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Alexa Amazon Echo App Everywhere B2B Apps Connected Car Google Home Mobile Apps Smart Home Smart TVs Voice Commands

Tech 248 Recap & Key Takeaways

On Tuesday, July 31st we hosted our first in house event, partnering with Tech248! We offered networking and refreshments while our executives gave brief updates on 2018’s mobile trends.  We couldn’t be more excited to see over 80 local business people attend our first event!
In case you missed it… here’s a little recap of the presentations and their key takeaways!

Apps For Business

Our COO, Bob Kernen gave an incredible presentation about apps for business. Bob refers to apps as a dynamic business tool. “We tend to think of apps as consumers – apps are these little tools people use to get us through our day. In reality, they are the most valuable real estate a marketer can have, and most importantly… ALL companies can participate.”
An app is self-contained piece of software that is designed to serve a discreet function and work on a specific type or types of devices. It leverages the power of your smartphone or tablet, way beyond the ability of a mobile browser. Mobile apps can be designed to help facilitate instant communication with customers.
App features an include: 

  • Real-time updates on product availability
  • Ability to request a quote or place an order
  • Provide login, video, and PDF sessions for education
  • Host an ultra-categorized, user-friendly product catalogue
  • Connect users with particular departments or teams instantly
  • And more!

With that being said…“There’s an app for that!” Did you know 81% of American adults use a smartphone… and mobile usage has surpassed desktop usage!

Media Consumption Trends

Our President, Paul Jacobs, gave great insight about the Media Trends in 2018. Paul touches on the results from Techsurvey 2018.

  1. We can definitely see a generational shift when it comes to media, as shown survey results, we see millennials and boomers both have the highest population dealing with media consumption.
  2. Here is the 2018 media pyramid representing media consumption, devices used, and trends between millennials and boomers: 
  3. In 2018, Techsurvey proves that audio streaming is still on the rise, and is quite balanced between male and female consumers. If your business has audio content to put out there – keep doing it!
  4. Lastly, in-car audio provides many different sources for content. The AM/FM radio is still standard but audiobooks, podcasts, streaming providers, and XM satellite are all sources for content and advertising if your business is trying to reach consumers on the go.

Now how do we here at jācapps relate to that? jācapps App Everywhere® provides solutions that encourage communication across all devices. We incorporate your brand through mobile phones, the connected car, smart TVs, smart speakers, tablets, and wearables.

Smart Speaker Update

Our Director of Business Development, Sari Zalesin, gave a great presentation about smart speakers! If you don’t know already… Alexa dominates the smart speaker space! Looking at smart speaker owners, 75% own Amazon Alexa only, 19% own Google Home only, and 6% own both Amazon Alexa and Google Home.
When it comes to business, Amazon Alexa skills need a strategy behind them. Creating “skills” is easy, but voice is actually something much larger! Voice is actually a whole new user interface, and more and more devices will be controlled by the human voice. With that being said, consider your business and how you might interact with users through voice. What content do you want delivered, and to whom? Do you have news, announcements, or recurring content? Or are you focusing on set database questions and answers?
Amazon Alexa has skills for all different industries, some of the hot industry skills around the US include; Healthcare, Automotive, and Food & Beverage.
Here are some great examples from her presentation: 

  • Healthcare –
    • Carolinas HealthCare created an Alexa skill where consumers can simply ask “Alexa, what is the nearest Carolinas urgent care or hospital?”
  • Automotive –
    • Ford and FCA partnered with Amazon to connect their cars to Alexa voice control for commands relating to appointments, trip management, and engine starting.
  • Food & Beverage –
    • TGI Friday’s created a skill allowing fans to place orders and make reservations with Alexa voice technology.

Overall, smart speakers are here to stay! Every business needs a voice strategy!

Thank you to all of the attendees and we hope to see you at future events!
We would also love to thank Farmington Brewing Company and Plum Market for catering with the best refreshments! The beer and food were a hit…we look forward to working with both companies for future events!
If you are interest in us, the apps we’ve built, or a product of your own, contact us at sales@jacapps.com or (248) 353-9030

Categories
Alexa Amazon Echo App Everywhere B2B Apps Connected Car Google Home Mobile Apps Smart Home Smart TVs Voice Commands

Tech 248 Recap & Key Takeaways

On Tuesday, July 31st we hosted our first in house event, partnering with Tech248! We offered networking and refreshments while our executives gave brief updates on 2018’s mobile trends.  We couldn’t be more excited to see over 80 local business people attend our first event!

