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Neiman Marcus: The Ultimate, Interactive, Client Gifts

By Jennifer Fujimori

To many people, Neiman Marcus and other department stores might warrant the occasional stop when wandering the mall or looking for something in particular. But for an elite circle of customers dubbed the “Chairman’s Circle,” shopping at Neiman Marcus is part of a lifestyle – and one that comes with perks. Members of the Chairman’s Circle (the highest loyalty level under the InCircle Neiman Marcus reward program) must reach a designated annual spend using a private label credit card. Once they’ve met those requirements, customers unlock a treasure trove of exclusive benefits, including in-store dining, salon services, access to tickets for in-demand events, hard-to-get restaurant reservations, and premier getaways.

It was the last item on that list that Neiman Marcus sought to optimize with Fusion’s help. Working with the team at Neiman Marcus, our app developers created a completely custom mobile app for Chairman’s Circle members. When a user opens the application on an iPad (customized of course!), a message is displayed describing the purpose of the app, which is to detail the amenities available at Chairman’s Circle level. The app then shifts its focus to one particularly notable amenity: a complimentary trip to one of eight destinations around the world. Using the navigation at the bottom of the screen, users can tap an icon labeled “Itineraries.” This leads to a selection of clickable photographs with destination names, which users can click to view the details of the excursion and corresponding hotel.

To present this as a gift from Neiman Marcus to Chairman’s Circle members, we created a fully customized package including an iPad wrapped in matte silver Stealth Armor, a sleeve to house the iPad box, and a high-quality box with magnetic closure encasing the entire bundle. It’s the best kind of gift: one that contains another gift inside.

We have worked with high-end retail clients before and we dove into this project headfirst, gathering information from the client until we felt confident enough to build the app they were looking for. “Neiman Marcus knew they wanted to gift their Chairman’s Circle members with a free trip, but they were looking for a truly memorable way to package that information,” said Hollie Go, App Development Project Manager. “Instead of sending a letter or an email, this app is an interactive way for recipients to see full color photos and details about each destination.” With Fusion’s custom branding, packaging, and mobile app services, Neiman Marcus found the level of prestige they were looking for in a gift for their most valued customers.

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Simple Content Delivery with DCS Apps

By Jennifer Fujimori

The mobile application landscape in 2018 is saturated with a dizzying array of apps, ranging from straightforward and simple to complex and colorful. Business owners are faced with the challenge of building an app that is visible, user-friendly, and detailed all at once. At Fusion of Ideas, we’re aware of just how easy it is to gravitate towards a “more is more” solution. After all, there are countless technologies and functionalities available in the app development world. But we also know that an excess of options can lead to a chaotic and overly complicated final product. That’s what pushed our app development team to come up with a much simpler app solution for clients: the Dynamic Content System.

Imagine that you are the owner of a small consulting business. You have a well-designed website with sections to address every topic of your business. But you’ve noticed that most of your competitors have mobile apps in addition to their websites, so you decide to seek out an app development firm. Your mobile app checklist might look something like this:

  • Simple design
  • Easy to use
  • Menu of 6-8 sections, each covering a service your business provides
  • Sections featuring photos, videos, and text
  • Ability to add, remove, and change content on an ongoing basis

The DCS approach, our version of what’s known as a CMS (content management system), can check all of those boxes without breaking the bank or overly complicating your app. It’s customizable yet simple – the general concept of displaying content using a list or menu view does not change, but the format, fonts, colors, designs, and logos can all be customized. As the client, you’re equipped with an easy-to-use web admin portal where you can continuously make changes to the content on display. This gives you a streamlined way to create and manage an app without having to hire a dedicated developer. After an initial design and development period with the Fusion team, the app is entirely yours to control. The end result: a cookie-cutter setup process with unique, personalized results.

This is the user view of the Kidd’s Kids DCS App.

One of our clients, Kidd’s Kids, is a nonprofit group that strives to bring joy to kids who are dealing with life-altering conditions and their families by sending them on an annual trip to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. The organization was looking for a way to display event information as well as a photo of each child with their name, hometown, and favorite Disney character. The finalized app features the Kidd’s Kids branding and logo as a backdrop, with a simple menu of options to choose from. Each of the families received an iPad equipped with the app, so they could easily open it up and scroll through the photos or look for event details. The app placed important information at their fingertips, and gave them a simple way to learn about the other recipients on the trip.

This is the admin view of the Kidd’s Kid DCS App.

