Tag Archives: apps

Still Debating


Is your organization still debating whether its worth having a mobile app or a website? And probably for the following reasons:

  • Our organization has finally gotten on board with the idea of being present on mobile
  • We’ve finally gotten the funds to build a mobile app, just trying to figure out how now
  • We’ve got a mobile website but no one visits it
  • Our regular website keeps getting fewer and fewer visits and we need something new

Ok, I get it. That’s a worthy debate. So let’s make it easy to answer:

I get it. Some folks are still debating the mobile question. Hopefully, the items in this post will help you take some posiitve forward steps towards answering the needs of your org, audience, budget, and mission.

FaithVilliage’s 10 Recommended Apps

mobile device in cradle, via FaithVilliage

While its rare that we do these lists, its something that comes up from time to time from our partners. The latest of these recomended apps listings comes from FaithVilliage, with many apps on here that we’ve not seen highlighted as often before (which is good). Here’s a snippet:

4. Postagram: iPhone / Android

There’s nothing spiritual about the free Postagram app, per se, but we love to send encouraging postcards to our friends through it. The way it works: You choose a picture from your camera roll, upload it to Postagram, add a message, and Postagram will create the postcard and mail it to the recipient for 99 cents. They’re just a fun way to tell someone you’re thinking about them, praying for them or for sending them a verse of encouragement.

5. OverDrive: iPhone / Android

This free app allows you to download books from your public, school, or college library. The cool part, though, is not that it’s an eReader, but it’s also an audio book reader. So if you’re on a road trip or commuting to work, you can find your library (over 18,000 libraries use OverDrive), check out a title (you need a valid library card first), and listen to it while you drive. While school libraries might not have Christian literature, public libraries often do. What’s even better: You don’t have to worry about returning the title. It expires at the end of the lending period.

Readof the rest of 10 Highly Recommended Mobile Apps for Christians at FaithVilliage

Disclaimer: MMM’s content is syndicated at FaithVilliage. They are a content partner.

Mobile Churches Are/Aren’t Global Churches

A good brother in the faith, who also has a unique niche towards social media use in ministry recently published an article titled Mobile Churches Are Global Churches. I happened to be in the midst of travel when reading it, so I had to hold my pause on the title until I got to reading the piece. When I did, I didn’t so much see how mobile churches are global churches… but I didn’t see how they aren’t global either.

Caston starts off his article with the analogy of the oft-connected believer:

With more smart phones, tablets and other mobile devices being produced and sold than ever before, people are staying connected, from the office, the dentist, the chiropractor, the grocery store, and everywhere else that their busy day takes them. If not already the case, there will soon be more mobile internet users logged on at any given time than those using stationary personal computers and laptops combined.

Its a pretty normal thing in developed nations to see people connected to several streams of content via various computing devices. Depending on the region and the level of economic development (economic class), how those mobiles are being used to stay connected, informed, and entertained does indeed vary. The question that sits there for ministries is whether the person who is always connected looking for a specific engagement (or brand) of faith, or is faith seen in a distinctly separate space from places they would consider mobile (or other connected) technologies to be useful. Ministries would like to say “yes, everyone is looking to connect to God always and its our job to make sure they have a road into spiritual transformations by whatsoever media we can use.” That might be the right perspective for a ministry, but how about for the consumer (re: believer who doesn’t create content, just consumes it).

Caston then goes into the one of the frequent entry points people have towards doing something on their mobile that’s not simply talking on their phone (remember, we are talking about developed nations that have a consistent communications infrastructure and many media channels for their audiences): mobile websites. His perspective here implies that every public facing ministry needs to have a web presence that’s accessible on a mobile device. However, the first segment of the population that is spoken to are those who already have a website:

To do this, you will have hire someone to reformat your site for a variety of devices. You can then employ a “sniffer” program that will immediately detect what kind of device is accessing your site, and it will present the most readable site format for that particular device, whether it is a PC, laptop, cell phone or tablet.