In case you missed it… here’s a little recap of the presentations and their key takeaways!

Apps For Business

Our COO, Bob Kernen gave an incredible presentation about apps for business. Bob refers to apps as a dynamic business tool. “We tend to think of apps as consumers – apps are these little tools people use to get us through our day. In reality, they are the most valuable real estate a marketer can have, and most importantly… ALL companies can participate.”

An app is self-contained piece of software that is designed to serve a discreet function and work on a specific type or types of devices. It leverages the power of your smartphone or tablet, way beyond the ability of a mobile browser. Mobile apps can be designed to help facilitate instant communication with customers.

App features an include: 

  • Real-time updates on product availability
  • Ability to request a quote or place an order
  • Provide login, video, and PDF sessions for education
  • Host an ultra-categorized, user-friendly product catalogue
  • Connect users with particular departments or teams instantly
  • And more!

With that being said…“There’s an app for that!” Did you know 81% of American adults use a smartphone… and mobile usage has surpassed desktop usage!

Media Consumption Trends

Our President, Paul Jacobs, gave great insight about the Media Trends in 2018. Paul touches on the results from Techsurvey 2018.

  1. We can definitely see a generational shift when it comes to media, as shown survey results, we see millennials and boomers both have the highest population dealing with media consumption.
  2. Here is the 2018 media pyramid representing media consumption, devices used, and trends between millennials and boomers: 
  3. In 2018, Techsurvey proves that audio streaming is still on the rise, and is quite balanced between male and female consumers. If your business has audio content to put out there – keep doing it!
  4. Lastly, in-car audio provides many different sources for content. The AM/FM radio is still standard but audiobooks, podcasts, streaming providers, and XM satellite are all sources for content and advertising if your business is trying to reach consumers on the go.

Now how do we here at jācapps relate to that? jācapps App Everywhere® provides solutions that encourage communication across all devices. We incorporate your brand through mobile phones, the connected car, smart TVs, smart speakers, tablets, and wearables.

Smart Speaker Update

Our Director of Business Development, Sari Zalesin, gave a great presentation about smart speakers! If you don’t know already… Alexa dominates the smart speaker space! Looking at smart speaker owners, 75% own Amazon Alexa only, 19% own Google Home only, and 6% own both Amazon Alexa and Google Home.

When it comes to business, Amazon Alexa skills need a strategy behind them. Creating “skills” is easy, but voice is actually something much larger! Voice is actually a whole new user interface, and more and more devices will be controlled by the human voice. With that being said, consider your business and how you might interact with users through voice. What content do you want delivered, and to whom? Do you have news, announcements, or recurring content? Or are you focusing on set database questions and answers?

Amazon Alexa has skills for all different industries, some of the hot industry skills around the US include; Healthcare, Automotive, and Food & Beverage.

Here are some great examples from her presentation: 

  • Healthcare –
    • Carolinas HealthCare created an Alexa skill where consumers can simply ask “Alexa, what is the nearest Carolinas urgent care or hospital?”
  • Automotive –
    • Ford and FCA partnered with Amazon to connect their cars to Alexa voice control for commands relating to appointments, trip management, and engine starting.
  • Food & Beverage –
    • TGI Friday’s created a skill allowing fans to place orders and make reservations with Alexa voice technology.

Overall, smart speakers are here to stay! Every business needs a voice strategy!

Thank you to all of the attendees and we hope to see you at future events!

We would also love to thank Farmington Brewing Company and Plum Market for catering with the best refreshments! The beer and food were a hit…we look forward to working with both companies for future events!