Fusion of Ideas strives to meet a higher standard than most other companies that offer a CMS-type service. Because our development team (which is entirely based at our headquarters in Lake Forest, California) have gone through several iterations to perfect our DCS solution, your app can be delivered in just a two week time frame. Our designers will also build a custom application icon with your company’s branding, logo, and/or artwork, depending on your aesthetic preference. Your app icon will be yours – not that of a third party app development company. You won’t see any Fusion of Ideas branding within the app either. The focus is completely on your company and your content.

Check out the complete list of what’s included in our DCS package below.

  • Custom application icon
  • 1 platform (iOS, tvOS, or Android)
  • Multiple groups and users (5 groups and up to 100 users)
  • Initial product training
  • Access to web admin portal to manage content being displayed to groups and users
  • Fusion customer support

Fusion can also provide additional design and functionalities, along with full custom development services outside the scope of the DCS solution. Contact us today to get started!SaveSave

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Fusion of Ideas Featured in Construction Executive

Fusion of Ideas was recently featured in Construction Executive, the magazine for the business of construction. Because we’ve developed several mobile applications for construction industry clients, we were asked to write an article about the ways our clients have used technology to solve business problems and to save time and money. The article details some of the types of tasks a custom app can accomplish, and the satisfaction that comes from embracing technology and moving in a positive, future-minded direction.

To read the article, please visit:

http://www.constructionexec.com/article/custom-mobile-apps-save-time-and-money

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(Not-So) Humble App Beginnings

A question we get a lot at Fusion: “You’re a well known customization company – what made you get into app development?”. We decided to take the time to answer that question and provide some history of how Fusion’s app development service came to be.  

“As with all truly successful innovative companies, Fusion is always looking out for the needs of our customers,” said Russ Taylor, CEO of Fusion of Ideas.  “We stay on top of technology, development, and our product offering so that we’re not only keeping up with trends, but offering truly custom solutions based on what our customers need.  Our app development service was born out of repeated request from our customers. The iPhone App Store opened in July 2008, and soon after that, our customers began inquiring about custom apps in addition to hardware customization services. We decided that if we were going to do this, we were going to do it right, so we set out to create create applications that reflected the same high-level reputation of our customization services.”

That’s when Taylor brought on Tyler Harmor, someone with extensive development and leadership experience, as CTO of Fusion of Ideas. Harmor was given the task of creating a team of developers and designers with the ability to understand the client’s vision, map it out in detailed a statement of work, and then produce each custom application on time according to their specific deadlines.  

Harmor was asked to do all this while adhering to the Fusion of Ideas commitment to being a one-stop-shop for all service offerings, which means all of our work takes place under one roof in Lake Forest, CA.  At that time, many companies were outsourcing their app development overseas. But clients were becoming increasingly frustrated with the disconnect, language barriers, and long waits for communication and updates.  Hiring all of our iOSdevelopers to work in one location would provide a high level of customer service in which clients could easily communicate directly with their application’s developers. Comprehensive details could be communicated with minimal miscommunications, and any questions or requests for app updates could be answered in minutes, rather than hours.  

So Harmor hired a team of the best developers in Southern California, and app development quickly became one of Fusion’s cornerstone product offerings.

“From the moment we let our clients know that we were offering application development, we were inundated with several exciting projects,” says Taylor.  “Our clients had experienced a high level of quality with our customization projects, and knew that we would produce the same high-quality work when it came to app development.  We truly value our clients and strive to give them our absolute best, so the decision to hire Fusion to develop applications was an easy decision for many of them.”

Less than two years after mobile applications were introduced to the world on a consumer and business level, Fusion had entered the app development industry.  Fusion’s first three clients were the New York Public Library, Jack Nicklaus, and California Pizza Kitchen, in that order.

“We came from not-so humble app development beginnings,” said Tyler Harmor, CTO of Fusion of Ideas. “We didn’t have to start small and build a reputation from scratch.  Because of the high level of quality in our customization projects, Fusion was poised for success when we began developing apps for some big names. And we were ready to show them what we could do.”

The first Fusion of Ideas app development client was New York Public Library (NYPL). NYPLneeded an internal application for their librarians that would serve as a liaison between their database of library assets. NYPL had worked with Fusion of Ideas on some other projects, and knew that Fusion would produce a top-notch product for them.

Integrating the outdated system into a custom application presented many technical challenges and required a significant amount of work for Fusion, but the end result was an app that successfully tied into the NYPL database and enabled librarians to search for publications and other assets. With the release of the new app, Fusion helped the NYPL step into the mobile age.

