With millions of apps being downloaded daily, how do you develop something that stands out from the crowd? Not only will you need to create apps that are flawlessly engineered and user-friendly, but you’ll need to stay on top of the latest trends. Following big mobile development influencers, those who really “get” mobile, can keep you in the loop and help you understand the rapidly evolving mobile landscape, so you can keep producing stellar apps.
Last year we compiled a list of five mobile development influencers to follow for reliable tips, news, insights and advice. As part of an ongoing series, here are five more mobile development influencers (in no particular order) who really “get” mobile:
Benedict Evans, Partner, Andreessen Horowitz
- Why: Evans is a partner at Andreessen Horowitz, a venture capital firm based in Silicon Valley. His focus is working out what’s going on and what will happen next in technology, mobility and media. Evans’ website explores where mobile is and where it is going. He delves deep into the industry, using trends and news to draw a larger conclusion about the state of mobility.
- Where: Twitter – @BenedictEvans, Website – Benedict Evans
- Mobility Words of Wisdom: “It’s hard to express just how much of a change [mobile] is. For the first time ever, the tech industry is selling not just to big corporations or middle-class families but to four fifths of all the adults on earth – it is selling to people who don’t have main electricity or running water and substitute spending on cigarettes for mobile. This means we have accelerating complexity in three ways: we go from middle class families to everyone, we go from the PC to mobile, and we go from the simplicity of the web browser, mouse and keyboard model that lasted twenty years (thanks Marc!) to these complex, multi-layered devices where everything is still changing. And this is why it’s so much fun.”
Peggy Anne Salz, Lead Analyst, MobileGroove
- Why: Salz brings 20 years of mobile technology and mobile marketing experience to the table. She has written numerous reports, white papers and over 300 articles on everything from mobile marketing and mobile apps to mobile trends. She also serves as a mobile analyst for Gigaom Research.
- Where: Twitter – @peggyanne, Website – Forbes Contributor Profile
- Mobility Words of Wisdom: “Mobile apps are becoming the primary way that users across all demographics access and activate content, services, commerce, and critical business applications. This turns up the pressure on organizations to anchor business applications on mobile platforms. It’s clear that enterprises no longer consider mobility the last step toward implementing a business application.”
Ojas Rege, Vice President of Strategy, MobileIron
- Why: Rege began working in mobility in 2000 and has since become a source of expertise on the subject for publications like InformationWeek and Enterprise Apps Tech News. His posts on the MobileIron blog discuss major mobile trends, mobility news and more.
- Where: Twitter – @orege , Website – MobileIron Blog
- Mobility Words of Wisdom:“Mobile will be far more disruptive than even the PC. Mobile eliminates the latency of human decision-making by putting data and computing in the hands of literally everyone in an organization at the point of action. Mobile changes how people live, how they work, how they process information, and how they act.”
Ted Schadler, Vice President & Principal Analyst, Forrester
- Why: If you want to stay up on mobility news and have access to industry stats and trends, Schadler’s blog on Forrester’s website is an ideal resource. Schadler is a technology storyteller focused on mobile, cloud, systems of engagement and collaboration. He is also the co-author of The Mobile Mind Shift.
- Where: Twitter – @TedSchadler, Website – Ted Schadler’s Blog on Forrester
- Mobility Words of Wisdom: “Great mobile experiences [are built by]… a ‘system of insight’ that goes far beyond traditional analytics or big data approaches to gather, analyze, and operationalize all the data to deliver great mobile moments.”
Boydlee Pollentine, CEO and Technology Director, Tipsy & Tumbler
- Why: Pollentine is a tech expert with more than 10 years of experience as a software engineer and programmer. He has developed numerous apps and created several indie games. Pollentine’s blog covers everything from push pin notification tips to explaining key industry terms like “native apps”. He has also written two books about Appcelerator Titanium.
- Where: Twitter – @boydleep, Website – Boydlee’s Blog on Tipsy & Tumbler
- Mobility Words of Wisdom: “Push notifications can be a great way to both drive customer satisfaction and ensure your apps are engaged with past the initial install date—a fate suffered by many other products and services in the app market.”
