Tump App-The Caribbean Blackberry App that helps you find places, services and events. A review and interview

TUMP- The Blackberry Mobile App

I’ve been testing this Blackberry Mobile App called “TUMP” for almost a week.So what is it and what does it do? It’s a free app that helps you find places, events and services where you live, work and do business. Do I like it? YES! Why? It’s what I’ve been wanting for a while. From the minute I was trying to find the closes US$ Atm while in Liguanea to needing a reminder as to where I can find the closest bill payment shop. So for me TUMP is useful and that makes it a winner.

While it launch with about 1000 data points for Jamaica and Trinidad, I love the fact that you can add your favourite location or just out of pure self interest and shameless promotion, you can add your cafe, bar, company, boutique yourself using the feature called “Map it”. You can chose from a list of categories, add the name, location and a short description.

Using your GPS location, this Map It feature which is like a subtle FourSquare check in, is more of a crowdsourced feature that helps TUMP to grow in data. And so the more data that’s added, the more information that’s searchable and the more useful. The downside of the “Map It” feature is that right now it works better when you’re out in the open at the location. Indoor Mapping seems to be an issue right now. Hope they fix that soon. Also to Map it, they ask you to build a mini profile of yourself. Soo smart! More data collection of users is valuable and can be leverage later for marketing and money making.

I like TUMP too because this is the first such app that actually got to market and is being used by over 300 people in Jamaica right now.To all the other developers who were just talking about this, planning to do this. You just got Trumped by Tump. Now while being first to market doesn’t guarantee you remain number one, if you get it right, the followers will still be staring at your ass in the marketplace.

Anyway, so what follows is an email interview I sent to Omarie Case, one of the developers and co-owners of the startup who launched this app. Have a read and add your comments.

SC: What’s the story behind that name?
TUMP: Funny you ask the name came about after a brainstorming session. We wanted a catchy simple name while keeping a Jamaican flavor. Most major brands are between 4 to 8 letters with a call to do something. Hence if you want to find something “you Tump! It”

TUMP: Around Me feature

SC: How long did u take to develop?
TUMP: We actually took us 7 months to develop. We started developing a BlackBerry Web Widget but later decided to go native to allow for all the features we hoped to bundle in the app.

SC: Is this a project or a startup?
TUMP: This is a joint initiative of 5 persons from our software company Lymejuice. Persons come from varied technical and commercial backgrounds.

SC: Did u do the UI as well as backend?
TUMP: Both UI and the apps engine was developed by us from scratch. The UI design is credited to our talented and somewhat elusive graphic designer Richard Whyte. Matter of fact he took 5 minutes to design the logo when we told him the name.

SC:Why a Blackberry app knowing that it’s one of the most difficult platform to develop for? What were the obstacles and how did u overcome them?
TUMP: Blackberry was chosen because of the size of the market and to reach the largest amount of users. Development on this platform just proves the technical prowess of the team, which as you mentioned was no easy task.
Our major development obstacle was adapting to mobile development as we are web and application developers. Everything had to be done on a much smaller scale: graphics, processing, final product size and data usage. We did a lot of research on blackberry development and interacted with other Blackberry developers.

TUMP- I Want Searcg Feature

SC: This is the beta version? What are the key features available right now?
TUMP: No this is a released version of the app

TUMP features
Around me:
Access to the ever growing TUMP database (at least 50 new locations added per day).
Users see all businesses/places in their immediate vicinity within a 800-meter radius.
Selecting a location provides the user with :
Address
Location on a viewable the Map
Telephone numbers
Details about the location
Email and Web address
Any additional features the location might have e.g. menu, prices, coupons and specials.
People may be surprised to discover places that were right in front of them, and they didn’t even know they existed

Nightlife :
Users see all events and nightlife within a 800-meter radius.
Get a full description of events, with access to ticket locations, special prices, giveaways and maps for venues.

iWant:
Users can search for anything:  Events, Parties, Restaurants, Supermarkets, Bars, ATMS, Parking… even Tire Shops. These will all show up in the order of how close they are to you.
Quick search icons make it fast and easy to search for the nearest gas station, ATM, or Cambio.

Freenis:
Users sign up and get access to free Blackberry Apps, Themes, or TUMP giveaways.

Map IT:
Users can use their GPS ™enabled Blackberry to map their favorite locations so it can be shared with everyone on TUMP.

Download it here http://www.tumpit.com/

SC:Who was this app created for ? Who can use it right now?
TUMP: This app was created for all blackberry users visiting and living in Jamaica. With BlackBerry phones dominating the smart phone market locally and globally it only made sense to develop for this medium. Coupled with the fact that blackberry data plans make it easier to market.
All BlackBerry users with OS 5 and upwards. We will soon release a version that will work on earlier versions.

TUMP- I Want Search Feature

SC: Any launch partners?
TUMP: RIM has approached us for partnership and we have a few young entrepreneurs like ourselves who we are seeking partnership. Namely PING BB Accessories, Rebel Unit clothing and Muffin Top Cafe. We believe that young people who take the initiative to be innovative should have supportive networks for encouragement.

SC: What are you goals for the next 90days?
TUMP: Our goals for the next 90 days are releasing versions with improved features, offering premium listings to all SME’s, brands and event promoters, forming a long term partnership with an strong brand so that we can map all places of interest in Jamaica and last but not least catering to growing our subscriber base and taking care of the existing.

SC:What is ur market domination plan?
TUMP: I think that would have to stay confidential for the mean time. Just look out for creativity and mass appeal !!

SC:An iphone or android app next?
TUMP: iPhone app is next, to cater for the emerging iPhone market and visitors. Android will be done in tandem.

SC:How do u plan to make $$? What’s the business model?
TUMP: To pay the bills we will be offering premium listing options for a very low cost, event listings and targeted brand ad opportunities. As it stands, the opportunities for businesses are endless and we have the flexibility to create nationwide or localized campaigns for the untapped mobile market.

SC: Since it’s a business startup and not a project what’s the vision for it?
TUMP: Oh yes lol it’s a business startup, we plan to take this all the way both locally and into other islands, while establishing Jamaica as a technological force to be recognized.

SC: When was TUMP officially launched?
TUMP: The beta was officially offered 1 month ago. It was launched in Jamaica with a few users in Trinidad.

SC: How do you intend to market this app to get greater uptake and increase user base?
TUMP: Nothing beats word of mouth for a good app as well as BBM broadcasts as we have all been victims of the viral broadcasts. However the traditional party crashes, crowd sourcing,promotions, twitter, facebook, flyers etc will be employed including our own creative initiatives which you will have to stay tuned to TUMP to see.