- Take a step back and ask, “What business process or problem is this mobile application trying to solve?”
- Look at the user, and that user’s environment, “How will this impact application usage?”.
- Think of reducing touch points inside the application, getting to the end goal faster.
- Present the application in a manner to which the end user is accustomed (rich/ native interface)
- Do time studies, and use cases before pushing applications into production.
While this is not everything that goes into creating a positive user experience for a mobile entries application, it is a good starting point. Best-in-class user experience design of a mobile application cannot be rushed. However, creating best user experience design practices can make your company an industry leader in the mobile enterprise space. Taking a step back to look at the business process, pain points, and the end user will create a mobile enterprise application with a much higher usage rate among your employees. At Smartsoft Mobile Solutions, our teams of User Experience experts work daily with multi-national corporations to facilitate the mobile objectives of our partners with leadership in enterprise mobility.
For more information checkout:
Best Practices: How Should a Retailer Select a Strategic Mobile Partner
Best Practices: Mobile Project Implementation Part 1
How Are Your Customers Using Their Mobile Devices?
Tags: Enterprise Mobility, Leaders in Enterprise Mobility, mobile, Mobile Application Development, Peoplesoft, Quickbooks, ROI, SAP, Smartsoft Mobile, User Experience
Posted in Application Development, B2B Mobile, Cognos, Enterprise Mobility, SAP, Solution Delivery | 2 Comments »
With 62% of the retailers polled in a Forester report implementing some kind of mobile strategy in 2010, many analysts and supply chain partners have asked how mobility will impact the 2010 holiday shopping season. The first answer looks at the interconnectivity of retail channels. The seamless tie-in between the brick and mortar, the .com and the mobile application improves the customer experience. Here are some keys to improving this customer experience, thereby increasing conversion rates:
- Single Branded Customer Experience Across Channel (familiarity)
- Channel Tie-ins (location based promotions)
- User Affinity Optimization (all CRM data will be mined and pushed to mobile)
- Focus on the Mobile User (r customer’s utility is king)
- Creativity in Mobile (key differentiator this holiday season)
Retailers that build a strategic mobile task force for the holiday season can optimize the investment that the firm has made in a customer facing mobile solution. The key is cross organizational synergy and buy-in when carrying out a mobile campaign during this holiday season. As with any cross functional team, there should be someone with end responsibility for performance metrics and thus “ownership” of the project. Key departments that should be involved in a mobile taskforce include:
- Marketing
- Merchandising
- .Com
- IT
- In-Store Strategy
- Customer Service
The immediate impact of this strategic mobile taskforce on the 2010 holiday season can be enormous. Working with the IT group, the In-store group can build 2D barcodes into products with either margin or quantity. These barcodes when scanned by a mobile device such as an iPhone or Android will then launch a promotional page developed by the .Com side of the house with marketing’s desired messaging. When using mobile to tieinto all sales channels, the beneficiary is the consumer, as the shopping experience will become both rich and interactive. Leaders in enterprise mobility such as Smartsoft Mobile Solutions, enhancing the shopping experience through rich native functionality. Here are the mobile features and applications that will have the most impact on the 2010 holiday season:
- Rich Native M-commerce Applications
- Beneficial tools inside the application (ie. interactive tools)
- 2D Barcodes (key is creativity in driving adoption)
- Comparison Shopping using a Barcode Scanner
- Onsite Location Based Promotions
For more check out:
Mobile Marketing – Trends
MobileGeo-location Tools in Applications and Usage in Retail
Best Practices: Defining Mobile ROI in Retail
Tags: 2010 Holiday Season, 2010 Trends in Mobile Commerce, Android, Apple, B2C, Barcode Scanning, Geo-location, Google, iPhone, Location Based Cuponing, Mobile Commerce, mobile retailing
Posted in Apple, Application Development, B2C Mobile, Google, Mobile Commerce, Mobile Marketing | 3 Comments »
During many of my recent speaking engagements, I’ve been asked the “build vs. buy” question when it comes to mobile apps.
While many good toolkits for building mobile apps have been available, the tendency going forward will be to leverage off-the-shelf or out-of-the-box solutions whenever possible. It is simply becoming too costly (and slow) for most companies to seriously invest in building mobile apps for their own consumption. Now, there are exceptions. If the app is a key enabler or business differentiator that is not available via a packaged solution, then yes, building it is a good alternative. But for the functions like PO approvals, timesheets, work order management, and business intelligence, off-the-shelf applications are the clear choice.
Consider this simple situation; If I was a CIO and I approached my boss and said “I want to build a finance system – G/L, A/P, A/R, everything, from the ground up” I’d be laughed out of his/her office and/or my job! While a great example of what not to do, we all realize there are some people today who insist on developing their own mobile apps. I wonder if they want to build their own tablets too!
Tags: Enterprise Mobility, Mobile App Experts, Mobile Application Development, Mobile Applications, Mobile Strategy
Posted in Application Development, B2B Mobile, B2C Mobile, Enterprise Mobility, Solution Delivery | No Comments »