If you are interest in us, the apps we’ve built, or a product of your own, contact us at sales@jacapps.com or (248) 353-9030

Categories
Alexa Amazon Echo Google Home Mobile Apps Smart Home

Consumer spending within app stores is expected to hit $110 billion in 2018

Consumer spending within all app stores is anticipated to surpass $110 billion in 2018, with a shift in popularity of app categories. Entertainment apps have typically gained more popularity with consumers, but need-based apps (e.g., food delivery, payments, etc.) are on the rise. Need-based apps are usually discovered through word of mouth, but more consumers have begun seeking them out to help simplify their daily lives. Additionally, Apple and Google have begun work to reorganize their app stores in an effort to make newer apps more discoverable to users, which is likely to promote more downloads.
Popularity of AR apps will also be on the rise in the new year. Facebook, Google and Apple previously announced they are working to expand their AR capabilities. This type of expansion will open up the app stores for more developers to publish AR apps, generating more excitement from users.

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Astonishingly, downloads for Amazon’s Alexa app surged from 1 million to 3 million within just 3 months last year. This year’s trends are expected to show a growth well beyond that mark as more virtual assistants have been released before the holiday season.
We at jācapps wish you and yours Happy Holidays and look forward to speaking with you about your mobile needs in the new year! Reach out to us at 248-353-9030 or marketing@jacapps.com to learn more.

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Alexa Amazon Echo Google Home Radio Smart Home Techsurvey

Smart speakers are this year's trending gifts

UX

We recently collaborated with our sister company, Jacobs Media and Sonic Ai on a national study regarding smart speakers. Our online study shows that one in five (20%) respondents age 13 and older with Internet access plan to purchase a voice-controlled smart speaker such as an Amazon Echo or Google Home during the 2017 holiday season.
Notably, more than one in six online households (18%) now own at least one smart speaker, with 40% of this group already having two or more of the devices in their household. Smart speaker owners are also especially likely to purchase another of these voice command gadgets for themselves or as a gift this holiday season. In fact, six in ten smart speaker owners (61%) plan to purchase at least one more device during this all-important gift-buying cycle.
The study also shows that one in ten online households (11%) specifically owns an Alexa-enabled Amazon smart speaker such as the Echo, Echo Dot and Show devices; the majority of these owners (69%) have at least one Alexa “skill” enabled, while 45% have two or more Alexa “skills” enabled.
Bob Kernen, COO of jācapps, notes, “With Black Friday and Cyber Monday now in the rearview mirror, both Amazon and Google continue to compete heavily to get as many of their smart speakers, now at their lowest price points ever, into as large a number of households as possible. This data strongly suggests smart speaker ownership will take off in the coming weeks.”
“Smart speakers are clearly the must-have gadget for the holidays. Like anything else, habits will form quickly which is the remarkable opportunity for broadcasters and podcasters. They need a smart audio strategy for smart speakers,” said Steve Goldstein, co-founder of Sonic Ai.
We can develop Alexa skills for your business. Reach out to us at 248-353-9030 or marketing@jacapps.com to learn more!

Categories
Alexa Amazon Echo Google Home Radio Smart Home Techsurvey

Smart speakers are this year’s trending gifts

UX

We recently collaborated with our sister company, Jacobs Media and Sonic Ai on a national study regarding smart speakers. Our online study shows that one in five (20%) respondents age 13 and older with Internet access plan to purchase a voice-controlled smart speaker such as an Amazon Echo or Google Home during the 2017 holiday season.

Notably, more than one in six online households (18%) now own at least one smart speaker, with 40% of this group already having two or more of the devices in their household. Smart speaker owners are also especially likely to purchase another of these voice command gadgets for themselves or as a gift this holiday season. In fact, six in ten smart speaker owners (61%) plan to purchase at least one more device during this all-important gift-buying cycle.

The study also shows that one in ten online households (11%) specifically owns an Alexa-enabled Amazon smart speaker such as the Echo, Echo Dot and Show devices; the majority of these owners (69%) have at least one Alexa “skill” enabled, while 45% have two or more Alexa “skills” enabled.

Bob Kernen, COO of jācapps, notes, “With Black Friday and Cyber Monday now in the rearview mirror, both Amazon and Google continue to compete heavily to get as many of their smart speakers, now at their lowest price points ever, into as large a number of households as possible. This data strongly suggests smart speaker ownership will take off in the coming weeks.”

