A couple of weeks after its Australian launch, the new iPhone app (see 21 March post) from SaaS construction collaboration technology vendor Aconex is officially released in other global markets today, with Aconex Mobile now being extensively promoted to existing (and potential) Aconex users. As previously mentioned (post), the new website is already highlighting its availability, banner ads are being displayed on the log-in pages of the Aconex platform, a newsletter will also be issued, and the company has also produced a YouTube video about its app:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buqBNHlqsVc
I talked to Aconex marketing VP Frank Carron about the app yesterday, and he said it was part of a strategy to make the Aconex platform even more widely available and so encourage adoption and use of the core system. “Field management will be an increasingly important area for us,” he predicted, “Putting a self-contained app on a phone also means people can use it when in places – like on an aeroplane or down a mine – where there is no internet access.”
He also said Aconex was keen to maintain a reputation for innovation, while keeping pace with competitors – some of whom have already produced their own iPhone apps. But this wasn’t a knee-jerk reaction to such rival products. The new app had been in development for several months, with Aconex’s User Experience (UX) team undertaking detailed research, including a “cultural probe” to find out how Aconex users would use the app, what information they wanted to access, and what kinds of information they might want to upload from site (the app allows upload of photographs, video and sound files as well as text-based data); research has also been undertaken into what other smartphones are most widely used among Aconex’s user base, and a more refined version for the iPad was also likely, Frank said. In the meantime, the iPhone app has been well-received by early adopters in Aconex’s domestic market, with user feedback consistently rating it 4- or 5-star.
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