Following the NYPL app, in 2011, Fusion created an application for Jack Nicklaus, who was actively looking for investors for new golf course projects. They wanted to create a custom application that would loaded onto iPads and given as a gift to potential investors. The app would invite the recipients to learn about the business and potential investment opportunities.  Fusion created an application that housed information about the golf course, videos, brochures, and other marketing collateral. The “wow factor” of the project brought them back to Fusion for additional applications and services over the years.

California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) wanted to create an easy ordering app that would be used to test a Spanish language menu in some of its locations.  The application housed an ordering portal and detailed menu information, and was utilized in several CPK’s across the nation.

“These three initial app development clients, though several years ago, were early adopters, using apps at a time when other businesses didn’t even have an inkling of the importance of mobile technology,” said Harmor.  “Looking at our app development clients in 2018 – they vary quite a bit in shape and size. We have clients who are doing smaller projects, such as Dynamic Content Solution (DCS) applications, which includes a custom interface to house specific information like videos, apps, presentation and marketing materials, PDFs, etc.  We also have clients who are creating huge framework applications that run their business. We do it all, and we love the variety and the challenges of creating technology solutions for these companies.”

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Let’s Be Frank: Have an Awesome Idea For an App? What Does It Really Take to Develop a Mobile Application With Fusion of Ideas?

When starting something new,  it’s never a bad idea to do a little research online to get an understanding of what it is you’re getting into.  This is never more true than when you’re starting to research and brainstorm for a business app you’d like to create.  Through Entrepreneur.com and other top sites, we’ve found lists of recommended questions to ask potential developers.  To take some of the guesswork out of reading the details on our website at www.fusionofideas.com, we sat down with our Business Development Manager of Applications, Tim Hurlbut, and asked some of the top recommended questions to ask when interviewing an app development company.  

May I have a list of your current and past clients?  

Just to name drop a few, we’ve done custom applications for Hilton Grand Vacations, Warner Brothers, Lakers, Delta, Hennessy, California Pizza Kitchen, Barney’s New York, Lionsgate, LensCrafters, NuSkin, CapitalOne, Audi, New York Public Library, etc.  We’ve built all kinds of applications; whether it is a dynamic content solution for a small business or an intense client facing sales tool, our expert developers can do it all. Upon request, we would love to share some samples of our work depending on your area of interest.

Where can I find examples of mobile apps you’ve developed?

The majority of our clients utilize apps for B2B and internal purposes, so most of the apps we develop are not public. However, some of the applications we have developed can be found on the App Store & Google Play. Upon request, we would love to share some samples of our work.  

Which platforms do you develop?

We are experts in both iOS and Android app development. We also have an expert team of Web Developers who are able to work in multiple programming languages.

Do you provide documentation for the apps you develop?

Yes, documentation is provided for apps we develop. It is also provided for source code.

How do you manage quality control and testing?

Quality control and testing is always provided with each phase of the project.  We use the AGILE development mythology.  This process includes weekly reviews and updates.  

Do you develop everything yourself? Do you outsource to anyone?

Our team is all in-house, plugging away at their work in our offices in Southern California.  We do not outsource.  And better yet, you can get a hold of us at anytime with clear communication.  How many App Developer companies can boast that they do all of their work under one roof, all in the USA?  We can.   

Do you partner with an app designer or would you need us to handle that?

We have our own skilled app designers who are able to take your vision to life. We are also available to work with a clients’ own design partner or style guides.  

What are the steps you usually take prior to building an app?

Upon request, we would love to provide you with our brochure that outlines the entire app development process. Here is a sneak peak of the steps we go through to make sure we build you exactly what you want.

9 Steps For An Effective Application Development Project (from Fusion of Ideas Brochure)

Will you manage the process for uploading to the various app marketplaces? Do you have a developer account to do this?

Yes, we will handle the app submission process to App Store, Google Play, etc. We do have our own app developer account, however the majority of our projects are built using the clients developer account, which we help them secure.

Do you offer long-term app maintenance and support?

Yes, we have multiple options available to clients depending upon their requirements.  

How will we communicate during the development process?

Generally through initial phone conversations, followed by email & webinar sessions. We are available to travel if required to meet with clients.

Who will own the mobile app?

The app projects are primarily owned by our clients. We are a work-for-hire partner and do not retain ownership rights.

What are your fees and payment terms?

All of our projects are quoted as fixed price projects.  We learn the clients needs. We document those requirements in a statement of work. We quote a firm fixed price and timeline to the details quote. Determining on the clients specific needs, payment terms are usually in phases or can also be done in monthly payments.

For more information about Fusion of Ideas and our application development services, please contact us at 949-453-0740 or info@fusionofideas.com

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