Signature May/June 2015 - 26

The National Business Aviation
Association entered the app world in
January 2013, offering a digital edition
of its Business Aviation Insider that was a
straight replica of its print version. NBAA
soon found the digital flipbook model was
lacking in terms of its design and ability to
engage readers. In fall 2014, NBAA worked
with Bates Creative to design a new, more
interactive app, which it launched in May
2015. The whole process - from the initial
discussions with Bates and their formal
critique of NBAA's existing magazine to
the launch of the app - took about nine
months, according to NBAA's Editorial
Director Amy Freed Stalzer.
"We ended up redesigning the print
edition at the same time, so we decided
to fold it all in together and make it a
coordinated effort," she says.

to put in the work to create a great
experience for the reader, but it costs
time and money.
Budget is always a factor in publishing
decisions, and developing an app is not inexpensive. Depending on the complexity of
the app, it can run in the tens of thousands
of dollars - but Mousetrap's Nasto points
out that apps can be a revenue stream, too.
"Mobility lends the highest opportunity
for sponsorship today. Period. Mobile
advertising is it - it's not the future, it's
today," he says. "We spend more on a mobile
app than a website per visit. That means
higher-value, engaged impressions. People
often ask me how much an app costs, and I
posit back to them how much it will bring.
Then their eyes light up. They're getting
communication, continuous engagement,
and monetization."

"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?"
-Mario Medina, ALOA Security Professionals Association

Now, a year later, Stalzer's team does
two design variations for each issue of
Business Aviation Insider. Once NBAA's
in-house designer finishes with the print
edition, it goes to Bates to be redesigned
for the app and reflowed into AEM
Mobile (formerly Adobe DPS) templates
for iPad and Android tablets. Each version
is augmented with digital-only sidebars,
video, galleries, animation, and links to
the NBAA website. The association's
publishing team made a commitment
26

MAY/JUNE 16

signature

DRAFTING YOUR RFP
"I always come back to this: What's the
purpose of your trade association, and how
are you serving your members? The app
has to stick within those four walls," says
Morgan Reed, executive director of ACT |
The App Association, an organization that
represents more than 5,000 app companies
and information technology firms that
participate in the mobile economy.
In practical terms, this means defining
deliverables and objectives clearly, remem-

bering that design needs to flow from your
audience and your purpose, and making
intentional decisions about features.
"Your app is a living thing; it isn't
a document," Reed says. "It's going to
have to continue to grow, continue to
be relevant. Are you making sure you're
thinking about your app growing and
changing with the way people interact
with their devices? That's why defining
deliverables matters so much."
The thought piece of your app-building
process can take months - NBAA's
Stalzer says exploratory discussions were
a significant portion of their development
period - but it's critical to your success.
And that thought process should
translate into a request for proposal
(RFP), say Chris Adams, Sheridan
technology lead, and Theresa Lighty,
Sheridan project manager, technology
solutions. "I would consider an RFP
a prerequisite. It's just good practice.
That way, you are providing the app
partner with a very defined list of
requirements that can easily open up a
great conversation with them. It's also
beneficial because it defines what your
needs are as a publisher," Adams says.
Another benefit of writing an RFP is that
it forces you to think through the project
and why you want the app. "Maybe a mobile
app isn't the way to go. Maybe you just need
to mobile-optimize your website. That's
something that should be thought through
in the beginning," Adams adds.
Lighty says the RFP should look to the
future, including details such as any changes
you might make in your workflows or the
software you're using. "If you don't have a
provider that can support you where you are
now and where you'll be in the future, you
need to think about a different provider or
what they can do to offer you that support."



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