Bill Clinton won his first elections by saying it is the economy stupid. The message was clear: If you are better off financially, all falls in place and if not, the whole country will suffer.
So I am using this metaphor to emphasize the importance of the mobile apps in business and banking.
Recently I have been in meetings in which I heard people talking about making their web sites for the full size desktop computers better as one of their 2015 objectives. And I said to myself oh my gosh what planet are they living in?
From Africa to USA more and more people are buying and upgrading mobile phones. In many countries the mobile phone penetration is more than the population, which means some people have more than one phone and line (number).
If you can look at something from where you are at the very moment you need it, why do you need web sites designed for the desktop computers. If you are a smart and sensible business than you should enable your customers to reach you whenever and wherever.
You have a wonderful internet site but a lousy mobile app or no app at all, you are going south my friend. And if you start designing your web site with the desktop you will have the mobile design wrong as it will be a ‘translation’ from the original web site. Designers and developers should start with a smaller screen and with many touch screen possibilities.
Everybody talks about the mobile world today yet even for many high tech companies it took years to understand and act on it. One of the reasons why Facebook is losing its prominence with young people is because it took years to develop a sensible easy to use mobile app. By the time they did it, young people were already fed up and moved with other mobile apps. The fact that Facebook actually had to buy whatsapp is a clear proof of it.
I loved Apple’s ads when they first launched the app store in the US. Remember it kept saying; “there is an app for it” And I find it very hard to understand why more businesses are not asking that question to themselves. Do you have an app for your customers to reach and use your services? Is it the best app available? Is it the best you can do?
Your best needs to get better all the time. Companies can not create an app and leave there for a year or two before they go and revamp/upgrade. Those days are gone. Yet if you have an IT department, this is exactly what it will happen. Traditional IT world lives around creating a software and after many complaints and ideas from its users (they never call it customers), upgrading it in several years time.
This is not working anymore. IT can not exist in itself. Users, product managers, marketing professionals and of course IT developers all need to work together as ONE SINGLE TEAM to design and keep the apps alive everyday. After all, downloads are getting easier and more seemless.
Saying that desktop is dead and mobile apps are the king is easy. However making it a reality for a large company is very difficult. No wonder why most of the new stuff come out of startups who by definition are small and work as teams. Another nail to the large multinationals coffin.
Remember what the great Darwin said?
Only the fittest survive.
Not the biggest.
Where are the dinosaurs now?
