iPhone and Android Application Developers Face the Challenge of Retaining Users

There is no question about it, Apple and Google are fighting it out in the mobile world. Apple has their own loyal followers and so does Google for their Droid OS. Apple users have their iPads and iPhones, while Android fans have a wide variety of choices with the several Droid ready phones from Motorola, HTC, Samsung, Sony, etc.

What makes Apple and Google appealing to phone users are the tons of applications, both for free and for a fee, that are available in the market. A phone user can download games, maps, music, books, product presentation software, etc. Name it and you would be surprised to know they have it in the market. These applications are developed by entrepreneurial minds hoping to capture their own audience in the market. Looking at the growing number of applications available in the Apple and Android markets from the time the first Apple and Android phones were introduced to the market, and the fact that more and more people are buying Apple and Android phones, it is not surprising that the numbers will continue to grow higher.

This indicates that there is a high demand for these applications. Although Apple is in the lead with the number of applications available in its market, the Android market is not far behind. It is without question that free applications are the ones that get the most downloads. Aside from cost, most users would look into user reviews before they decide whether to download an application or not. Paid applications also appeal to users, especially if it is highly recommended by a friend.

Then again, what happens to paid applications which are not often highly recommended? Do users ever get a chance to discover and use them? Fortunately they do. However, these developers need to employ a marketing strategy, and it would usually be costly. Aside from being costly, chances are they do not really reach their target audience for the particular application.

A problem these applications face is user retention. It is so easy to download and install these applications on one’s phone. The question is whether the user would continue to use the said application after first use, or would the user decide to uninstall the application after a few months , weeks, or days. It totally depends on the user. Some simply uninstall it because it was not the type of application they were looking for, it may be too difficult to use, or they simply want to free up space on their phone after a few months and the application they want to uninstall is one that they do not use often.

Since there are several application developers out there hoping to catch their own market, it is unavoidable that certain applications may have similarities. As to which amongst the application a user would choose to download, it totally depends on what the application has to offer. Although there may be similarities, each application has its own unique features which would make it stand out from the rest.

This is why the job of a mobile application developers never end. They continuously find ways to upgrade their stuff with the hope of offering a better experience for the users of the application. Constant software upgrade can actually help application developers with their problem of retaining users. Some upgrades fix bugs that users often encounter, especially when the OS is upgraded from time to time. Software problems or bugs can also be pinpointed as major reasons why some application users stop using a certain application that they have downloaded. There are just too many applications in the market today, and sticking to a problematic application is just a big waste of time.

For those of you who may think that the most challenging task for an application developer is coming up with a brilliant idea for an application, think again. Bringing traffic to their application after users have downloaded it is actually the most difficult part. They need to know how to market their product for retention purposes. When you think of it, it is actually more difficult to do retention marketing than marketing your application to first time users.

The best way for these developers to somehow succeed with retaining their users is to get data about their existing application users. Demographic data which will help them solve the problem by employing the right marketing strategy based on the data gathered and get their users to continue using their application and most likely recommend it to their friends. Read full post...

The Mobile Marketing Bandwagon

Sponsored audio broadcasts and commercial advertisements came into popular light not long after radio and television were introduced as electronic vehicles for social media. Recent technology introduced devices now commonly found in homes and workplaces such as computers, laptops, and mobiles which added to the extensive range of electronic means for conducting business. The most recent trend in the corporate world makes use of handheld communication devices and is well known as mobile marketing. The cause that spurred its growth is the reality that there are a large number of current mobile subscribers in the world. It was only a matter of time before business advertising jumped on the mobile marketing bandwagon. There are many factors why mobile marketing is gaining popularity and attracting growing support from several organizations.

Although there are only a few companies at present that have a mobile marketing business strategy, the numbers are increasing and information about this marketing tool is flourishing. Research reveals that just over a quarter of companies currently have mobile marketing and the remaining majority either do not have mobile marketing strategies or are not fully aware of it. But when 67% of the companies that did not have mobile marketing strategies were asked if they plan to have this marketing strategy within the next 12 months, 62% was in favor of the idea. If these plans are successfully carried out, it would result to a 73% increase of companies that employ mobile marketing.

