On April 7, we released an advanced review of the Kelly Blue Book (KBB) Car Buyer’s App. At that time the free app was not available on iTunes. Finally approved by Apple on April 16 users can now download the app under the lifestyle category.

It is everything we said it would be in our previous review – pure Godiva for the eyes!  I was not at the preview so I download the app for the first time. Am not in the market for a car at this time, yet I think it could come in handy when I consider a second-hand purchase while in the West Coast for a few months.

Here’s why I think car buyers would be so into it:

• Easy and simple navigation options. In the market for a new car? Hit the “new” car icon and you’ll find a list of alphabetized automobile brands. Each brand is cataloged by make, model and year. Used car option is cataloged by year, then by brand. The app allows you to select a style, for example Hans recommended I check out the Mazda 3 2006. The app allows you to browse excellent photos, reviews, ratings and more! It makes it really easy even for a none-car enthusiast who is simply in the market to purchase a car.
• Prefer to buy through a dealer? Find a number of dealers in your area by brand.
• Kelley Blue Book video reviews are also accessible in the app. It even comes with search!
• Users can save, favorite and even share their searches with friends on Twitter.

I downloaded the Kelley Blue Book Car Buyer’s app because I think it will help me with my future car purchase. You can too – download now!

Kelley Blue Book Car Buyer's App now on iTunes!

New York, New York – Hans Angermeier a new friend and Managing Member of CarCareKiosk.com attended a product preview on my behalf hosted by KBB. Here’s his review on what he thinks is every car buyer’s app.

Kelley Blue Book I knocked back a few beers with Andy Lapin, Director of Enterprise Architecture of Kelley Blue Book (“KBB”) at the Aspen Social Club in Midtown Manhattan last night as he gave me a thorough test drive of KBB’s new iPhone app, which is expected to launch next week (it will be free). For the non-gearheads, KBB.com is the vanguard for providing new and used car values based on attributes including year, make, model, mileage and features – in short, it is a tool that no car buyer should leave home without… which, before this app, would be impossible to do unless you plan on carrying a laptop with an Aircard through a dealer’s lot (nerd alert!)

The app clearly demonstrates the advantages of in-house design with a clear first screen that captures the “iPhone within an iPhone” feel (think facebook or LinkedIn) that contain six clear icons allowing users to get prices, find a dealer and look at images of cars. The images are extremely high-quality and feature a 360 rotatable view of each vehicle – pure Godiva for the eyes and I love it! Since the images are pulled from KBB’s database, each vehicle features 40+ interior and exterior images – this feature alone sets it way above other apps in the sector. The best feature though, is the ability to pull up car values on the fly – think about it, you’re on the dealer’s lot, you’re looking at that 2006 BMW 330i that you had your heart set on and, here comes the salesman, straight from the ShamWow academy:

SW: “Nice car isn’t it?”

You: “Yes”

SW: “Black is our most popular color; in fact, let me see if this car is still for sale, someone wanted to buy it last night”

You: “OK”

SW: “Good news, it is still available, but the guy from last night is coming in this afternoon and will probably buy it, so if you’re interested, you should act fast”

You: “Good point, what are you asking?”

SW: “I will probably get fired for this, but you remind me of my brother and you seem like a really nice guy – I’ll let it go for $26,995, which is a steal because these things never go for anything south of 30…”

Before the KBB app, you would need to know, off the top of your head, that a 2006 330i with 59,000 miles, Stability Control, Leather, Moon Roof, etc. is worth $23,100 max. With the app, you can instantly retrieve the true value of the vehicle with its mileage and options and politely show the snakeoil salesman that $26,995 is off-market and that your offer is $21,500. If the salesman demurs, have no fear, you can pull up directions for the next closest BMW dealer on the app – power to car buyers everywhere!

KBB is still working on a couple of optimization issues that they intend to have ironed out before formal launch in iTunes. Regardless, this app is leagues above the competitors in the sector and KBB intends launch a new feature every 2 – 3 weeks for months after its launch… so grab a cold one and take it for a test drive!

