SportsYapper

Though I am not such an avid sports fan, when I came upon the app of SportsYapper, I could not overlook the fact that it was quite an innovative idea. SportsYapper integrates the best of social networking into a common place where everyone is interested about what you desire to speak about which of course, is sports. Not only is this app helpful to those interested in conversing about sports, it helps to get rid of all those irate sports posts on Facebook and Twitter that we all seem to complain about. SportsYapper allows users to browse or search the team or game that they want to speak about, and from there they can participate in a discussion through posting or replying to a post. It allows users to have real-timegame interaction with people across the globe, down the block, or ten states away. SportsYapper creates a sense of community although those that constantly post and reply to each other may never meet in person.

While this app is a great idea, the issue of trust that we discussed in the readings takes a front seat. I was searching through the details and specs that this app provides, and on the surface it seemed flawless to me. Once I delved deeper into the reviews, it became apparent to me that this app was not all that it was made out to be. Various users complain about the accessibility of the app, the bugs that the app has to work out, and the quality of service it provides. Various reviewers seemed to agree with me that while being a fantastic idea, the reality of the app fell significantly in comparison. This problem directly relates to the Cowan article in which Cowan describes different areas of trust that a user or an audience must have with an app or a product to make it genuine or successful. Where this app failed was in the testimonials as well as the About page, because the testimonials were of many people complaining about the shortcomings of the app, and the About page featured shoddy graphics with seemingly amateur pictures of the owners and creators of SportsYapper. They also failed to "Serve their customers well," which Cowan states is a significant part of trust. There were many suggestions of areas that need to be improved but it seemed as if the creators and owners were fine with the complaints because they reconciled the fact that this was one of the first versions of the app. All in all, while this app has the potential to be great, it does not garner the trust of its users and potential users to live up to that potential at this time.