Now, I’m not opposed to hiring someone for the purpose of redesigning a website, nor am I opposed to seeking consultation towards what might be the best methods to apply within an existing website to make it mobile friendly, I don’t think though that you first look at hiring someone for this. There are plenty of resources and guides, and even better, there are several web services that for free to low to high costs, can give you the tools to make your ministry website mobile. Sometimes, that includes getting a mobile app or two made alongside it.

But, none of it guarantees that you will get global Gospel penetration, only that those who know to search for you will find you. And if your content is only written to your local faith community, well, you can have it on a mobile, but it will only be a local church being served.

Caston’s article finishes with a look at some location-based (LBS) activities which can be done on a mobile which are able to ignite some of that mobile juice that marketers tend to love a bit more than the rest of us ;)

Certain applications allow a user to check in, via the GPS feature in a smart phone, virtually broadcasting where that user is. This allows nearby businesses to send them coupons and discount offers, along with letting their friends know where they are, in case they happen to be nearby and want to connect. When people check in to announce that they’re attending your church services or special event, this brings a great deal of positive exposure for your organization.

Personally, I’m only a fan of location-based services when they add definitive contextual value to something that I’m doing. When we level up that experience beyond small groups to community-sized levels, we’ve got a lot more to consider rather than just being the target of a broadcast by that community manager.

We’ve also got to consider that there are others who would appreciate that information for their efforts, that there might be device or service constraints that aren’t apparent when we get started (for example, have you ever tried unsubscribing from some of these services), and that there are some legal issues that we have to answer as a community as there are personal and civil liberties which come into play once we start allowing for the recording of demographic data.

The other side of things is that LBS as a genre isn’t a global poke, its always a local one. And its always one that should meet the person in a specific context without taking or offering anything else. Normally, LBS services fund themselves either by reselling the user’s demographic information, adding ads (costs for posting ads and selling analytics from those ads), or by freemium models (free for some time or small set of features, then you pay for more). While the service availability might be global (for example Nokia and Google’s mapping services), the relevancy of that information is always right now and local. How much does your faith community publish about local events that you need a dedicated service on your mobile for just what they would recommend? Or, would a city guide be a better place and avenue for this content? Is your faith community’s mobile efforts being put towards being in those existing databases, websites, or app directories?

That all being said, is going mobile a prescription for making faith (or a faith community) global? No, not really. Global considerations are a lot more than mobile websites and LBS. If you are looking to utilize for a global impact, here are some of the items you need to consider as being truly global issues of relevancy:

  • supporting multiple languages in text, audio, and video content
  • marketing and building for least common mobile experiences (SMS, MMS, WAP, Web, then App)
  • less reliance on reading content and more on visualizing content (less text more story)
  • is your audience subject to religious enabling or persecution because of what you’ve produced that they would consume
  • will you travel to those places your content goes in order to meet the people whom you say your global content is for
  • how many people are included when you say the global church; do you talk currently to any of them

Jason’s article is solid enough to start the conversation. The thoughts here should continue things along that end and endear you or your ministry to not just consider going mobile because others are doing it, but because you’ve got a clear and defined plan of utilizing the best and unique features of mobile to live a Gospel that’s present and relevant beyond the screen and keypad.

Mobile Medical Practices

There are indeed many ways that one can consider ministry as an effort that can be augmented by the use of mobile technology. In that ream of thought, we usually consider things such as meditative content, evangelism, and on the fringes, educational pursuits. But, what if the mobile minister were also able to deliver healing as a part of that demonstration of Christ’s love? What then would mobile ministry look like if it were not simply speaking a word, but actually diagnosing the illness and putting forth accepted medical practices for rendering healing? What then would mobile ministry look like? I think a report shared to us from NBC News makes it about as plan as can be:

[from the transcript] reporter: dr. eric topol has long been one of the world’s foremost cardiologists. he has now become the foremost expert in the exploding field of wireless medicine. and this explosion, he says, is about to make our health care better and cheaper. watch what he does with his cell phone .

>> we’ll just pop this is phone into it like that.

>> reporter: he shows how simply his modified iphone produces a cardiogram for a patient.

>> so you just put your fingers on it. there you go. and in a second — you know, in the first or second it stabilizes.

>> reporter: the device was approved by the fda in december and is now sold to physicians for $199. topol tells his patient he just saved a $100 technician’s fee.

