While we are in the early innings in terms of overall app adoption, today we salute the major brands willing to take a swing at what’s next. The Apps For Brands conference, presented by Appolicious and Advertising Age, offers insight from the individuals and organizations that are pioneering how commercial apps are developed, marketed and consumed.
Leading things off is Bob Bowman, CEO of MLB.com. Throughout the baseball season and down the stretch during this month’s pennant races, MLB At Bat 2009 has reinvented how professional sports leagues engage with their fans. The $9.99 app, which provides mobile access to all the games, is the best investment a fan can make.
Among the more notable brands to embrace and advance app culture are Men’s Health, Zagat Survey, and Benjamin Moore & Co. What we will learn today and continue to report on Appolicious is the strategic criteria for choosing apps, how they are implemented, and what constitutes a positive return on investment.
Barnes & Noble was an early adopter in the app space and has two highly successful mobile media properties with B&N eReader and the B&N Bookstore. Doug Gottlieb, Vice President of Digital Products for Barnes & Noble will explain how it pays for brand managers to think like software developers while approaching this mobile media platform.
How to price an app and where download costs fit within an overall ROI is a key issue. Kraft placed a 99-cent price point on its iFood Assistant, and within weeks saw the app take off beyond anyone’s expectations.
Apps developed for mobile banking must satisfy existing customers while also serve as a tool to reach new ones. This is the challenge of Bank of America – Mobile Banking, which remains one of the top apps downloaded and will be on display at Apps For Brands.
