IGNITION WEST 2012: NIVPAT, Polkast, Aura Demos and More (Gallery)

By Julie Blaustein

Here at Ignition West, I took a stroll down the hallway to check out the latest mobile tech. Here’s what I saw.

If you didn’t have a chance to attend Ignition West, it’s not too late to find out what went on. rappidApp created the official Ignition West app that includes the conference venue, its agenda, the speakers, sponsors, social and even the latest news. You can download it for free from the Apple Store. An Android version is on its way. Hannah Byrne, CEO and co-founder of rapidApps told me the company provides a real time content management system (CMS) for native mobile apps.RappidApp costs about $29.

Read the Full Post HERE

Is there an App for this event? Yup, you bet there is! And it’s powered by rappidApp.

Download the App Here

More About the Conference

2012′s IGNITION West will bring together people who are evolving and disrupting mobile to discuss what’s happening now, what’s next, and how it affects your business. Which platforms, products and business models will dominate? Find out at IGNITION West.

Topics include: Mobile platforms & consumer behavior; next-generation devices and services; who owns the Internet after search; the future of publishing, film and television on mobile; investing in mobile and mobile content; the gaming marketplace.

Follow @BIevents and #IGNITIONWest for LIVE tweets from the conference

With a few taps on their smartphones, customers ordering breakfast at Squeeze In, a restaurant with locations in Northern California and Nevada, can upgrade their entrees with an extra helping of fries, fruit, meat, veggies, or melted cheese and onions — for free.

It’s one of the perks of downloading the restaurant’s smartphone app. So far, said owner Misty Young, more than 2,100 customers have installed the app on their phone and more than a third of them have taken advantage of the special offer.

“In this digital age, you have to reach people where they are,” said Young, who paid a friend about $2,500 to develop the app two years ago. “We do everything we can to stay in front of them. Even if they have 12 open screens on their iPhone, it’s still there. I’d rather be in front a guest than not in their thought process whatsoever.”

That’s becoming the thinking for more and more small businesses. It comes as nearly half of all adults in the United States own a smartphone, according to a recent Pew Internet and American Life Project report. Consumers are also spending more time using mobile apps, even more so than the web, an analysis by Flurry found last summer. And around the globe, some 30 billion apps were downloaded last year, estimates Juniper Research.

It’s also becoming easier and cheaper than ever to build a mobile app. New services are emerging that make it possible for small businesses to get into the game on a budget and with little technical expertise. Among them, Apptive and rappidApp help small businesses build a mobile app for as little as $19.99 a month.

“Even if they have 12 open screens on their iPhone, it’s still there. I’d rather be in front a guest than not in their thought process whatsoever.”

“The last thing [customers] look at before they go to bed is their smartphone and the first thing they look at is their smartphone. The best way to market to them is through the smartphone,” said RappidApp co-founder and CEO Hannah Byrne.

Both Apptive and rappidApp are platforms that let businesses create a mobile app without knowing how to code. Clients pay a monthly subscription fee, which lets them make the app —taking advantage of the smartphone’s core features such as the GPS, camera and push notifications — and update it as needed.

Misty Young at Squeeze In, her restaurant that offers customers incentives for downloading its mobile phone app.

“If you bring in two or three loyal customers because of something in the app, then you’ve paid for the app time and time again,” said Jason Jaynes, Apptive’s co-founder and vice president of products and marketing.

 Read The Full Article on CNBC.com –>>

Enjoy!

ATLANTA (March 11, 2012) – The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG), the state’s leading association dedicated to the promotion and economic advancement of Georgia’s technology industry, today announced rappidApp as one of its Top 40 Innovative Technology Companies in Georgia. TAG will recognize this prestigious group at the 2012 Georgia Technology Summit (GTS) on March 28, 2012, at the Cobb Galleria Centre.

TAG’S Top 40 Awards recognize Georgia-based companies for their innovation, financial impact, and their efforts at spreading awareness of Georgia’s technology initiatives throughout the U.S. and globally.

“The Top 40 companies are shining examples of what makes Georgia a hotbed for innovation in technology,” said Tino Mantella, president & CEO of TAG. “Georgia is home to more than 13,000 technology companies, so we applaud the 2012 Top 40 finalists for standing out as leaders in innovation and in Georgia’s technology community. These are the types of companies that will help Georgia become recognized as one of the top states in the nation for technology.”