>> so are we close to using this to say i’m going to diagnose you and prescribe four or five apps instead of four or five medications?

>> well, these days i’m actually prescribing a lot more apps than i am medications. you can take the phone and make it a lab on a chip . you can do blood tests , saliva tests, urine tests , all kinds of things. sweat tests through your phone. this is a powerful device.

>> and we’ll just have you hold that on there like that.

>> reporter: topol ‘s patient, ron thompson , is dealing with several significant heart issues.

>> you saw that on a phone. didn’t you just — weren’t you just amazed the first time you saw that?

Watch (or read the transcript) of NBC News’s report iDoctor: Could a smartphone be the future of medicine?

It might sound a bit amazing, and a bit far-fetched. But, this is the present of what mobile devices can do. Is this the kind of mobile ministry that you put forward?

Ashes, Then 40 Days

Today marks the beginning of the Lenten season in much of the Church. As is the case every time this season rolls around, I’m reminded of my youth and the years spent within the Roman Catholic tradition. Whether you were Catholic or not (I was not), you had to attend service at some point during the day, and then opt whether to receive ashes on your forehead. Depending on the moment, I’d say yes, understanding some of the significance of those ashes. And then there was the humor of trying to figure out what it was on our foreheads when it didn’t look like a cross. Funny moments, and certainly one of those moments where these days, I wonder how the common occurrences of mobile tech with kids could turn both that tradition and humor on its head.

The ashes though aren’t the end of the experience. Even in those youthful moments, teachers and parents would ask “what are you going to be fasting for Lent?” Some classes got competitive with the fasting – with classes logging who’s not watching TV or students cleaning up their language for 40 days. There are those folks who’ve taken to making those 40 days into 40 acts of kindness. And then there are those folks who look at pushing just a bit further, deriving that idea of a Lenten fast from the framework of the perspective in Isaiah 58 – removing something from your life but putting that into another’s life.

No matter how you spend those 40 days, if you are observing Lent, then do more than just fast for the sake of it, or serve just for the sake of it. As our friends over at Church Mag made note of the other day, “it isn’t just about the “giving up,” it’s about getting ourselves mentally and spiritually ready for Easter.”

We’ve got a list of apps to also assist on your Lenten activities. But, you don’t need an app, just a dedication towards some time to contemplate on what the resurrection means inside and beyond our traditions.

A Beautiful Mobile Experience

Screenshot of Communication Arts Magazine from Kindle Fire HD

One of the complaints that I hear from time to time is how religious apps (and services) are functional, but lack beauty. If you will, many are pretty in functionality, but not always in asthetics. That’s not always the case, but it happens often enough that one has to wonder what happened to all of those skills that did the Sistine Chapel and other works of art we admire so much.

Per my usual travels through the web, I wandered into Communication Arts Magazine and some of the events/competitions they have going on this year. I made it through a few items and started wondering when we’ll start seeing mobile apps from faith/religious organizations get nominated (in the Interactive category). As we talked about before, there are several design trends that do mark some items, but I wonder when we’ll see some more.

Some beautiful apps/services in this domain? Here are a few:

Those are just a few which come to mind. I’m sure there are others (well-know and not so). What are some of those beautiful apps and services to you?

Mobile Ministry Trends for Pastors

using mobile phone and laptop
Over at Church Tech Today, we recently contributed an article looking at mobile computing trends for pastors. We took a look at it from a different perspective than what you might find on other sites which might talk about ministry and technology. Here’s a snippet:

…First off, a maturing of some of the best of the genre in terms of Bible applications. Logos 5 and Olive Tree were released in the 2nd half of last year and present themselves well able to take your studies and sermons into the most necessary topics of the new year. I’m also hearing a good bit of chatter about non-English content in these and other platforms for study, which is going to be key for many ministries who have made a goal of discipleship for this year.

