Another Day, Another App … Certainly Seems Like That, Right?
Everyday there are more apps to choose from for the iPhone, iPad, Android, etc. In fact not a day goes by where we are not thinking of a new app idea for a client. It’s fun and really helpful, but hard to keep up with for sure.
I’d like to highlight a few new apps from some very familiar brands that I think are interesting to note.
First up is a new app from P&G’s brand Always, designed to help women manage their menstrual and ovulation cycles. Sounds meaningful. It’s called Always Me, and it was designed with input from website editors, bloggers, women’s health experts, physicians, and consumers. It looks to be content rich, with information on health issues, cycle timing, exercise, and even diet. The app begins with a Q&A section to help assess the user’s needs. And of course there is a guide to product selection and purchase.
Always Me looks to be just the first in a long line up coming from P&G across a variety of categories including skin care, hair care, and beauty — so stay tuned. If this app and others help women to manage getting through a hectic day (and month), then I applaud the effort. One app at a time.
Next up is an idea that has been around for decades … I pitched it myself to a client or three through the years and have even made a few here and there. The notion of giving a tool to consumers to help figure out their cough, cold, and flu symptoms and then help them select the right medicine can truly be meaningful to someone not feeling well or who has a sick kid. The age-old question of “is it a cold or the flu” is a hard one to answer!
Of course the symptom analyzer has taken many forms through the years. When I first did one, it was a consumer brochure printed on … wait a minute … paper! It was handed out in doctors’ offices and then eventually we did one that sat on the retail shelf as a “take-one”.
When the web came along (boy do I sound old), we created one on the brand’s website. Of course now it’s all about the smart phone and being mobile.
So enter Robitussin and their new “Relief Finder” app. Similar in nature to its ancestor on paper, this new app allows consumers to select their symptoms and then find the right Robitussin product to give them relief. Of course the magic comes from being able to do that right at the shelf.
Have you shopped one of these shelves lately — it’s very hard to figure out which product to buy. With the app right there, consumers can now match up the photo on their mobile phone to the package on the shelf. Couldn’t get easier. There’s also a feature to help find a store within a specific zip code that carries the product.
So the insight is still the same: consumers need help deciphering their symptoms and finding the right products to get relief. Technology has simply made it more convenient and valuable.
Surely branded apps have been steadily finding success, so we are likely to see many more from where these came from!
Jim Joseph
Author of “The Experience Effect”
President of Lippe Taylor Brand Communications