About the Author: Hans Angermeier is a Managing Member of CarCareKiosk.com and contributor to Mavin Digital Mashup. He can be reached at hans.a@carcarekiosk.com.

Intersog, a software development company recently released a mobile platform that allows users like me and you to create their own apps! It certainly stirred curious thoughts, yet was unsure what to expect since Apple is not a big fan of template created apps.

The Combo App platform can be utilized to create apps for the iPhone, iPad and Android. A step-by-step process where a user can select from a menu of features based on your app category. The basic features allow users to set-up an account and choose a category so the app can provide the user with a list of features, application templates, CMS, access control and usage statistics. There are pre-set color options, but if you prefer further customization, it costs money.

Comboapp Pricing Structure
Prestige package is $39 per month with mobile ad configuration, about module configuration, skin builder and featured placement.

Elite package is $39 per month with a one-time set up fee of $299. This entitles you to the full-ownership of the app, redirect your traffic, a splash screen, push notification and more data analysis.

The basic features and package offerings are great for producing basic proof of concept. Ideally for small to medium sized marketing firms who do not have a full-time mobile resource team. Vadim Chernega, Intersog’s CEO noted that “our model is to partner with marketing companies and become a platform to deliver apps quickly and cost-effectively.”

Would we use Comboapp at Mavin Digital, Inc.? For a truly basic and quick concept creation we may. Though the clients we service particularly expect polished and unique creative concept that they are willing to pay for as part of the discovery process. For small business app ideas, we’ll definitely try it!

This post is also on Technorati’s Small Biz Spotlight.

The application also includes an impressive feature called Nearby™, which enables fans to watch and exchange messages, photos and video with other NIN fans real-time from all over the world, powered by Google Earth.  By zooming in to a concert location, you can follow the localized discussion during the show while viewing pictures posted live from the venue.  Consider it a one-stop shop for community and content powered by the fans themselves and to extend the concert experience beyond the people actually attending the show.

So why should you care?  Well, for starters, NIN Access looks like everything that Web 2.0 promised to be for musicians, fans and frankly, anyone who embraces progressive technology — all wrapped up in an incredibly slick package.  It is, in a sense, the “ultimate resource” for the NIN community online: one that integrates seamlessly with services and technologies their fans are already using — Blogger, Flickr, YouTube, Twitter, RSS, bittorrent, and dynamic playlists, with the next release of the app promising to incorporate Vimeo, Photobucket, MediaWiki, openID and Facebook Connect.  By doing this, Reznor has effectively brought together community and content, powered by fans themselves, while extending the concert experience beyond those actually attending the show.  Further, he’s deepened the interaction between artist and fan, and between the fans themselves.  And this, if done correctly, could prove to be a mighty powerful thing for musicians and marketers alike.

Eric Pilkington, Guest Blogger

For starters, the smartphone is contradicting a trend we currently see in the traditional desktop space. Whereas cloud computing and other technologies are shifting content from specialized applications into browser-centralized spaces, smartphones are being packaged with dozens of applications, and access to thousands more through the application marketplace (Apple’s App Store, for example, just topped 15,000 applications).

And so for this very reason, more and more advertisers view the mobile application as the new website. Today, mobile ad solutions and networks are gaining ground on their traditional online counterparts. By providing a high quality Software Development Kit (SDK) to application developers, companies like AdMob, Smaato, even Nokia, are enabling developers to monetize their applications with display advertising and sponsorship opportunities. From the advertisers’ perspective, there is more than enough volume to justify a buy, and since these advertising features are centrally built, the networks are able to provide rich ad experiences via SDK.

