Businesses tapping iPhone apps to drive sales

Businesses are jumping on the iPhone bandwagon as a way to market their wares.

Haworth, one of the world's largest manufacturers of office furniture and work spaces, gathered its business and IT folks together to create an iPhone app called "Spaces" that lets prospective customers see photos of Haworth's furniture displayed throughout 15 showrooms in the United States, Europe and Asia. The app allows customers to click through to Google maps of showroom locations and enables them to call a particular showroom from within the app.

Since becoming available in June, the app has been downloaded about 1,000 times by users throughout the world. "We know a number of those people who downloaded the app simply stumbled on it," said Haworth CIO Ann Harten in an article by InformationWeek. "If we were targeting distribution and controlling it ourselves, we wouldn't have the advantage [of attracting] those fishing around iTunes."

Haworth used another marketing trick that is becoming prevalent. Employees from the company posted "leaks" about the application on their Facebook and Twitter accounts, also causing an increase in app downloads. Harten said the company is also considering apps for the BlackBerry and Windows Mobile devices.

The company is also looking into apps that help personnel with product installations and other in-house communications that help employees do their jobs more efficiently.

Food retailers such as Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut have also turned to iPhone apps as a way to boost business. The Pizza Hut online meal-ordering app has been downloaded more than 150,000 times since it became available July 15. iPhone users are "willing to spend more because they have the means," Kraut said. "They know what they want, and the guest check tends to be higher," noted Bob Kraut, vice president of marketing communications with Yum! Brands, which owns the three fast-food giants.

For more:
- see this InformationWeek article
- check out this other InformationWeek story

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