“Smart speakers are clearly the must-have gadget for the holidays. Like anything else, habits will form quickly which is the remarkable opportunity for broadcasters and podcasters. They need a smart audio strategy for smart speakers,” said Steve Goldstein, co-founder of Sonic Ai.

We can develop Alexa skills for your business. Reach out to us at 248-353-9030 or marketing@jacapps.com to learn more!

Categories
Amazon Echo Google Home Mobile UX Voice Commands

What is a “Template” vs. a “Platform” App?

Man using mobile payments online shopping and icon customer network connection on screen, m-banking and omni channel

Each type of app can bring different advantages for your company. Understanding those advantages help shape the goal of your app.

Deciding which type of app is right for your company is crucial  

When jācapps was formed back in 2008, we built every app from scratch. Development took a long time, repairs and updates were tedious, and flexibility was minimal. As we became more sophisticated, our development leaders had a vision to create a platform that would enable us to not only build, service, and update apps faster, but also provide an incredible amount of flexibility to our clients in layout, design, features, and functionality.
Concurrently, other developers were working on their own version, and a few have created a “templated” approach. In this model, app design, features, and functionality are uniform. The only thing different is the content in the app (the stream, links to social media, etc.).
Two approaches – both are credible and deliver on the promise to clients. Our approach is a modular, customizable platform. The other approach is a template.
Here’s why we believe the modular platform approach delivers more advantages to our clients than a template:

  1.  No two radio stations are the same. Sure, most radio station apps have streams, podcasts, social media, and more. But each radio station is its own brand. A Top 40 station in Wichita should reflect their brand and their market, and shouldn’t look like a Christian radio station in Madison. Some stations have huge morning shows that should be featured. Others should highlight social media. A template can’t provide that flexibility. A platform can.
  2. Different formats require different functionality. When our partner company, Jacobs Media, began conducting the TechSurvey, it became clear to us that audiences of different formats interact with their favorite radio station in unique ways. For example, Twitter use by Sports radio fans is through the roof, so our sports station clients can feature that on the main screen in their app. News stations in commercial and public radio feature a headline news feed on their main page, and music-oriented stations feature last-song played. A template can’t provide that flexibility. A platform can.
  3. A platform app can best reflect what’s on the air. One of the main advantages of a platform app is that it can be “programmed” to be responsive to what’s on the air. So, if the morning show has a special guest, the app can instantly be changed to feature a picture of the guest prior to them appearing, and then taken down when the interview is complete. Station promotions, contests and events can be showcased, and removed when the event is over. Templated apps are static, and cannot promote the station in as timely and effective a manner as a platform app.

 There are many other reasons why a flexible platform is the best solution for your mobile strategy. We have been fortunate to work with hundreds of radio stations over the past 8+ years, and they have inspired us to design our platform with the unique needs of their business in mind. The result is the most flexible, customizable, and reasonably priced solution going.
If you’d like to learn more about the benefits of the jācapps platform, contact us at sales@jacapps.com.
 

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Amazon Echo Google Home Mobile UX Voice Commands

The Importance of UX Without the Screen

UX

In today’s world, brands must increase user engagement, among other priorities, to stay relevant and meet their goals. These goals can be met with a mobile app, but it goes beyond just having an app for your business.

A good User Experience (UX) can mean the difference between success and failure

Many times, when we think of UX we think of wireframes and pretty colors. We consider whether a button color change would increase the purchase rate. But UX isn’t always on a screen. UX goes beyond the screen with audio products.
Designing for the suite of voice apps (Alexa, Google Home, and the HomePod) moves us away from visual representations and takes us to one single sense – sound.
As with all applications, user testing is critical. There are a few common red flags that come up when testing audio. One must make sure the audio demands make sense to the user. They should feel spontaneous and free of fluff. You must consider all the different accents and how they may be mispronounced. There also needs to be solid evidence that people would use the skill.
Done well, the audio platform takes your company and your product, off the screen and into the home.
At jācapps, we understand the end user and how they use mobile in a variety of settings – at home, at work, in the car, etc. We can help you build a UX strategy that works both on the screen and off the screen to reach your audience and keep them engaged wherever they may be.
Reach out to us today by clicking here. You can also give us a call at 248-353-9030 or email sales@jacapps.com.