There are only a third of companies in the survey that already have a mobile marketing plan. In this selected sample, most of the respondents are coming from small and medium businesses. Large companies that have a thousand or more employees served as the minority. A little under half of these companies consider Mobile Marketing as a generally important part of consumer media. Following in the same path of this number of mobile advocates, other organizations look into accommodating mobile advertising into their marketing programs and thus propelling mobile marketing into elevated recognition.

Another factor that accounts for wider acceptance for mobile marketing is the statistical data asserting that Investment increases in mobile marketing will be seen by over 80% of companies that have already gone mobile. The highest increase in budget allocation for mobile marketing ranges between 10-20% for the next year. A little under half of those who plan in increasing their budget allocation for mobile marketing opted to integrate the budget with another project for a more holistic and economical approach. And there are a little over a quarter of companies that declared the investment for mobile marketing will be supplied by taking some of the financing from already existing components of the marketing budget. The remaining minority chose to pull out more funding by raising the overall marketing budget gradually. For a relatively new marketing form to have that acceptable rise in investments is only characteristic of increasing approval from marketers. Even though this is a slow but continuous increase in budget allocation, these are still good figures considering the majority of the respondents are made of small and medium companies.

Small companies contribute significantly to the rise of mobile marketing in advertising. This majority of companies with 1-50 employees usually follow the unstated commodity principle that similarly applies for people and gadgets. It is where technology is only bought after it finally becomes inexpensive and the standards for putting it into a company’s marketing strategy is clearly set and tested. These statistical numbers can only be interpreted as a turn of events. Mobile marketing is gradually pervading when even the smaller businesses get on board at a relatively fast pace.

Another reason for mobile marketing popularity is because companies that are in the mobile space makes use of native apps and websites. Mobile websites are more preferred by more than half of the companies that were surveyed. A good 64% use mobile websites and 58% use native apps. Mobile websites allow maximized reach to users because entry to their site is done by just simply gaining access to the web through mobiles while native apps require users to download an app if they want access. There are companies that plan to include native apps along with the mobile service to optimize mobile marketing. Through these applications, companies can bring their products and services to a wider demographic and would eventually reap recognizable profits from mobile marketing.

More than half of the companies who make use of mobile websites track their visitors with Google Analytics. A third of the companies that has a mobile marketing scheme do not track visitors at all. The purpose of using a web service is to tally the number of visitors which could turn out to be potential customers.

Fundamentally using a web service like Google Analytics can track the ROI or return on investments a company receives with using mobile marketing strategies. The ROI generated by mobile marketing is a notable factor that contributes to its growing popularity. But how many companies really track the return of investment mobile marketing contributes? According to the same survey a third of companies have not measured the ROI of their mobile marketing, and only 24% say it performed as well or better than expected. That is presently a significant number of organizations that are not aware of the profits mobile marketing bring about. But the percentage of companies tracking ROI is expected to rise since a little under half of the companies are required to show strong numbers in the ROI so that mobile marketing can be continually provided with financial reserves.

Mobile marketing is gaining support not only because of financial profits but it also improves business relationships with customers and gains new clientele because it is a more direct and extensive approach to promoting products. Businesses are coming around to incorporating mobile marketing in their business strategies because it reaps these types of benefits. Moreover, it provides companies a solid reputation of consistency and reliability based on the number of loyal customers they already have and the new customers they acquire. There are other types of benefits that support the concept of mobile marketing as a suitable and effective marketing strategy related to customers and prospects. Mobile Marketing can also potentially increase the rate of brand awareness, contribute to proper customer identification, and boost existing product sales.

In summation, mobile marketing is unquestionably gaining support since there are more and more companies that have already integrated mobile marketing strategies or plan to make it a part of their marketing plan. This form of mobile advertising is regarded as a generally important component of the marketing mix since it is being progressively supported by all types of businesses and small businesses are taking the lead in promoting it. The 24% successful performance rate of mobile marketing is a persuading factor for other organizations to become mobile since it shows that this type of advertising reaps definite profits made apparent by a tangible return of investments. Mobile marketing is not only showing distinct promise in the financial aspect but is becoming known because it is a useful marketing tool in maintaining and improving business relationships among the businesses and the consumers. It proves that the mobile marketing bandwagon is indeed gaining recognition, support and fast acceptance in commerce. Read full post...

