What is an app?

App is an abbreviation for application, which is something that’s been around since the advent of computers. But thanks to Apple’s App Store, launched last year, as well as the rise of Facebook applications; the idea of apps has hit the mainstream.

There are now more than…

-    25,000 available apps for the iPhone

-    800 million iPhone apps that have been downloaded

-    52,000 apps on Facebook

Facebook applications can be developed in any genre from sports to games or travel and music. If your product or service can create or sponsor a dynamic and interesting application that aligns with your brand, it can be a very successful viral marketing tool.

so, how do you get an app?

Before you try to figure out how to develop one … think marketing!

Determine how an app could benefit your brand. Better yet, figure out how your app could benefit your customers or potential customers. 

The #1 Rule of Applications is that they must offer useful, helpful or entertaining information to your customers or potential customers.

A great place to start learning about Facebook applications is on the Facebook application page where you can get a feel for what companies and organizations are offering Facebook users.

We’ve also collected a number of articles that give helpful hints and tips on how to use a Facebook application as a viable marketing tool. 

How Marketers Tap Facebook and Twitter, Apps and Widgets

Digital Marketing Guide: The Social Web

By Abbey Klaassen and Beth Snyder Bulik

Published: March 30, 2009

Isn't the entire web social these days?

To an extent, yes. If 2008 was the year everyone -- and their grandmas -- joined a social network, then 2009 is the year those networks' social graphs spread their tentacles beyond their borders to other sites across the web. Already it's common for many sites, including major news sources and entertainment properties, to have commenting and sharing features. So we admit the social web is a pervasive concept. But there are several interesting newer developments at Twitter and Facebook, as well as in the widget space and the app world.

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As is typical, Facebook’s latest redesign triggered a torrent of user feedback. This time, Facebook responded quickly by tweaking the home page stream. In response to complaints that too much application content was filling users’ streams, a filter was added that allows users to block either an individual person or an application altogether. This change may slightly limit the stream’s power as a viral channel for applications, but clearly it was a much needed fix that greatly benefits the overall stream experience.

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TECHNOLOGY: Get used to the term application programming interface

by Allan Hoffman/For The Star-Ledger

Thursday April 16, 2009, 7:00 AM

When computing jargon slides into the public consciousness, you know something interesting is afoot.

Don't forget: The term "internet" was once viewed as entirely arcane and technical, but when it started to appear in the popular press, it signaled a sea change in the way people communicate with one another.

These days, technical terms ease their way into the popular lexicon at a rapid clip, partly because businesses, in particular, rely on technology for everything from back-end accounting systems to marketing campaigns. Java, HTML, CMS -- even if you don't really understand these terms, you've probably heard of them, and many of them are useful for advancing in today's technology-focused workplace.

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