Signature May/June 2015 - 24

elieve it or not, your
members spend more
time today on their
mobile apps than they do
watching TV. They even
spend more time on their
mobile apps than they do
surfing the Internet. In fact, your average
member likely checks his or her mobile
phone about 150 times a day.
Still wondering if your association
needs an app? The truth is, maybe you
do - maybe you don't.
So, how can you assess your association's
mobile app-etite?
"In some fashion, your content has to
be read on a mobile device. How that's
done takes on the business strategy of an
organization. It truly all goes back to the
membership and what the organization
feels they're going to best engage with,"
says Kim Kett, vice president, national
accounts, GTxcel, a provider of digital,
mobile, and content management solutions
for media companies. "You need to focus
on the best mobile experience."
"Mobility via the app brings better
communication with members," says
Greg Nasto, CEO and managing partner,
Mousetrap Mobile, a full-service digital
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agency. "Everything is at a person's
fingertips now because we want information now. Millennials are teaching
us that."

ARM YOURSELF WITH DATA
The ingredients you choose to put into
your app will determine the experience
your members have with it, so creating
the unique flavor of your association's
digital content must be based on sound
decision-making. The decisions will start
with what you know about your members
and how they access your content. Review
the data to hone in on what your members
find most valuable.
"Like any editorial product, building
an app starts with awareness of what your
audience wants," says Mario Medina,
editor of ALOA Security Professionals
Association's Keynotes magazine and creative director of Madison Miles Media.
Check your web and email analytics, he
says, but ask members about their habits,
too. Here's what you need to find out:
* How much mobile traffic does your
website attract?
* Where do members view your emails?
* How much time do they spend on
mobile apps, and which ones?

* How and where do they want to
receive your content?
* Do they want to continue to receive
longer pieces in print format?
Medina says it's important to get
advertisers' input as well. "Understand
the advertiser context. Are they willing
to support it? If not, is there enough
support from the member base to make
up for that?" he asks.
"You need to be willing to put in the
work on all sides to create a great experience for the reader," says Jen Smith, creative director, Network Media Partners,
an association publication design firm.
"It's your communications strategy.
"What is your app providing that your
website is not?" she continues. "If you feel
strongly that you need to have an app, what
can you do to make it different? To make
it a different experience, with different
value than your website?"
Armed with the data, you have a better
chance of getting your association's
management on board - a step that
can't be emphasized enough. "You really
need to get the buy-in of the c-suite," says
GTxcel's Kett. "It's important that upper
management sees the value - there will be
an additional cost. One of the key things

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Signature May/June 2015