5 Really Good Reasons…

Thinking of making your own iPhone application?  Stop!  Here are five really good reasons to consider PointAbout’s approach instead:

1. Building a native application is expensive.  Making a native iPhone app requires deep knowledge of Objective C.  Making a native BlackBerry app requires deep knowledge of Java.  And the list goes on for each phone platform.  Are you really in the business of finding, hiring & managing expensive programming talent?  Contrast that with PointAbout’s approach:  We allow you to just focus on web programming, which almost all programmers know inside & out.  And we can even handle that piece for you as well.
2. Building a native application is slow.  Building a native application requires a “heavy lift” from a development perspective, which requires extensive planning & execution.  Native apps can (and often do) take months to develop.  Contrast that with PointAbout’s approach:  We can literally submit your application to Apple’s iTunes store within 24 hours of engagement.
3. Native applications can’t keep up.  Your native phone application will be outdated the day it’s released.  Native applications are software, and software has to be re-downloaded anytime there’s a change.  Users typically don’t download updates when they are released (just ask any friend or colleague who has an iPhone how many software updates they have waiting).  Anytime you want to innovate with a native application, you’ll have to send out a software update to all your users.   But it gets worse.  Since your business leverages the web, in all likelihood you’re going to put most of your development resources into your website and web applications.  But what about that pesky native application you made awhile back?  You’re going to have to divert your resources to update that app.  Contrast that with PointAbout’s approach:  We wrap your web-based mobile microsite with our native thin-client springboard.  That means all you have to worry about is your mobile microsite.  Since you’re just focusing on a mobile version of your website, it’s easy for you to keep your microsite updated and to innovate on the microsite.  Everything stays in sync and up to date, and your mobile users don’t have to re-download any software when you make a change.
4. Native applications aren’t cross-platform.  If you decide to make your own native iPhone application, you’ll next have to turn your attention to making a native BlackBerry application.  And then a native Android application.  And then a native Windows Mobile application.  And what about the next hot phone that everyone’s buying?  Are you going to drop everything to make a native application for that phone as well?  How are you going to keep all these applications updated?  Do you really want to be in the business of trying to keep up with all these mobile platforms?  Contrast that with PointAbout’s approach:  We handle the messy details so you don’t have to.  Our mission in life is to make your web-based mobile microsite, which we wrap with our thin-client springboard, work on multiple phone platforms.  When a new phone comes out, we’re busy porting our thin-client springboard to that phone so your existing microsite will work on those phones.  You don’t have to worry about getting onto the next phone platform, because you’ll already be on it just by using PointAbout. 
5. Native applications aren’t faster than PointAbout’s approach.  You may think that native applications are faster than web applications, but with PointAbout, your web-based mobile microsite, wrapped in our thin-client springboard, will be just as fast as a native client.  We can cache content using our local storage module so your users don’t have to wait for web pages to load.  Plus, even native applications have to access the web for data, so in many cases PointAbout’s approach can be faster than going native.

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