FastMall iPhone app by MindSmack featured on Mashable.com and AdAge.com homepages.

Posted on March 1, 2010
Filed Under AdAge, FastMall, Interactive, Interactive Flash Website, Mashable, MindSmack, Shopping Mall | Leave a Comment

FastMall Is Foursquare for Malls.

This post is part of Mashable’s Spark of Genius series, which highlights a unique feature of startups. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here. The series is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark.

Name: FastMall

Quick Pitch: Think Foursquare-meets-Yelp (Yelp) for shopping malls.

Genius Idea: FastMall is a website and an iPhone app that acts as both a mall directory/map/guide and a tool offering you local deals at stores, reviews of shops and eateries and fast access to information such as parking and restroom locations.

Like many other red-blooded Americans who grew up in the suburbs of a major city, I love my malls. In fact, I’ve had the layout of Atlanta’s major malls memorized since… well, let’s just say I’ve always know my way around Lenox, Phipp’s Plaza and Perimeter.

That isn’t to say that I don’t sometimes forget what mall has my favorite store or food court stand, or that when I travel to other places, I know the malls in those locales. That’s where FastMall comes in: it is designed to be your guide to a mall — complete with maps, a place to store parking info, a store directory with phone numbers and the ability to read and submit reviews and turn-by-turn directions.

There’s also a social element involved that lets you “check-in” a la Foursquare (Foursquare) to a store or mall and find deals at the shops near you.

The FastMall website has the information for the detailed mall maps (which include some big malls like the Beverly Center and the Mall of America), but the iPhone apps includes store listings even for malls that don’t yet have a fully-featured interactive map.

The idea behind FastMall is to create a platform that can eventually extend to amusement parks and other types of venues. We think that’s really smart and that the app (and the site) is really onto something. FastMall isn’t a competitor to Foursquare and the like; it’s a niche-focused app that will help you find out what you need when at a venue or location with lots of shops.

Full article link:

http://mashable.com/2010/02/26/fastmall-com/

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An App for That, Too: How Mobile Is Changing Shopping

These Six Products Give Retailers a Reason to Be Excited About the Platform

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Mobile phones are fast becoming the way consumers find coupons, research products, compare prices and make purchases. It makes shopping easier for consumers, but that doesn’t mean retailers are thrilled at the prospect of consumers consulting mobile phones from their aisles — after all, does Best Buy want you to know that the item in your cart can be had cheaper at Amazon — and purchased right now on your phone?

“There is fear, but it is the new reality,” said Dan Butcher, a reporter at Mobile Marketer. “Retailers are becoming aware that consumers are using their phones in the store to make decisions. They’re realizing that they need to support that platform.”

Indeed, retailers who don’t embrace the technology now will be left to play catch-up in the years to come. But there is reason for retailers to be excited about the shifting mobile landscape. Many of the mobile applications coming onto the market actually benefit bricks-and-mortar retail by improving the in-store experience or driving traffic to stores that are either nearby or boast the best deals.

There are dozens of retail-related mobile applications on the market today, making it impossible to highlight them all. Here are half a dozen that stand out for the impact they’re having on the way consumers shop.

WHAT IT DOES: This iPhone and iPod Touch app provides interactive maps of malls, highlighting elevators and the quickest route to stores, as well as helping shoppers find food vendors and remember where their cars are parked. A shake of the phone turns up the nearest restroom location. Shoppers can also make lists and access coupons.

WORTH WATCHING: The death of the mall has been touted over and over during the last decade. And while it’s true that shoppers are turning to new formats or going online, all many of them want is a simpler shopping experience. Making mall shopping easier and more interactive through mobile apps has the potential to win over some consumers.

Full article link:

http://adage.com/digital/article?article_id=142318

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