Presentation given to Mobilize MN (https://www.meetup.com/Mobilize-MN/) to discuss the Caribou Coffee app & how I think about mobile apps.

1. Locations, Loyalty & Lattes in
the Mobile World
Eric Caron, July 2017

2. I'm Eric Caron
ericcaron.com
MN native.
Born into startups.
Seasoned at Best Buy
Now at Caribou.
Previous speaking engagements:
● Two time Minnedemo presenter
● "Blessings & Curses of Offering a
Free Public API"
● "InnerSource - The first step
towards open sourcing company
software"
Favorite language: Node.js
Phone: Android Nexus 6
Preferred coffee method: Aeropress

3. I'm not a mobile developer & I'm not in mobile
business.My opinion: Too many people think of themselves
as mobile developers or that they work at mobile
companies.
I'm in the restaurant business. My job is help
people get the food or drink they want, and be as
minimal part of their experience as possible.
We have competitors that are larger than us that
have better mobile apps.
We have competitors that are smaller than us that
have better apps.
So how do we fix this?
Cue the clichés!

4. But first - my inspiration
We'll just watch this for a minute...

5. Navel Gazing
First, if anyone on your team answers "My
favorite mobile app is our own" you
should stop asking their opinion.
Mine is Great Clips.
What is yours?

6. Keeping up with the Joneses
“Good artists copy, Great artists steal”
What do you think this means?
It means you may not be the first to try something,
but you did it so well that everyone thinks of you
when they see that style.
So you can't just copy the competition just because
they're doing something. You have to start with why.

7. Bootstrap
● There are dozens of companies that
will whitelabel you a mobile app.
● Every hour you spend on something
is one less hour on something else.
● Are you really the expert?
● Does doing this in-house give you a
competitive advantage?
● If you had no baggage/legacy/existing
infrastructure, you'd clearly go with
door A - but what if you've already

8. Bleeding Edge
● "I think Firefox
OS is going to be
a contender"
● "AMP is really
going to be the
future of mobile
web"
● "iPads are a fad"
Not all of my
predictions are right...

9. On The Roadmap
It’s incredibly tempting to create a road
map when you’re driving a software
product. You get to reap the glory of
announcing desired features without
even a downpayment of work. It takes no
design, no consideration, or even
discipline to respond to feature requests
by making them a bullet point on a road
map. It’s like buying goodwill on credit,
but what you don’t pay for now, you’ll
pay for later with interest.
"You don't need a product road map"
DHH, 37 Signals

10. Disruption!
● While happy customers might tell nine friends,
unhappy customers, on average, tell sixteen.
● Businesses that grow their customer retention
rates by as little as 5% typically see profit
increases ranging from 25% to 95%.
● 86% of customers will pay more for a better
customer experience.
● 32% of social media users who contact a brand
expect a response within 30 minutes, and 42%
expect a response within 60 minutes.
Source: groovehq.com/support/customer-support-statistics

11. Questions?
eric.caron@gmail.com
(If you're still reading)
Recommended Coffee App: http://coffee.cup.guru/