Mobile Expert Video Series: Smartsoft Mobile's CEO Dan Homrich

This is an interview with mobility expert Dan Homrich, CEO of Smartsoft Mobile that I recorded at the recent SAPinsider Mobile2012 conference in Las Vegas.  Dan has been in the enterprise mobility industry for over 20 years and has many great experiences to share from his time on the front lines of mobility.  In this interview I am asking what he sees in 2012 that was different than in 2011.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile Industry Analyst, Consultant and SAP Mentor Volunteer

Visit MobileEnterpriseStrategies.com

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility analyst, consultant and blogger. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Location Based Services and Mobile Retailing Applications

There is a fast growing segment of the mobile applications market that is rapidly being adopted by retailers.  Retailers and consumer packaged goods companies like Best Buy, Disney, Procter and Gamble, Starbucks, The Gap, American Eagle, Sports Authority and Macy's are all involved in various location based services projects. 

Mobile Retailing - Macy's and Bloomingdale's Mobile Applications Strategies

Macy's and sister store Bloomingdale's recently announced that they have both recently revised and improved their e-commerce websites to better support their mobile retailing strategy.  When customers use an internet-capable mobile device to visit macys.com and bloomingdales.com, they now see larger and clearer images and click-through buttons so using the sites are faster and easier. Technology detects the type of mobile device a shopper is using and customizes the presentation of macys.com and bloomingdales.com to that customer.  They have added the following features to their e-commerce websites:

1. When consumers access their websites through a mobile device, they can view larger and clearer images and click-through buttons.
2. The site is faster and easier for mobile devices. 
3. New technology detects the type of mobile device and customizes the website accordingly.

Many of their customers come to the website after receiving email messages from Macy's or Bloomingdale's that they read on their mobile devices.  When they click the links they routed to the e-commerce website that is now optimized for their mobile device.

On the mobile retailing application side they have done the following:

1. Macy's upgraded and relaunched their iPhone application - iShop.
2. They are testing various marketing scenarios and strategies with shopkick and Foursquare.

Macy's new version of the iShop application for iPhones provides the following features.

• Loads faster
• Navigates easier
• Integrates in real-time with macys.com to provide an improved mobile shopping experience
• Browse through merchandise
• Place and track orders
• Read product reviews
• Explore gift guides
• Find store locations
• Access information on special events and campaigns

Macy's is also testing location based services.  Here is an excerpt from their recent press release: 

Macy's has begun piloting the use of shopkick -- a new location-based shopping app -- at about 150 stores in the New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago markets. By downloading shopkick free from the iPhone App Store, Macy's customers can earn "kickbucks" reward points by simply walking into a Macy's store with their mobile device. They also will receive offers on products or related to specific departments within Macy's. Kickbucks can be redeemed, at the touch of a button on the iPhone, for Facebook Credits to play games online, song downloads, in-store gift rewards at Macy's and other shopkick partner stores, magazine subscriptions, iPods and charitable donations.

I recently interviewed Dan Homrich, CEO of Smartsoft Mobile Solutions about mobile retailing applications.  Many of Smartsoft's largest mobility customers are global retailers.  Mobile retailing is a fast growing and emerging mobility market segment that compliments SAP's mobile strategy to touch over 1 billion users by 2014.  You accomplish that kind of ambitious goal by placing valuable mobile applications into the hands of consumers, not just enterprise users.

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Kevin Benedict, SAP Mentor, SAP Top Contributor, Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst
Phone +1 208-991-4410
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Join SAP Enterprise Mobility on Linkedin:
http://www.linkedin.com/groups?about=&gid=2823585&trk=anet_ug_grppro

Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility consultant, mobility analyst, writer and Web 2.0 marketing professional. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Mobile Expert Interview Series: Smartsoft Mobile Solutions' CEO Dan Homrich, Part 1

I was lucky enough to catch up with Dan Homrich, CEO of Smartsoft Mobile Solutions (SMS) recently for an interview.  I am particularly impressed with one data point about Smartsoft Mobile Solutions - they have over 400,000 mobile clients in the field.  That means something they are doing is being done very right!

Kevin:  Dan, how long have you been involved in the mobility industry?

Dan:  I have been using mobile devices since the 1980s.  I have a story about using a 300 baud audio coupler on a pay phone to submit orders, but I have been in the industry for over 15 years.  Fifteen years ago I was involved in implementing industrial grade handheld computers for use in warehouse management.

Kevin:  What was your first PDA, and what mobile device do you carry today?

Dan:  My first PDA was an iPaq using Microsoft's Pocket PC operating system.  I now carry an Apple iPhone 4 and love it!  The multi-tasking is a big improvement.

Kevin:  What is your favorite iPhone application?

Dan:  The Home Depot iPhone application.  It helps you find products, see the products, see the prices, locate the products, etc.

Kevin:  What is your role today and what does that role involve?

Dan:  I am the Chief Executive Officer, and my responsibility is strategic direction and customer satisfaction.

Kevin:  What industries do you see adopting mobility today?

Dan:  We see a big interest in mobile applications from retail companies.  We call this market the B2E (business to everyone) or B2C (business to consumer) market, retailers wanting mobile customer focused applications.  We also see a big interest for any kind of mobile application that can help companies sell more products.

Kevin:  What mobility trends do you see for the rest of 2010 and 2011?

Dan:  There are going to be an increasing number of mobile devices and mobile operating systems.  We do not see a market consolidation yet.  The market continues to grow and diversify.  That means enterprises are going to need a plan to support an increasing number of devices and mobile OSs.  I also believe that if Verizon sells the iPhone, there will be another huge explosion (increase) in interest around the iPhone.

Kevin:  What are you hearing in the market about mobile device management?  Is there an increasing need given your prediction of diversity in mobile devices and mobile operating systems?

Dan:  In the past I have worked on projects where we deployed 5,000 rugged and industrial grade mobile handheld computers.  At that time mobile device management seemed critical.  Today, I hear less interest in mobile device management.  It is a company culture thing.  When devices were specialized for niche markets and specific to a task, companies were concerned about keeping them up and functioning.  With today's smartphones, you can replace the device and be up and running in a few minutes.

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This is part 1 of the interview with Smartsoft Mobile Solutions CEO Dan Homrich.  Read part 2 here.

For more Mobile Expert Interviews read here.

For more Mobile Expert Videos watch here.

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Kevin Benedict, SAP Mentor, SAP Top Contributor, Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst
Phone +1 208-991-4410
twitter @krbenedict
Join SAP Enterprise Mobility on Linkedin:
http://www.linkedin.com/groups?about=&gid=2823585&trk=anet_ug_grppro

Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility consultant, mobility analyst, writer and Web 2.0 marketing professional. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.