Another “big deal” factor: Consider the recent partnership between Adobe (maker of Flash) and chip-maker ARM (which powers about 90 percent of mobile phones worldwide). While it’s true that more and more phones can browse the Web, it’s also true that many mobile phones have only a limited ability to show much of the Web’s content. Video and Flash-heavy websites simply don’t work well, if at all, on many phones due to the software and hardware incompatibility. But this recent collaboration marks a commitment to bring more of the Web to mobile devices.

All of this of course, has an effect on how businesses and developers approach the mobile Web. With so many people from around the world accessing the web via mobile devices, smart companies and developers will need to:

1.  Understand that brands and access to critical information is always on. Brands today are expected to provide faster and more customizable experiences, more engaging content, and more opportunities for consumers to share ideas and opinions. And a lot of this is happening through mobile devices and applications.

2.  Extend website access to include mobile browsers. It’s no longer enough to test sites on Firefox, IE and Safari. Developers will need to develop and test their sites for mobile devices to see how they look and function there as well.

3.  Develop mobile versions of their websites. In addition to testing sites for mobile-compatibility, developers will need to start considering developing specifically for mobile devices.

4.  Focus on mobile applications. Mobile-compatible sites are good; mobile applications are better (just ask Apple).

5.  Consider sending mobile email and SMS. In addition to “traditional” HTML email campaigns, companies need to look at more effective ways to reach and engage their audiences. Like its websites, companies and developers should be testing HTML emails for mobile compatibility, while considering SMS and mobile-specific landing pages as a complement to these campaigns.

With the maturation and penetration of smartphones, businesses, developers and content providers can no longer afford to ignore users of their websites who happen to surf in on a mobile device. Luckily, it’s now possible to achieve a feature-rich, interactive, and visually impactful mobile presence that serves your brand, extends your community of users onto a new platform, helps make inroads into new user groups and demographics, and above all, positions you well in a rich media environment that is no longer a thing of the future but has, in fact, already arrived.

Eric Pilkington, Guest Blogger

Why should there be a special mobile app category targeting women? Jonathan Sarno, the man behind iPhone Bootcamp in New York and the Mobie Awards shares his business case: 1) the iPhone App store does not have such a category 2) 70% of iPhone purchases are made by women 3) it is a design and fashion statement 4) there are more iPhones in handbags vs. suits 5) it is a great-looking device that the female is comfortable using and displaying 5) there are 15,000 iPhone apps currently and 1,000 of those developed by women 6) it is estimated that there are 100 women iPhone app developers. According to Fara Warner author of the Power of the Purse and contributing writer at Fast Company and Forbes Asia “women make 80% of the buying decisions. They control $7 trillion in purchasing power. By 2010 they’ll control more than $13 trillion in private wealth. And that’s just in America.”

Stong business case but where were the women at this event? None. Other than myself, Jessica Riley and actress and host for the event Melody Bates there were no women. Shocking! All that buying power and very small presence. Are women developers too wrapped up in their code? Worrying about their dates, nails, hair, wardrobe? Perhaps there simply aren’t enough women interested in the iPhone app development world yet? Anyone can you help get me get to the bottom of this? We looked at six web apps mostly developed by women all with the premise that they were targeted to women. My top favorites included the Make Toast by Glenda Adams, Fuzzle by Christiana and Candy Cane Ltd., Lemonade by Glenda Adams and 2Across by Elizabeth Block which is currently earning an outstanding $2,000 per day according to 9to5mac!

A few things to remember to those who are thinking of embarking on this journey:

• Have a business case specially if you want to place a price tag on your app
• Think about the user. Go through the exercise of wireframing or storyboarding your app
• Create a focus. Your app needs to do what it does well
• Depth. Keep your users coming back for more
• Be entertaining
• Integrate social media where it makes sense
• Pay attention to your design and use of graphics. “The details are details. They make a product, Charles Eames.”
• Make sure it works.
• Ask for feedback from your users

My two cents, ladies and gentlemen, you need not be a developer to create an iPhone app. Try the iPhone Boothcamp course or request for one in your city. It could be your ticket to ride during the down economy.