Categories
Alexa Amazon Echo App Everywhere Google Home Mobile Apps Smart Home

You Don't SAi? Joint Venture Makes "Skills" for Amazon Echo and Google Home

amazon echo google home alexa smart home
Waves Sound in glow light. Abstract background. Vector illustration

Last week marked the debut of SonicAi – our new joint venture that develops “skills” for voice command devices – or “smart speakers” as they’re sometimes called.
amazon echo google home alexa smart home
We partnered with Steve Goldstein, Founder/CEO of Amplifi Media, to bring SonicAi, or SAi (“say”) for short, to life. The company’s focus is on designing and creating spoken word software for devices like Amazon Echo, or “Alexa,” as well as Google Home. These gadgets are showing up in more and more homes, offices, and other spaces every day.
From time-shifted audio like podcasts to featuring key station content that can be easily accessed and shared, our vision is to use the power of spoken voice commands to enhance the radio experience.

amazon echo google home alexa smart home
Ben, one of our Mobile Developers, hanging out with “Alexa” and Google Home

Jacobs Media, our sister company, has been tracking ownership of “smart speakers” in Techsurvey 13 and found that 11% of homes have one. And they’ve found that listeners who love formats that range from Alternative to AC to Sports Talk are grabbing up these devices in nearly equal numbers, indicating their mass appeal. In fact, Gartner predicts that 75% of U.S. homes will have one by 2020, and 20% will have two.
What this means for your station is that you need to engage with your audience beyond their phone, tablet, and even their car. You need to follow them wherever they may be. This means offering them apps everywhere, or App Everywhere® as we like to say. Furthermore, you need to make it easier for them to access your content. And what better way than using their own voice? Matt Hartman suggests that voice provides the lowest friction between consumers and them getting what they want, which is what makes offering your listeners these “skills” for voice command devices so important.
Check out this video to learn more about what SonicAi is all about:

To learn even more, click here.
Reach out to us today to discuss your mobile strategy and how we can help grow your business. Give us a call at 248-353-9030 or email sales@jacapps.com.

Categories
Alexa Amazon Echo App Everywhere Google Home Mobile Apps Smart Home

You Don’t SAi? Joint Venture Makes “Skills” for Amazon Echo and Google Home

amazon echo google home alexa smart home
Waves Sound in glow light. Abstract background. Vector illustration

Last week marked the debut of SonicAi – our new joint venture that develops “skills” for voice command devices – or “smart speakers” as they’re sometimes called.

amazon echo google home alexa smart home

We partnered with Steve Goldstein, Founder/CEO of Amplifi Media, to bring SonicAi, or SAi (“say”) for short, to life. The company’s focus is on designing and creating spoken word software for devices like Amazon Echo, or “Alexa,” as well as Google Home. These gadgets are showing up in more and more homes, offices, and other spaces every day.

From time-shifted audio like podcasts to featuring key station content that can be easily accessed and shared, our vision is to use the power of spoken voice commands to enhance the radio experience.

amazon echo google home alexa smart home
Ben, one of our Mobile Developers, hanging out with “Alexa” and Google Home

Jacobs Media, our sister company, has been tracking ownership of “smart speakers” in Techsurvey 13 and found that 11% of homes have one. And they’ve found that listeners who love formats that range from Alternative to AC to Sports Talk are grabbing up these devices in nearly equal numbers, indicating their mass appeal. In fact, Gartner predicts that 75% of U.S. homes will have one by 2020, and 20% will have two.

What this means for your station is that you need to engage with your audience beyond their phone, tablet, and even their car. You need to follow them wherever they may be. This means offering them apps everywhere, or App Everywhere® as we like to say. Furthermore, you need to make it easier for them to access your content. And what better way than using their own voice? Matt Hartman suggests that voice provides the lowest friction between consumers and them getting what they want, which is what makes offering your listeners these “skills” for voice command devices so important.

Check out this video to learn more about what SonicAi is all about:

To learn even more, click here.

Reach out to us today to discuss your mobile strategy and how we can help grow your business. Give us a call at 248-353-9030 or email sales@jacapps.com.