Social networks are entrenched, and its a good idea to continue investments with Facebook, Google+, Twitter, and others. However, you might be surprised to see the direction these networks trend this year. Whereas pastors were looking to add to the signal and noise, I see 2013 as being the year where pastors will pull back from being present in so many networks and doing more towards being effective in conversation and communication. There’s going to still be some confusion amongst some pastors as to which networks work best, but I see 2013 and 2014 as being those years where these matters are figured out…

Read the rest of Mobile Ministry Trends for Pastors at Church Tech Today.

Do you have trends that you see coming? What about if these might feel a bit further along than where you might be thinking – are you prepared or are you stepping ahead?

Are These Your Design Trends

A site that I was reading recently (The Industry) noted 13 design trends for 2013. Are these some items that you are implementing ino your mobile applications and services:

  1. Flat Design
  2. Fewer Buttons/More Gestures
  3. Animation as Affordance
  4. Hamburger Menu Drawer
  5. Native over Web
  6. Responsive if not Native
  7. Wider Websites
  8. Larger Fonts
  9. Larger Search Inputs
  10. GIFs as Design Elements
  11. Designing for Humans
  12. New Colors
  13. Vector Graphics

Read the explainations and see examples of these at The Industry

As a side note, changes done here will reflect #1 more than any other, an probably #13 if we can pull of something the web isn’t doing normally. The rest of these don’t fit the context of this type of site. Unless a designer can convince us otherwise ;)

Are You Born Mobile; CES’s Question

From our friends over at Mobile Industry Review comes probably the best reason to be at CES and any other tech conference this year – phrased in the form of a question and a perspective:

Chances are, you aren’t. But, you community has members who are. So what are you going to do to enable them to live a mobile-encouraged live that looks like the Gospel?

Bible Bloom

Bible Bloom is a new Bible app for iPhone (and iPad, but will get to that later) devices. As with many Bible applications, there’s the ability to read and keep track of reading. However, Bible Bloom seems to go about things a bit differently. Differently enough to get a look from us. Let’s take a look at things and see what’s growing in this app.

Impressions
One of the things that you notice with Bible Bloom is that it really is designed to be a pretty-to-engage application. There’s not the usual chrome (re: design elements) that look similar to other Bible apps, or even other iOS apps for that matter. The landing page is a series of tiles (Read, Bookmark, Prayer Packs, Store, and Reminders).

Even though I wanted to skip it, I first went into the Read section to see if there was anything differently done there than with any other Bible apps in the past. Not so much. Moving on.

Bookmarks came across similar. Though, it makes sense that you would eventually use this section if you came into Bible Bloom from another direction. A little more on that later.

Prayer Packs are like these little pocket devotionals that sit inside the app. Really neat idea here, and one that if the folks at Bible Bloom worked with a group (for example The Pocket Testament League, or even had some kind of SDK for local churches to use) would come in handy for Scripture-relevant information.

Store. Nothing more than the means to do in-app purchases of Prayer Packs (and possibly other Bibles in the future???). Still, makes sense to be able to go here rather than need to go back to the app store, or even iBooks/Amazon for this.

Reminders is a notification-based system where you are given encouragement based on the last time that you came into the Bible Bloom app. You can set it up so that your encouragement note comes on after 24hrs, 48hrs, 1 week, 1 month, or a custom time period. You can choose multiple items here just in case you realize that your reading and meditating of Scripture doesn’t follow as consistent a patter as you want to.

Critique
I wasn’t sure of what to think about Bible Bloom. Because of its design, it comes off as just another Bible app. I think though that there is some benefit though to it if Bible Bloom is framed more as a meditation helper. For example, when you get the encouraging note, to be able to tap and see the associated scripture and be encouraged to bookmark it for later or even share it, would make for a very nice workflow. Bible Bloom isn’t exactly designed like that. Its something that actually grows out of *not* being in the app everyday, but then having the app remind you and take you through a behavior of thinking on Scripture. Which is kind of how I found that example workflow. From a design perspective, its certainly pleasant, but the prayer packs don’t stand out until you get into the app some.

Still, if you are looking for something a bit different than the YouVersion/OliveTree/Logos end of things, Bible Bloom makes for a decent choice. Its a free app, but I would encourage you to support their efforts and purchase a prayer pack or two (they are $0.99USD).

For more information and to download, visit the Bible Bloom website.