The Power of Love

Love is a very strong word as some people would say. For some individuals however, it is a very complicated word. The concept of love may be accepted positively by those who are in love. On the contrary, those who have been heartbroken may have a more negative reaction when this topic is discussed.


There are various expressions of love. You can either share it with a friend, your siblings, your family members but the most meaningful form of expression of love would have to be that with your significant other.

Finding the right person to share the rest of your life with could either be easy or a struggle for some. Majority of us have to go through several failed relationships before finding the person who we could refer to as “the right one”. However, there are a few lucky individuals who find their perfect lifetime partners without the need of experiencing several heartbreaks.

Once you find that person whom you feel is the “the right one” you, everything around you just seems to be RIGHT. The only thing left for you to do is make an effort to keep the relationship. If you are thinking that everything stops at finding “the right one”, then you are absolutely wrong. The next thing you need to work on is keeping the right one.

A relationship involves two persons working together to make it grow. Both partners should exert an effort in adjusting and understanding each other’s behaviour and more importantly, learn how to compromise.

Another important factor at keeping the love alive is expressing your love for one another. Most couples (especially those have been married for quite some time) tend to forget to tell each other the most important words – “I LOVE YOU”. We may ask ourselves, how difficult is it to say I love you? Hearing those words from someone you love, and for him or her to say it not as a response to something you might have done for him or her, definitely uplifts the spirit. We need to hear it to be reassured of the love that our partner feels for us.

Uttering the words “I LOVE YOU” to a person you love and not getting any response or reaction at all can also be very hurting. Sadly some people have to go through this. It may be difficult to believe but I know of someone who has claimed to have stopped believing in love and what it has to offer. I feel for the person who has said “I LOVE YOU” to him when he could not say the same words to her.

That’s the power of love. I can brighten up your day and give you reasons to live your life. On the contrary, it also has the power to destroy your day and let you stop living your life. Either way, you do have a choice. To borrow a line from the movie Megamind: “Destiny is not the path that's given to us, but the path that we choose for ourselves”

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Keep Your Head in the Clouds and Your Feet on the Ground ~ unknown

I was inspired to find a quote because I felt I was judged wrongly by someone who was not identified to me by the person who passed the message. Apparently this person is a listed friend on my Facebook account and made a comment about one wall post I made. He or she had the impression that I have changed a lot.

Now why am I reacting to this comment from a person whose identity remains anonymous to me? Simply because this person apparently does not know me that well to make a comment that I have changed. What he or she saw was a post I made on FB out of frustration on proofreading an article. However, this person is not with me when I wake up in the morning, when I go to work, when I deal with my employees, when I stay up late at night to work, when I work on weekends, when I play, when I go out with my friends, when I go on a vacation with my family, and practically when I do things which I prefer to keep private.

As you can see, I also prefer not to tell the world when I do something to help those who need help. These are apparently the things that this person has not seen but he or she has the guts to judge me that I have changed.

FYI: That is why there is something written there on the wall post “What’s on your mind?” – the purpose is for me to write what is on my mind. Now, if I am frustrated to proofread what I have been proofreading.. is it bad to express what is on my mind??? And is that how you would base your understanding of my total personality? Honestly, it makes me think.. when was the last time you saw me? When was the last time we talked? What do you know about me? Do you even know half of my life history? Or where were you during my times of struggle?

I guess I can say that the ones who can totally give an honest comment if I have changed are my parents. They have been there from the day I was born and they are the only ones who would know how much I have changed and if I have kept my feet on the ground. Read full post...

My First Hand Experience with Dengue Fever

I am making this post to enlighten people out there about the danger of Dengue Fever. This condition is something not new to us. Dengue can be acquired thru mosquito bites and the number one symptom to look out for is fever.

A week ago, Monday to be exact, I got home and suddenly felt so tired. I decided to take a nap, thinking I was just stressed with work and needed a little rest. Upon getting up, I felt feverish. I took a paracetamol tablet to relieve me of the fever. Upon waking up on Tuesday, I felt a little better but felt feverish again by 11am. Wednesday came and I felt very well. My fever came back on Thursday night. By that time I feared this was not the ordinary fever. What bothered me was I had no cough or colds and I have fever. Fever occurs when we have infections. I was still feverish on Friday morning, so I decided to go to the nearest hospital (about 5 mins away from our house) and I went directly to the emergency room.

