Apps are lovelier 2nd time around

Posted: Sunday, April 8, 2012 2:45 pm | Updated: 3:10 pm, Sun Apr 8, 2012.

When Apple launched the iPad two years ago, app developmentâ€" already at a rapid pace because of the iPhone â€" ratcheted up even further.

Both newspapers and magazines recognized early on that getting their products and presence on tablets, smartphones and other gadgets was critical if they were going to reach younger readers and tap into an increasingly mobile market.

But those apps of 2010 weren’t necessarily the best nor most robust. Today, many early adopters are now launching the second iteration of their products, designed to offer a more intuitive user experience and easier access to favorite features.

Among the most prominent with next-gen mobile apps is USA Today, which on March 5 trotted out an upgraded app for iPhone and iPad users.

“We wanted to take advantage of the next-generation of interface design,” Matt de Ganon, USA Today’s vice president of mobile products and operations, told News & Tech. “We all started out saying ‘we have to get a first-iteration app out,’ and as we have acquired data, metrics and garnered feedback, we started applying that to the development of platforms.”

The Gannett flagship, which had previously worked with an outside vendor to author its 2010 offering, decided this time to bring app development in-house, relying on a team of newly appointed and existing developers to create the new app.

The design for the latest app closely mirrors the one it created for the Kindle late last year.

“Over the next year you will see a portfolio strategy that brings the user experience into alignment, including iPad,” de Ganon said.

Played to strengths

For its second-generation app, USA Today played to its strengths, including graphics and photos. The publisher also increased the speed and offered deeper content, taking an approach that “gets out of the way of the imagery,” according to de Ganon.

“A lot of times, between stack and menu, the content is buried and now with one tap you can get to full photo, text, etc.,” he added.

Users will notice larger photos, more video and streamlined navigation. Readers can flip through the best pictures of the day from news, sports and celebrities, and headlines include thumbnail images that can be tapped to access articles.

Advertisers, meantime, will notice more prominent placement.

These enhancements over the first-generation app were made in a bid to incorporate what USA Today gleaned from users’ responses in iTunes.

“All of the features were born out of user request and need, so that was the primary focus,” de Ganon said.

Besides iTunes feedback, USA Today looked at research and trends surrounding mobile usage, which also contributed to the publisher’s decision to bring development in-house.

“One of the reasons to focus on our development is to take advantage of and react to market changes more rapidly and to be able to control our own mobile growth at whatever pace we deem necessary,” de Ganon said.

As publishers learn the lessons of app development and apply them to second-generation products, whether or not to monetize products that were previously free, or conversely, offer for free something they’d previously charged for, is a consideration. For USA Today’s part, de Ganon said there are no plans to charge readers for the mobile app at this point.

“Our business model is ad supported â€" and (Gannett’s CEO) recently announced that some local properties are charging for subscriptions â€" we are doing a subscription that goes across all content outlets, but the people that just want the app can get it for free,” he said.

Single app across devices

The Associated Press also launched the second-generation of its iPhone/iPod and iPad apps on March 5, marking the first major upgrades for those disparate products since they were originally rolled out years ago.

The result: a single app that works across all Apple devices, said Michael Boord, AP’s global director of mobile products.

“We wanted a consistent experience and we wanted to create a more flexible experience for our editorial staff as well as potential advertisers and sponsors,” he said. “Because we wanted to update the look, feel and performance, we started from scratch.”

The retooled app, Boord said, enables AP to move away from its apps being considered merely as RSS readers, in the process offering a more curated experience.

“Although AP is an old company that has been an innovator over the years, this was one of those moments where we had to reflect and think about how we are collecting, reporting and distributing news.”

AP Mobile now features more customization and embedded social media tools. It boasts a new look, in-depth coverage of major stories and enhanced local news presentations from AP member newspapers and broadcasters around the country.

Keep audience engaged

Like, USA Today, Boord said incorporating user feedback was key in development.

“We listen to feedback and we respond to every single email that comes to us,” he said. “So we have taken four years of lessons and tried to give them a balance, taking out the issues of performance and stability, because we knew we had to get those right.”

Boord said development means something different to AP than to other publishers by virtue of the purpose the organization serves.

“People just want a neutral voice in many cases, so we’re always keeping that in mind.” At the same time, AP had to consider its changing audience, he said, including a significant number of younger users.

“We had to recognize that there is a new customer â€" the teenager with multiple devices,” he said. “We have to think about this new paradigm and how do we reach them and reach them effectively to keep them engaged? That was a big impetus.”

AP also opted to keep its currently ad-supported app free to users.

“We are going after sponsorships and exploring in-app purchases of premium content, but we are still determining the best way to do that without cannibalizing the product,” Boord said. To sweeten the pot for sponsors, AP shares useful analytics with those advertisers.

Lee Enterprises, meantime, upgraded its smartphone apps across all 52 of its newspaper markets. Greg Schermer, the publisher’s vice president for interactive media, said the new apps are easier to navigate, include more content and offer more opportunities for advertisers.

Some of the new content includes detailed weather forecasts, classified advertising and obituaries, he said. Lee also added a dedicated tab that allows users to quickly access discounted deals.

Users can also sign up for breaking news alerts, he said.

Lee said downloads of its smartphone apps tripled in the period between February 2011 and February 2012, with mobile views totaling 31.5 million.

source: www.newsandtech.com