“This year we had a 30% increase in the number of applications over the past few years. We were very impressed by the quality and breadth of technology companies that applied,” said Dennis Zakas, a partner and founder of Zakas & Leonard, LLP, Chair of Group Office Buys, LLC, and chairperson of the Top 40 Selection Committee. “It was very difficult to choose the Top 40 because of the large number of deserving companies. We expect great things from our winners.”

March 10: The team headed to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina to attend the 27th Annual Wine and Food Festival.

The multi-day festival with events through-out the city needed a mobile app solution for their visitors, and rappidApp was the perfect fit. Event goers were able to view schedules and locations before arriving to the event, as well as up-to-the-minute updates from festival

Nearly half of American adults now own smartphones, with more than 2 billion users expected worldwide by 2015.

Such market penetration makes social media and mobile apps a marketing must for small businesses, a pair of interactive media representatives said Tuesday during a Small Business Council SMART Lunch Series event.

“The average smartphone owner looks at his phone 150 times a day,” said Hannah Byrne, owner of local app development firm rappidApp. “Go mobile, or go home.”

Tuesday’s luncheon in the Savannah Morning News auditorium attracted 136 local entrepreneurs. Byrne and Noah Yaughn of Arc Media Group shared their insights on the importance of integrating interactive media into a small business’ marketing efforts while attorney Ben Karpf of Bouhan, Williams and Levy offered advice on legal issues related to social media marketing.

Yaughn focused his remarks on Facebook and the format changes the world’s most popular website is currently enacting. Facebook’s new look, which takes effect March 30 for business pages, includes tools that will “increase exposure for” small businesses, Yaughn said.

Byrne encouraged small business owners to develop mobile apps for their businesses. Currently, 1 million apps are available for smartphones, she said, with 1,000 apps being downloaded every three seconds.

“And the industry is in its infancy,” Byrne said.

Byrne outlined what she called “myths” many small business owners cite as reasons for not developing apps. They range from cost – financially and in terms of time and resources – to audience.

Apps are “relatively” inexpensive to develop based on the potential return and are used by consumers and other business and not just “teenagers,” Byrne said.

Apps and social media should be part of an “integrated marketing effort” and should be used to deepen customer loyalty and engage customers one-on-one. When developing an app, small business owners should make sure it utilizes smartphone hardware, like the built-in camera and GPS capabilities, to provide contextual-based relevant content.

Karpf, the attorney, followed Yaughn and Byrne’s presentations by cautioning small businesses about the way they use social media. Small business owners need to be aware of content policies, particularly on Facebook, and liability risks, including infringement and defamation, Karpf said.

“The internet can be a free-for-all,” Karpf said.

A small business that posts content on Facebook essentially licenses the rights to that content to the social media giant. Facebook can additionally sub-license that content to others, Karpf said.

“Rights are the life-blood of many small businesses,” Karpf said. “You need to educate and protect yourself.”

Enter our Twitter Contest To Win!

STEP 3:
“Like Us” on Facebook We like to be “Liked”, so help us out…

Important Details:

Contest Begins: Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Contest Ends: Saturday, March 17, 2012 at 5pm Eastern

Winners Announced via Twitter: Monday, March 19, 2012

The rappidApp team will choose 3 winners to receive our Premium App package, no setup fee and 7 months of FREE service. Winners will also receive individual consulting and design assistance by the rappidApp team with the express purpose of making their app as killer as possible. 

Total package is valued at $1693/app.

As an event planner, embracing new technologies can help improve your productivity, increase the “buzz” about your event and even take your event viral.  Understanding all of these new technologies can also seem overwhelming.  This workshop will take you through the steps of creating an event website, integrating social media, and development of a mobile app.  We will discuss WordPress, Twitter, Facebook, QR Codes and also unveil new mobile technology that can help you develop a mobile app for your event and update it, without needing a mobile developer.

Speakers:
Jennifer Bonnett, Owner, Vic Technologies
Hannah Byrne, Founder & CEO, rappidApp
Marna Friedman, Business Strategist, Mpressive Solutions, LLC

Learn more about The Special Event 2012