Show some love - support your local geeks

Category: Mobile Web   |  Tags: 59 days of code customer insight customer service cvbi ipad

Great products and innovations in technology are often (if not always) born of necessity. They fill a gap, and alleviate the "pain points" of a target audience. This Tuesday, you can preview a full lineup of such products and innovations, as teams competing in the 59 Days of Code web and mobile application competition show off the fruits of their geeky labor.

I'm a member of one of the teams—Customer Insight—competing in the "Zero-Code" category; that means that 58 days ago, we started with only an idea. I love don't like to brag, but our app is awesome.

My partner in crime is Barry Falke, an advocate for customer service and organizational development. In his work at Fresno's Storyland & Playland, Barry continually trains park staff to look for and address the needs of visitors. He has been looking for a way to collect customer feedback, and saw a unique opportunity with the launch of the iPad. As we talked through the concept, we realized that this was something that other businesses could benefit from, in order to gain insight from their respective customers. Insight -> Interpretation (of needs and wants) -> Implementation (of better practices, service, etc.).

So, we've been slaving away for nearly two months now. Tomorrow, we'll compete with some incredible talent in hopes of winning the favor of showcase judges, and of you, the public (your vote counts). We need you there. There's no cost to attend, and you'll get to mingle with some of the Valley's best and brightest.

Other ways to show support:

• Text in your vote - we won't know details on this until 4:00 p.m. tomorrow, so...
• Follow Customer Insight on Twitter to receive a pla-by-play of the event, and to receive updates on the application
• If Twitter's not your thing, like us on Facebook

Other teams are reaching out, too—we won't dish out the link love just yet, but they're all building cool stuff. Come on out and show your support!

Posted Monday, June 21, 2010

James Collier is chief strategist for Paprika Studios, exploring ways to utilize emerging technologies. He writes about community, social media, and random observations.