Since the dawn of iPad, January 27, 2010 to be precise, businesses have envisioned the ability to rapidly capture data in the field without friction. iPad (and iPhone) are ideal instruments to bring this possibility to life and especially so when coupled with form tools to connect some very important dots.
The process is deceptively simple. However, until recently, a cost-effective solution has continued to evade even the most innovative business people.
Since you’re reading this GuidePost, you likely already understand the benefits of iForm. Simply stated, iForm makes it possible to capture data on remote devices, and integrate the data into your business.
But what’s missing are some basic reporting features that even the creators of iForm will admit are both necessary and important in the overall scheme of data management.
Missing or Not Included?
We often assume if key features are missing, it’s the fault of the product designers. Imagine debating with a Ferrari engineer about the lack of cup-holders. Arguing that iForm should have cup-holders, er – I mean reports — is an equally pointless idea.
By design, iForm is not about reporting, or notifications, or anything except one thing – capturing data efficiently on mobile devices. And it does it exceedingly well. iForm is all about the data.
Adding Cup Holders
Throughout many of my articles concerning iForm and Google Docs both separately and combined, there is a common integration thread that exposes the benefits of combing a great iPad forms system with the Google’s popular Office-like cloud.
With unrelenting interest in the combination of these two products, I decided to write a simple eBook describing and even simpler example – a mobile customer feedback solution that can be deployed to any iOS device. The promise of this eBook centers on automatic processing of iForm data using Google Apps Scripts.
It sounds technical but it’s not. With clear steps and simple examples, I demonstrate how to connect iForm data to Google Docs spreadsheets and then use automated script triggers to puch the data out through email notifications and even report document attachments.
The concepts and examples presented in my eBook have been researched and improved over a period of two years. The thought of calculating a reasonable break-even point on this ebook frightens me. And for twenty bucks you get the results of many hundreds of hours of tinkering, probing, and testing.