How Brands Can Increase Engagement With Mobile Apps

This Internet Week coverage is brought to you by ShareThis. The best content is hand picked.

At the Appnation conference held during Internet Week in New York, a panel entitled Leveraging Apps (And the Mobile Web) to Drive Brand Preference and Engagement, discussed the various strategies and methods they have used for their brands.

Moderated by DraftFCB Mobile VP Jason Levy, the panel included Turner Senior User Experience Architect Klemens Wengert, Neo@Ogilvy Media and Innovation Director Sasha Xavier, Univision Interactive Content & Services VP Jose Hernandez and McCann Chief Technology Catalyst Lori Schwartz.

One of the biggest complaints among the panelists in terms of user experience with apps was flow. For example, Schwartz pointed out the agonizingly annoying situation whereby one clicks on a LinkedIn link on their mobile device and, even though you have the LinkedIn app installed, on is taken to a page asking if one would like to download the app. It's these careless mistakes that make mobile user experience frustrating.

In terms of content, Hernandez said he prefers to develop apps around "passion points" instead of around particular Univision programming. As an example, he cited the Univision soccer app that was temporarily rebranded for the World Cup as oppsed to a specific app being developed for the event. Wengert agreed telling the audience he prefers to develop apps around categories rather than by show.

All the panelists were fans of the integration between first and second screen meaning the interplay between television as it's being watched and a mobile device used while watching TV. Wengert explain how one of his apps will sync with what you are watching (using Shazam-like technology) and deliver you content based on where you are in the programming. It's this sort of thing all panelist agreed the industry needs to see more of: seamless integration with the flow of content wherever and whenever it is being consumed.

In general most brands are campaign focused but all the panelist argued brands need to take a longer view when developing mobile apps. Campaign-based apps, they argued, don't have the lifespan to build a viable user base.

This Internet Week coverage has been brought to you by ShareThis. Share this. Share that. Share everything.