Kyle
The app economy is exploding, and as this global phenomena continues more and more app developers have turned from “Fred in the shed” developers to serious (or semi-serious) startups.
App developers are realizing though, to make it in this global app economy they need to have access to the best tools available to them. More than ever, app developers need to know their users. App developers need access to every piece of analytical data available to them. With over a billion apps available across all ecosystems, app users have an element of choice they’ve never had before. App developers need to make sure that they can hold onto that user for as long as they can. Once you lose a user it’s hard to get them back.
All this analytical data is what Mark Ghermezian and his New York startup Appboy, specialize in. But one thing that Appboy odes that separates themselves from just another app developer dashboard, is they bring the data back to app developers in a clean, visually appealing UI and data that’s easy to understand and interpret even for beginning app developers.
Appby is about more than just data though. Ghermezian understands that app users are customers, and as such Appboy positions itself as the first app CRM solution.
We got a chance to talk to Ghermezian about Appboy. Check out our interview below:
What is Appboy?Appboy is a customer relationship management (CRM) platform for mobile applications that enables you to understand your mobile users better than you ever have before. Appboy does this by combining push messages, analytics, help desk and audience segmentation for mobile apps.
In layman’s terms, how does it work?
Appboy’s SDK plus web dashboard enable mobile app owners to:
- Create user segments and provide individualized user insights by tracking and maintaining user profiles complete with app usage analytics, custom feature usage stats, social network data and demographics.
- Effectively market to event and user segments of their customer base through push notifications, in-app messages and newsfeeds, emails, Tweets, and Facebook messages.
- Receive feedback from users that enables better customer service and prevents negative feedback in Appstores.
Mark Ghermezian, Co-founder & CEO
Bill Magnuson, Co-founder & CTO
Previously, Bill was a Software Developer at Bridgewater Associates and a Software Engineer at Google, where he worked on App Inventor for Android, later taken over by the MIT Media Lab. He was a winner of the 2011 TechCrunch Disrupt Hackathon and a winner of the 2010 North American Debating Championship.
Originally from Minnesota, Bill holds a Masters Degree in Electrical Engineering & Computer Sciences (EECS) and a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science with a minor in Economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Jon Hyman, Co-founder & CIO
Prior to cofounding Appboy, Jon Hyman worked as an engineering lead at Bridgewater Associates, the world’s largest hedge fund. Jon is a winner of the 2011 TechCrunch Disrupt Hackathon and has a degree in computer science from Harvard College.
Where are you based?
New York, NY
What’s the startup scene/culture like where you’re based?
How did you come up with the idea for AppBoy?
How did you come up with the name?
What problem does AppBoy solve?
Appboy is bridging the gap between the users and developers of apps. Today developers do not have the means to truly identify who their users are and communicate with them in a meaningful way. Appboy provides the products to do this and more.
Appboy’s SDK plus web dashboard enable mobile app owners to create and receive feedback from/market to user segments and provides individualized user insights, event monitoring, feedback forms, and marketing options.
What’s one dilemma you’ve encountered in the startup process?
What’s one challenge you’ve overcome in the startup process?
Who are some of your mentors and business role models?
What’s next for Appboy?
