An iPad app can communicate more than just your content!

So, from a place where I didn't think tablets could do anything (useful) to a place when the apps on a tablet can convey your positioning in the market! The world has certainly moved on.

ET has an app for each platform, even Nokia's Symbian!

I recently noticed that Mint, one of the leading business news papers in India, has been emphasizing the availability of its iPad and iPhone app quite a lot - so much so they tend to devote a lot of adspace every day for communicating that; even full page spreads on some days! The point to note here is that while these apps have been around for a lot of time, Mint has not come up with an app on any other OS, including Android, the fastest growing mobile OS in India. In contrast, Economic Times, the market leader, has apps on all mobile platforms. 

With this approach, Mint appears to be trying to become the preferred biz news medium of the premium income segment. Apple iPhone and iPad, in India, are priced close to double that of their counterparts in Android or any other OS. So, the iPad and iPhone app positions Mint differently from Economic Times. The only other platform where they seem to have an app is for Kindle which is again a slightly niche product in terms of the Indian context. Whether that differentiation pays up or not, only time will tell but this seems to be a good strategy in line with the content of Mint and its focus on explaining the economics behind the news. The association with Rolex (as seen in the pic above) is also in sync with the image of the premium segment who would appreciate Mint's attempts to understand the underlying reasons for what is happening with the economy worldwide rather than just a focus on the stock prices of various companies.

I am sure this is not the first time such a linkage is being used to connote premium-ness but this is the first time I have noticed this being used in the tech world. Do let me know if you have seen other associations like this.

Should you have apps for all platforms? If not, how to chose the ones to go for?

But the difference in strategies by ET and Mint leads one to the question as to whether it is justified to have an app for all platforms or focus on some (remember, app development means costs)? I guess the answer would to be go for the platforms that seem to define your target segment. ET is an entrenched player with a humongous lead over Mint, not to mention it belongs to one of the biggest media houses in India, so it probably makes sense for it to have apps on all platforms as its users are probably spread across various  income segments. Mint, on the other hand, is a relatively newer player that has done very well to break the clutter in the Indian business newspaper market, so it probably wants to spend that additional dollar on only the most lucrative customers initially who would tend to appreciate its content more.

Oh, the charms of technology today! Never cease to amaze!