Trend Spotting
Catherine Russo Cobb • catcobb@mac.com catcobb@mac.com
JODY HANEKE is president of Tampa’s
Haneke Design (www.hanekedesign.com), a graphics and interactive communications
studio.
Also co-founder of MadMobile,
Haneke developed the user experience
for MadMobile’s flagship product
Mobile Framerz. MadMobile is a
mobile application developer focused
on developing next-generation products for mobile devices.
Haneke says that while his seven-employee company offers traditional
branding and print advertising services, clients continue to move most of
their efforts online. Haneke says that a major trend affecting his business
is that developers are increasingly focusing on developing applications
for mobile devices, specifically iPhone applications to be marketed and
distributed through the iTunes App store.
Another trend, says Haneke, is companies creating iPhone apps to
create brand awareness. For instance, this year Target stores put out an
iPhone app in a “gift globe,” a fun and interactive application that allows
iPhone users to shake their phones to launch a snowfall effect, and when
the snow clears a gift idea from Target is revealed and users can click to
purchase items directly.
“That is a good high level in terms of an iPhone application from
both a software developer and brand perspective,” says Haneke. “This
is a good example of a “free” app that helps build brand awareness
for Target as well as drive traffic to stores.” Target is a client of Haneke
Design, but his firm didn’t develop the “gift globe.”
“Companies want to be able to communicate through customers via
mobile devices, because they know that is the future, and indeed that is
now,” he says.
Clearwater to Korea
Clearwater’s Aerosonic Corp. ( Clearwater’s Aerosonic Corp. ( www.aerosonic.com), an aviation
product manufacturer, received a $1.95-million order from Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd. to supply air data systems. The order includes the company’s integrated multi-function probe and related equipment for the production of the Korean company’s T50 related equipment for the production of the Korean company’s T50 advanced jet trainer aircraft.
The product, the IMFP, provides angle of attack, air data sensing and pressure sensing for military aircraft in one probe, reducing flight management system complexity on military aircraft.
Mark Perkins, Aerosonic’s executive vice president, says that the IMFP is already in production.
Last August, Aerosonic suffered a severe
electrical fire at one of its main manufacturing
buildings. Perkins says management
took the fire as an opportunity to look at
the overall efficiency of the 200-employee
company, 180 of whom are in Florida with
the balance in Virginia.
“When you have to start almost all over, you might as well find
new efficiencies. We learned new ways to use less,” he says. “It
used to be we had a hockey stick structure whereby 80 percent of
our revenues came in the last week of the month, but now we are
delivering on a much more linear basis.”
Tech Co. Offers “Bailout”
TraderPlanet.com is an interactive social networking site for
active traders and investors that launched this year. Now the company
is holding a contest for a chance to win up to two months’
mortgage payments, creating its own “bailout” package. The firstplace
winner will get two months worth of mortgage payments,
second-place gets one month and third-place will pocket $250 in
cash. The deadline to enter is June 1.
Lane J. Mendelsohn, founder and president of the
Wesley Chapel-based company, says the contest has
generated a great deal of interest from the 5,000-
member site. Because the site is advertiser funded,
membership is free and the contest is helping generate
additional traffic. Still, says Mendelsohn, one of the
site’s missions is helping others, not just generating ad
dollars.
“Since January we have already donated $16,000
to charities that help the very sick, needy children and
abused animals. We also want to help our customers,
because we are in tune to their needs and concerns
and are committed to making a positive impact on their
financial well-being. This contest is one way of showing that,” he
says.
TraderPlanet.com, which has 10 employees, was under development
for a year, says Mendelsohn, but its popular predecessor
site, tradereducation.com, helped fund the new site and give it
momentum.
While both sites sought to empower traders
with the education and skill development
to become more strategic and knowledgeable
investors, Traderplanet.com is an improvement
because it allows for interactivity. Lane J. Mendelsohn
is the son of Louis Mendelsohn, founder
of Wesley Chapel’s Market Technologies (www.tradertech.com), a 30-year-old company that
researches and develops proprietary trend forecasting
and market timing technologies that use
artificial intelligence.
Agile Really Is
Tampa’s Agile Thought was recognized by
Inc. magazine (www.inc.com) as the 160th
fastest-growing company in the country. David
Romine, president and chief operating officer,
says Agile Thought is actually the eighth fastest-growing
software company in the country and
the seventh fastest-growing company of any
kind in Florida.
Agile Thought (www.agilethought.com)
works in virtually all aspects of software development
and implementation, from visioning
and justification to implementation, deployment,
and maintenance, says Romine, and
has achieved roughly 1,400 percent growth
between 2004 and 2007.
“Given the current state of the economy,
we feel like the work that we did to achieve
this level of growth gave us a “head start”
on surviving these troubled times,” says
Romine. “We’ve made some tactical decisions,
deferred some strategic initiatives, and we’re
well positioned to ride this out arm-in-arm
with our existing clients, while identifying and
assisting new clients with the challenges they
are facing.”
Agile’s customers include national companies
like KPMG, Deloitte, Microsoft, PricewaterhouseCoopers
and Siemens. Locally, Romine
says, Agile Thought counts OSI Restaurant
Partners, Tech Data, First Advantage and Sykes
Enterprises as clients.
Tech FYI
St. Petersburg’s Pinstripe Marketing (www.pinstripemarketing.com) was listed as No. 104
on the Top 500 Emerging Businesses in the
U.S. by DiversityBusiness.com, the business-to-business
Internet site … Arnie Bellini, CEO of
Tampa’s Connectwise (www.connectwise.com) was recognized as a
2009 Channel Chief by Everything Channel’s CRN magazine … Verizon
Wireless (www.verizonwireless.com) opened a 4,500-square-foot
“Evolution” concept retail store at 33830 U.S. 19 N. in Palm Harbor
… Sarasota’s MethodFactory (www.methodfactory.com), developed a
new B-to-B website for locally-based Intertape Polymer Group (www.itape.com), a manufacturer of specialized adhesive products and packaging
systems.
|
