The iPhone App versus the iPhone Optimized Site Debate – Which one to choose?
Lately, mobile marketing has become an increasingly important channel for integrated campaigns. And though WAP sites and SMS/MMS messaging tend to be just fine for content / information related marketing, the iPhone allows for the more sexier side of mobile marketing to shine. So the “Branded iPhone Application” stampede is upon us and though it can’t be stopped, it can be questioned – especially when it comes to determining if an iPhone app is really that necessary or even justified. (We’ll review some of the more popular Branded iPhone applications in another column.)
So you have decided that you definitely must be on the iPhone. The upsell will always be “Do the App!” – it’s sexier for you and it’s much sexier for the agency / developer – but is that necessarily the best economical (or even functional) option? When discussing iPhone development with clients, we often look at whether it makes more sense to do an iPhone Optimized Site versus an iPhone App itself. Below are just a few pros and cons for both options:
iPhone Optimized Site
Pros
- Cheaper and Faster to develop
- Easier to modify existing content for Safari optimized viewing
- No barrier to deploy to market (i.e. iTunes approval)
- Site icons can be displayed on ‘deck’ similar to iPhone apps
- Can still take advantage of photo and video viewing specific to the iPhone
Cons
-
Limited by HTML/CSS (i.e. no 3D game here)
-
Can’t notify user automatically of updates to the site
-
Can’t leverage iPhone features such as GPS
-
Need to have EDGE / WiFi to function
-
Safari browser will not display Flash*
*Though Flash continues to be rumored for the iPhone, this will most likely never happen due to continued concerns of Flash being a ‘resource hog’
iPhone App
Pros
-
Allows much more flexibility in terms of 3D, animation, etc.
-
New information can be pushed to the consumer via application updates
-
Promotion of App through store and on iPhone App related sites
-
Can generally be viewed / played at any time
-
Community will tell you right away if they think your App is great through user reviews
Cons
-
Objective C development (i.e. more expensive)
-
Longer time to market due to submission / wait times for iTunes review and approval
-
Can only be accessed and downloaded via the iTunes App Store
-
Apple ultimately determines if your app is ‘worthy’ enough to reside on their platform (i.e. loss of control)
-
Community will tell you right away if they think your App sucks through user reviews
Your ultimate decision for using an iPhone App or iPhone Optimized Site should always be determined by what it’s being created for. Would you want to create the latest and greatest version of iFart as an iPhone Optimized Site? Probably not. But if your basic need is to optimize photos and videos for mobile then it probably makes more sense to develop an iPhone Optimized Site. And I use ‘develop’ loosely here as many content driven sites can be tweaked for mobile viewing and might not even require a full development overhaul.
A great example of content you might initially think is an iPhone App but in reality is an iPhone Optimized Site is iHalo Stats. For non-gamers out there, this lets you check on all your stats from the game and is still one of the best examples of an iPhone Optimized Site.
For some shameless self-promotion, you can even view the web optimized iPhone site Zugara created for Playboy at http://iphone.playboy.com. To get all the highlights, view the site in the Safari browser on your desktop or through the iPhone itself! Note – The site only has PG-13 content on it and nothing worse than you would see on Maxim.com.
I’ll have more thoughts iPhone specific development as well as Mobile Marketing in general in future blog entries, but if you have any questions you can always get a hold of me at Matt (at) Zugara dot com or @KobraKai on Twitter…
Tags: app, ifart, ihalostats, iphone, iplayboy, iTunes, mobile marketing, site, web development, Zugara
Depending on the needs of the client, there is one way the iPhone optimized web site can utilize the iPhone’s GPS. You can do this by customizing the code to call the desired location out via Google Maps – visit http://www.PicanteChicago.com on your iPhone and click the directions tab for an example.
Is there any data that shows users expect a brand to have a mobile site if they have an iPhone app? So, there are pros and cons to both a site or an app, but can both of those be alleviated by having both? With the introduction of more devices and platforms, you can have more long-term reach with a site unless you create an app for BlackBerry, Android, Nokia and whatever else comes along. It may come down to cost…I don’t know. Thoughts?
Brad – I haven’t come across any data yet that shows whether consumers are expecting a brand to have an optimized site for the iPhone if they have an App as well. I would be interested to see a study on that though. In regards to having both an app and a optimized site, it depends on what the content is. If you’re offering a game as an app, you can’t replicate this on an optimized site so you would probably be best served by having an optimized site that has details on your game, pricing info, screenshots, video, etc. I have also seen iPhone apps that literally just take the content of an optimized site and offer it as an App too.
We always advise our clients to optimize their sites for mobile (specifically iPhone / Safari) and we’re currently launching a promotion for UFC that will work across all the major Smartphone browsers. So, yes, you are correct that it’s much more cost effective to optimize sites for the popular mobile browsers vs. creating Apps for the different mobile OS platforms.
Hope that helps…
Matt
(you can also reach me on Twitter @KobraKai or email Matt@zugara.com)
Applications cannot work everywhere, an iPhone app would work only on iPhone and not on blackberry or any other. This is why i think that iPhone compatable websites (like m.digg.com) are a better in comparison to applications. Cost effective, work on every platform, Just a browser needed, and so many benefits. And after some googling this is what i got:
‘Made for iPhone’ websites by SDP Labs makes it even simpler and easier to have a iPhone compatible website.
Hope that helps someone.
Why choose between native and web app when you can easily do both?
WrapYourApp.com is a service that gives web apps a way to be sold in App Stores. All we need is the URL of the web app and we can put it in the iPhone App Store, Android Market, Palm Catalog (when it opens to general 3rd party apps) and desktop apps on Mac, Windows and Linux.
Prices start at $149.
Mobile web app authors maintain their own code and hosting – while being able to update their application without resubmitting the app to each store.
Производство изделий из натурального гранита различных месторождений
(памятники, столешницы, облицовочная плитка, подоконники, ступени)
Гранит Киев
одобрямс статью
Блог очень понравился. Так держать!!!
Хороший блог. Занёс в букмарки
I have needed this information for so long. Where have you been!!! Thanks
Do you have a site feed I can save? I searched around but can not
Very nice website, I’m Glad I found your website. I’ll keep in mind your site so I can visit it again in the future.
Hey interesting post.
Conerning VW lemons, have you heard of the Volkswagen Phaeton? Did you know it’s just a rebadged Bentley Continental GT? Sad, but true.
The Volkswagen Phaeton was a massive failure in my opinion, the worst vehicle made by Volkswagen!
Its Shocking: VW Phaeton is a fail!