I was interviewed by the nurses and resident doctor. They performed a tourniquet test on me but it was negative. So the doctor ordered a urinalysis, CBC and platelet count. She informed me that she suspects it could be typhoid or dengue. So I need to get my CBC and platelet count done first. If result would be negative, then she will order a typhidot test.

I was advised to come back as soon as I get the results of the test (after 2 hrs). When I came back, the doctor said your platelet count is down. My result yielded 125 and the normal was 150. So she said, I will let you go home, but you need to come back after 12 hrs and have another platelet count done. On Friday evening, my platelet count dropped to 93. The doctor told me she can still allow me to go home as long as I do not feel that weak and as long as I would take at least 3 liters of fluid (I bought a 1.5L bottle of orange flavored gatorade) and of course, be on the lookout for any complications - bleeding.

It was not necessary to be admitted as she said the only thing the will do to me if I want to be admitted is give me IV fluids if I could not tolerate any food intake, give me paracetamol, and monitor my platelet. So I decided to just go home and come back the next 12 hrs for another platelet count. On Saturday morning, my platelet count was at 97. Something that delighted me as it went up, but the doctor said I still needed to come back in the evening for another repeat lab test. Upon getting my platelet count results on Saturday night, I was frightened to see it at 84. I was afraid they will no longer allow me to go home because my platelet count has really gone down. Fortunately, the doctor said I can still go home but come back on Sunday morning for another platelet count.

Before going home on Saturday night, my mother and I went to look for some durian fruit vendors. They say durian is good for Dengue. Upon reaching home, I ate the durian.. then I heard a balut vendor passed by. I bought 2 pcs of balut. I ate one that night and the other on Sunday morning for breakfast.

I went back to the hospital again on Sunday morning and the platelet count was up at 98. Still it has not reached a hundred. Luckily, the doctor told me I will not need to come back after 12 hrs. She told me to come back on Monday for my next platelet count. By Sunday, my niece told me their neighbor has tawa tawa weeds. Tawa tawa is a famous cure for Dengue. So I asked her to bring me some tawa tawa. My mother boiled the plant minus the roots. It did not taste bad, and I drank it cold so I did not have a problem drinking it.

I was able to drink 2 glasses of tawa tawa before coming back for another platelet count on Monday. I was so happy to see my latest platelet result at 148. Although it is 2 points short of the normal count, the doctor said I was getting well and that I no longer need another platelet count. Hurray! I hate those needles. Until now, my arm still bears those nasty marks from the blood extractions. What made it more special was when I received a bouquet of fresh flowers and a balloon from Bob with a very sweet note. Thanks honey! <3

A lot of people, especially kids have been admitted lately due to Dengue. Some of them are in the ICU because the platelet count has gone too low. There are also some people who did not make it to the hospital due to complications of bleeding.

I hope this post will help inform people out there of the danger that Dengue brings. If detected early and platelet count is constantly monitored, Dengue is not that dangerous at all. Plus of course there is tawa tawa, balut, durian and gatorade to help you. Read full post...

Senatorial Candidates for the 2010 Elections

On Monday, the Philippines will be having its first ever Automated elections. We have a lot of Politicians and non Politicians who are running for President, Vice President, Congressman, Senator, Mayor, Vice Mayor, and City Councilors.

I am making this post because I overheard my father saying he is not yet sure who he will be voting and will just choose any candidate when he goes out and vote on May 10, 2010. I was surprised with what I heard and told them not to worry coz there is an online list of candidates.

Since the COMELEC website takes long to load, perhaps because of the amount of traffic it gets, I copied the list from the COMELEC website for the official candidates on the senatorial seat. Hope this helps the voters:

1. ACOSTA, JR. NEREUS OLAIVAR
2. ALBANI, SHARIFF IBRAHIM HUSSIEN
3. ALONTO,ZAFRULLAH MAROHOMBSAR NOLDY
4. BAUTISTA, J.V. LARION
5. BAUTISTA, MARTIN DONATO
6. BELLO, SILVESTRE III HERNANDO
7. BIAZON, ROZZANO RUFINO BUNOAN
8. BONG REVILLA, RAMON, JR. BAUTISTA
9. CAUNAN, HENRY BUENAVENTURA
10. CAYETANO, PILAR JULIANA SCHRAMM
11. DAVID, RIZALITO YAP
12. DE VENECIA, JOSE III PEREZ
13. DEFENSOR SANTIAGO, MIRIAM PALMA
14. DRILON, FRANKLIN MAGTUNAO
15. ENRILE, JUAN PONCE
16. ESPINOSA, NANETTE MELITON
17. ESTRADA, JINGGOY EJERCITO
18. GUICO, RAMON, JR. NAVAL
19. GUINGONA, TEOFISTO III DE LARA
20. HONTIVEROS-BARAQUEL, ANA THERESIA HONTIVEROS
21. IMBONG, JO AUREA MARCOS
22. INOCENCIO, MA. KATHERINE L. REYES
23. LACSON, ALEXANDER LEDESMA
24. LAMBINO, RAUL LOYOLA
25. LANGIT, REY MAGAT
26. LAO, YASMIN BUSRAN
27. LAPID, MANUEL MERCADO
28. LIM, DANILO DELA PUZ
29. LOOD, ALMA ABELLA
30. LOZADA, JOSE APOLINARIO JR LECONIA
31. MAAMBONG, REGALADO ESTRELLA
32. MARCOS, FERDINAND, JR. ROMUALDEZ
33. MAZA, LIZA LARGOZA
34. MITRA, RAMON BLANCO
35. NIKABULIN, ADZ GANIH
36. OCAMPO, RAMONCITO POBLETE
37. OCAMPO, SATURNINO CUNANAN
38. OPLE, SUSAN VASQUEZ
39. OSMENA, EMILIO MARIO RENNER
40. OSMEÑA, SERGIO III DE LA RAMA
41. PALPARAN, JOVITO JR SALVAÑA
42. PAPIN, IMELDA ARCILLA
43. PAREDES, ZOSIMO JESUS II MENDOZA
44. PIMENTEL, GWENDOLYN DE LA LLANA
45. PLAZA, RODOLFO GALIDO
46. PRINCESA, REYNALDO RELUCIO
47. QUERUBIN, ARIEL OLIVA
48. RECTO, RALPH GONZALEZ
49. REMULLA, GILBERT CESAR CATIBAYAN
50. RIÑOZA-PLAZO, MARIA GRACIA DE VEAS
51. ROCO, SONIA MALASARTE
52. SISON, ADRIAN ORDONEZ
53. SOTTO, VICENTE III CASTELO
54. TAMANO, ADEL ABBAS
55. TAMAYO, REGINALD BALISI
56. TARRAZONA, HECTOR MIRASOL
57. TATAD, FRANCISCO SARMIENTO
58. TINSAY, ALEXANDER BRITANICO
59. VALDEHUESA, MANUEL JR ECHEM
60. VILLANUEVA, HECTOR LABAO
61. VIRGINES, ISRAEL NICOLAS

Here is the link for the list of party list candidates: http://www.comelec.gov.ph/2010%20National_Local/certifiedlist_partylist.pdf

I'm sure by now voters do not need a list of Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates, along with the Congressman, Mayor and Vice Mayors.

Vote wisely!!
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PBB Teen Clash 3rd Forced Evictee -Shey

I constantly watch PBB. From the celebrity, teens and adults. Just about three weeks since it first aired, the PBB teen edition this year is breaking records after big brother announced the third forced evictee of this edition. Shey was given a forced eviction after comitting a very serious offense of "nomination conspiracy".

The one thing I noticed with this batch of teens who entered the PBB house was they show a lot of back-biting. Not really a good example for the teens who watch them on TV. I noticed they disliked Tricia who for them acts too OA. In my own opinion, they agreed to enter the PBB house so they should learn to deal with everyone inside the house. It is but normal that they will be encountering different personalities and they should learn to adjust with each other's attitude instead of conniving with fellow housemates and talking behind the back of their fellow housemate.

When big brother announced the forced eviction last night, he certainly sounded so disappointed with the way the teens have been behaving and even blurted "eto naba ang kabataang Pinoy ngayon?". Truly disappointing to see how these teens are behaving inside the house. Big brother did the right thing of punishing the teens with one forced eviction and 4 automatic nominations to teach them a lesson.

I am not pro Shey or pro Tricia. I know the fans of the two girls are now at war. One side telling it is all Tricia's fault while the other saying it is Shey's fault. The only thing that teeners should learn is that they have to be responsible for their own actions.

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