A short while ago Craig Rentzke from Helpshift pointed me to a particular episode of CXOTalk, featuring Kevin Henrikson of Microsoft and professor Anindya Ghose from NYU. Henrikson is responsible for Microsoft’s Outlook for Mobile, a personal information manager (PIM) app, whereas prof. Ghose comes more from a B2C angle, with B2C being more concerned with convenience. This interesting episode deals with the future of mobile computing and given that, apparently about how mobile apps will (have to) look like and what it is that vendors should do and what they should not do with the apps.
Naturally, the dialogue right away zeroed in on topics
· the purpose of the app
· and data
The purpose of the app mainly determines things, which may be first the way that users are provided with data and are attractive with the app and second the records that gets accumulated and used if you want to (truely) have an effect at the customer experience at the same time as thinking about their privateness. The statistics that receives accrued needs to be used to offer the customers with nicely timed and relevant facts, which does now not best advantage the seller but additionally, and particularly, the character.
That the information series ?Behaviors? Of especially B2C apps are not hitting that purpose is probably the organisation?S worst saved mystery. The apps collect more than crucial and use it for a very big variety of functions, often wider than the users are privy to. They basically strip the consumer of their non-public records.
This realization was also what led a friend of mine and me found Epikonic, with the clear intention of giving users a choice who they interact with instead of ‘being chosen’ by companies (sorry for this shameless plug, actually, well, not so).
On the productivity app side the picture is far better. Users need to be able to do their job efficiently and easily. In the case of a PIM app this means that users are checking it frequently and need to be able to find and do what they need with minimal time spent, including getting support. Being a user of Outlook for Mobile I can say that the team of Microsoft and Helpshift are succeeding here. The app collects telemetry data and can suggest appropriate attachments and certainly provides very relevant information to the service center in case of a call for support. The proof is more than 100 million installations that are getting served only on Android.
However!
I do assume that both dialogue partners did no longer look a ways sufficient into the destiny of what cell apps may be. They remained on grounds within the contemporary paradigm, that's a mobile app that serves a specific motive and that resides on a cellular tool- aka telephone, competing for real belongings at the cellphone?S essential display.
Yes, that paradigm covers more use instances than presently deployed, which consist of food and drinks ordering from the airline app to the flight attendants without accomplishing out for the button at the ceiling or the use of the included displays ? If they're there the least bit.
And this describes only one feasible character initiated use case in a single precise agency.
Still, this paradigm is challenged already now.
· It is hard to make users use an app for a longer time, think of (re-) engagement campaigns
· Mobile devices are powerful enough to not require specific - very limited - app functionalities that serve one purpose. Think of apps become multi-purpose again
· The single 2D screen itself becomes less important, think of smart watches, wearable sensors, AR, VR, and holograms
· Scalability becoming a main theme. Think automation and bots
· Interaction metaphors, other than those limited to a 2d screen are emerging – think of voice, conversations, eye tracking
· Apps are becoming intelligent. Think of artificial intelligence, in particular deep learning
· And then there is the Internet of Things.
There is a short-term future and a long-term vision. Helpshift is perfectly positioned for the former. Knowing CEO Abinash Tripathy, he also has a good idea for the long-term play.
Which goes past the telephone. The app might be cellular ? Extra so than now.
The cellular phone will no extra be THE frontend that it's miles now. It will live the switchboard of our lives that it has grow to be, but it'll circulate into the history, just like the PC and computer did. It turns into extra of a non-public server.
With lots of little personal devices that serve precise purposes, and specific personal servers, situationally associated with it to assist the person?S goals in the proper here and now.
This will bring about more intelligence the least bit degrees, the personal tool, the private server, and the (interconnected) decrease lower back ends.
And those forms of little gadgets should have special UI?S and interplay metaphors, like VR, AR the usage of eytracking, holograms that may be manipulated, and many others. But most of all with speech becoming more and more important.
I am looking beforehand to Helpshift participating in shaping this future.
Be prepared.
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