In
order to be in touch with your current and future attendees, share news and
conduct surveys easily, designing a website for a mobile device is one of the
most popular ways today. To choose the best one, so you can easily communicate
with them and vice versa, several technologies for creating a web application
have to be explained: native, web-based and hybrid mobile applications.
Web-based application it the one you can
access through a browser of the device you are using and it is limited by its
functionality. On the other hand, native application is downloaded onto device,
it has an option of loading all the pages and documents when you install it and
you are not in need of a mobile network or wireless internet to access all the
content. Third one offers the combination of the previous two technologies.
Hybrid apps use HTML5 technologies and it works on all devices and completely
offline. In order for attendees to access all the app content they just have to
visit the event app URL once and to download all of it to their devices. There
are no third party approvals for using hybrid apps so there is no unnecessary Internet
slow down.
All three have their good and bad options
and creating one without previously defining your goals can be both inefficient
and it can cost a lot.
First step is to identify why do we want
an app and what can our audience expect while using it. What do we try to
achieve? Do we just want to inform them or we want them to interact with us and
between themselves?
When that is done, there are several
steps we need to get through in order to create the best possible option for
our attendees:
· Data connection: Considering data
connection all the apps should include an offline mode, which means that the
data connection is necessary once your attendees install the app or they save
it within the browser. But for updates and push notifications, your app
requires a data connection, so if you can’t provide it on spot then better
create a hybrid or native app for your attendees.
· User experience: By downloading hybrid
and native applications, attendees prefer because it’s faster, easily
accessible to all the information, etc. If you want to use it as a poll device
or to collect attendees’ responses, these types of apps are much better for
user experience of your attendees. Even if there is no Internet while taking
surveys, these apps will collect all your information, store it and then send
it when there is a connection.
· Community involvement: Developers of
hybrid and native apps have made great strides in social interaction by
allowing push technology to be used within the apps. For example, many
developers now embed the use of the device's camera within the app to post
pictures more efficiently than web apps.
· Cost: New technology for creating
hybrid and web-based apps offers almost the same experience as native apps,
plus is cheaper and easy to create. So if you don’t need some special custom
coding of features for your app, best thing to create is either hybrid or
we-based app for your event.
· Design elements: You can design your
own custom made and brand recognizable apps on all of the platforms. Navigation
menu and sponsorship options can be customized and integrated in a way you
believe your attendees will find it attractive and easy to use
· Content: Both static content and
dynamic content, such as registration, can be formatted for hybrid, web-based
and native apps. Attendees' needs and planner recommendations should determine
the app content. At a minimum, most audiences expect agenda/speaker information
and meeting room maps.
· Audience demographics: Knowing your
audience is crucial when deciding on what app to deploy. If you are in an industry that relies heavily
on tablets or iPads, your audience is probably most familiar with native
apps. If this is the case, hybrid apps
can be a great option to offer a native app experience without the custom
programming cost. In contrast, if your
audience is a late adopter to mobile devices, using a browser to view the
content is likely preferred.
What’s next?
Once you figure it out all the steps then
you should probably discuss it with experts to determine which technology suits
you best. Which ever you choose it is at most importance to make it easily to
use and navigate otherwise, in modern world, it will be lost in the app sea.
Source: Brad Neuman -
http://www.corbinball.com/mobile/index.cfm?fuseaction=cor_av&artID=9078
