Organizations should move cautiously about developing smartphone apps.
That was the advice from Rich Rogers, a mobile marketing expert in the Delaware Valley who offered a presentation at the Biz Buzz event earlier this week in Wilmington. Rogers has launched and worked at companies that have developed mobile technology.
The event at the Penn Cinema Riverfront in Wilmington focused on mobile technology, including the smartphones that are becoming a go-to source for news and social media.
Rogers said an organization embarking on developing a mobile app should keep in mind that expenses will be ongoing as the Apple and Android world update their operating systems.
Moreover, many apps end up on the last screens of a tablet or smartphone and are rarely used, Rogers noted.
Bill Faille, president of Diamond State Wireless and owner of a Wireless Zone store in Newark, says the growth in mobile technology is reflected in growing sales of large-screen phones and tablets.
The demand for wireless services extends to businesses, where many customers are now looking for Wi Fi access. Greg Gurev, who heads information technology services firm My Sherpa , said open access Wi Fi systems can be set up without compromising other wireless networks.
He noted that some IT staffs are wary of taking that next step, due to security concerns.
Meanwhile, phones and tablets are beginning to take the place of laptop computers for many consumers and businesspeople, panelists said.
Meredith Chapman and Holly Norton, who teach a social media program at the University of Delaware, took note of the constantly changing environment., adding that businesses and nonprofits can ignore the digital world at their own peril.
Her thoughts were echoed by Matt Houston of W.L. Gore and Associates. Houston, who enrolled in the program, said he now knows that knowledge of social media, well beyond Facebook, is essential to businesspeople.
Reviews of businesses are posted online by sites such as Yelp, regardless of whether the firm has a digital presence, Chapman, Norton and Houston noted.
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