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Social Media Tips

Make an iPhone App from your RSS Feed

This is a guest post by Michelle Mangen. If you want to guest post on this blog, check out the guidelines here.

There are thousands and thousands of iPhone apps for games, news, scheduling, music, and more. Lots of popular blogs are available as apps for reading on an iPhone, Blackberry or Google Android smartphone. There is a growing list of tools for making an app from a website’s RSS feed. A few of the many app making tools are profiled below:

AppMakr was recently discussed by both Seth Godin as well as Guy Kawasaki. There are six different feed types you can chose from to create a beautiful app for the iPhone.

Features the ability to create apps from any of these feed types:

  • Twitter
  • Blogger
  • Blog RSS Feed
  • YouTube
  • iTunes
  • Podcasts

You have control over the following features when designing your app:

  • Multiple content feeds to create a “mashup” type app; each gets its own icon and tab
  • Upload headers, easily customize colors with the color palette
  • Modify the app name, icons and app splash page
  • Monetize by selling on iTunes or by adding in ads from Google, DoubleClick, etc.

Incredibly easy to design and monetize your own app for only $299.00 at http://appmakr.com/. Until May 31, 2010 you can use code “EMSTIPS” to receive 25% off ($74.75).

SeattleClouds comes with 6 different pre-designed templates or you can create your own easily with their WYSIWYG online platform.

  • Quick, no cost registration
  • Make changes and preview them instantly on your iPhone
  • Submit to AppStore for free distribution at no additional charge
  • Ability to download and submit your APP to AppStore For Sale distribution
  • WYSIWYG editor, use your own pictures, music, video
  • Multiple content feeds to create a “mashup” type app for all of your social sites

Get started for a little as $9.99/month at http://seattleclouds.com/applications.aspx

With very little effort at MotherApp you can create an app for your iPhone, Droid or BlackBerry in just three simple steps. You are able to customize colors and graphics. As with all the others they indicate you do not need any programming skills.

What is not clear on their site is samples of the types of apps you can make. This app maker may be worth checking out; though you may be out the $99.00 if it doesn’t do what you are looking for.

iSites will do all the work of submission to Apple and has the ability to create a Droid version. iSites is most economical, starting at only $25 for their banner supported version. A mere $99 you can get a non-banner version. While the other options mentioned in this post may have analytics, iSites is the only one who mentions that on their site.

Their highlights:

  • Instantly build your own app with ease of use and flexibility
  • Social Integrated Network to easily share and grow your network
  • Rich Interactivity
  • Analytics – real time numbers into the number of downloads, etc.

Not the Do-It-Yourself type? My App Builder will do all the work for you – just give them your content (videos, books, etc.) and they will build the app for you and submit it to Apple.

The disadvantage to this is the monthly $29/month fee. You would be better off to use one of the other listed apps and pay someone a one-time fee to design it for you, if you prefer to not do it yourself.

If you are looking to have both an iPhone and Droid version of your app it appears that your only two options for those (at this time) are iSites and MotherApp.

Look for more information about the EverydayEMSTips.com app and a review of AppMakr.com in a future post.

By First Arriving

Dave is an EMS provider based in New York City for over 20 years and has been blogging for over 10 years. He is experienced in all facets of EMS Service Management, Emergency Management, and specializes in Event Medical Services. He maintains a blog at DavidKonig.com, is an EMS1.com Columnist, and will be authoring on all things social (including Social Media) here at The Social Medic.