1. 1
Pub Apps: You Have No Idea
How Much You Don’t Know
(But asking these 10 questions can help)
Rebecca Lieb
@lieblink
Analyst, Altimeter Group

2. 2
Agenda
1. Competition
2. Technology & Platform
3. Content & Audience
© 2011 Altimeter Group

3. 3
Agenda
1. Competition
2. Technology & Platform
3. Content & Audience
© 2011 Altimeter Group

4. #1 Who are your competitors –
Brands?

5. 5
Content marketers plan to
beef up their mobile strategy
in the next one to three years.
Where will you be?
© 2011 Altimeter Group

6. 6
Recommendations
What can you offer that a 500 lb. gorilla can’t?
• Subject matter expertise
• Presentation
• Speed-to-market
• A more compelling experience
© 2011 Altimeter Group

7. #2 Who are your competitors –
agency side?

8. 8
“Content types we’ll be adding
within the next three years?
Mobile’s the easy answer”
– David Berkowitz, 360i
© 2011 Altimeter Group

9. 9
Recommendations
Remember that agencies are frenemies
Keep them close, but don’t show all your cards too early
© 2011 Altimeter Group

10. 10
Agenda
1. Competition
2. Technology & Platform
3. Content & Audience
© 2011 Altimeter Group

11. #3 What will mobile advertising
look like?

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© 2011 Altimeter Group

13. 13
Recommendations
Experiment. Be flexible.
Develop new models & explore custom solutions.
Test, test, and test some more.
© 2011 Altimeter Group

14. #4 Who will win the format war?

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© 2011 Altimeter Group

16. 16
Recommendations
If you put all your eggs into one basket, pick that basket very
carefully.
Content for Mac fans? iPhone!
Business users? Blackberry
Largest smartphone user base? Android
© 2011 Altimeter Group

17. #5 Apps are mobile.
So what’s “mobile,” anyway?

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© 2011 Altimeter Group

19. 19
Recommendations
Determine what mobile is – it shapes what you publish.
© 2011 Altimeter Group

20. #6 Who supports development efforts
– both internally and externally?

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Who will you turn to for
mobile strategy and app
development? An agency,
internal resources, or both?
© 2011 Altimeter Group

22. 22
Recommendations
Build strategy into technology considerations for scale
Simple as a mobile-enabled CMS?
Vastly more complex & multiplatform?
© 2011 Altimeter Group

23. 23
Agenda
1. Competition
2. Technology & Platform
3. Content & Audience
© 2011 Altimeter Group

24. #7 What is “publishing” on an app?

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© 2011 Altimeter Group

26. 26
Recommendations
Apps don’t conform to classic editorial models
• Functionality & utility
• Hyperlocal relevance
• Ultra-vertical search engine
• Gamification
© 2011 Altimeter Group

27. #8 Who’s the audience for your app?

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© 2011 Altimeter Group

29. 29
Recommendations
Research your audience to make determinations on platform,
content, pricing and functionality.
© 2011 Altimeter Group

30. #9 How will you measure success?

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26% of apps downloaded in
2010 were only used once.
Number of downloads, like
ratings, are an inaccurate
measure of success.
© 2011 Altimeter Group

32. 32
Recommendations
Don’t measure everything.
Determine KPIs.
• Establish a measurement plan
•Target metrics that indicate desired behaviors
• Gather feedback
© 2011 Altimeter Group

33. #10 Do apps fit into your cross-media
strategy?

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© 2011 Altimeter Group

35. 35
Recommendations
What’s the multiplier effect that will increase reach and
awareness without colliding into platform issues?
© 2011 Altimeter Group

36. 36
Question Checklist
1. Who is your competition – brand side?
2. Who is your competition - agency side?
3. What will mobile advertising look like?
4. Who will win the format war?
5. Apps are mobile. So what's mobile, anyway?
6. Who supports development efforts - internally and externally?
7. What is “publishing” on an app?
8. Who's your audience?
9. How will you measure success?
10. How will mobile apps fit into your cross-media strategy?
© 2011 Altimeter Group

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WHAT ARE YOUR QUESTIONS?
Rebecca Lieb
rebecca@altimetergroup.com
rebeccalieb.com/blog
Twitter: lieblink
With assistance from Researcher Jaimy Szymanski & Industry Analyst Chris SIlva
© 2011 Altimeter Group