Opinion: An app a day might lead to payday

No doubt about it – smartphones and tablets are changing the way we do business and live our lives. Cool apps can leverage our time and energy, and offer a bit of entertainment. Here are a few of my favorites.

1Password. Gets rave 5 star reviews for the simple approach to password security. It creates strong, unique passwords for every specified site and remembers them. You just log in with one master password. That I can remember.

Trello. This productivity tool is my latest obsession. I’ve gotten a lot done in my life with just a single-subject, spiral-bound notebook. However, I’ve taken on some projects that have lots of moving parts, including other people. Organization is key when updating a website and launching a franchise with the work of third parties. I’m sold on Trello’s layout – on desktop, smartphone and tablet – and the freebie version is enough.

Foreceipt. It scans and stores receipts and generates lovely financial reports. It allows for multiple users, so the whole family can keep an eye on the pie. It speaks in any currency, which is a plus if you spend time and money outside the USA.

Safety Meeting. It offers 950-plus topics for your safety meetings and helps you manage and document compliance issues for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, various accidents and near-misses – even employee attendance. It covers 35 trades and unlimited users and employees. Here’s how an app can make short work of a cumbersome job.

Flightview. I have TripCase, and it does a nice job of letting me know if my flight is on time or not. Flightview tracks all flights on all carriers. This is handy if you need to check out alternative flights or are waiting to pick someone up from the airport. A cab driver turned me on to this app, and I use it all the time.

Viber. Lets you call and text for free with other Viber members anywhere in the world. It’s a free app, and liberating option, if you don’t want to get an overseas phone plan upgrade.

Turboscan. It’s a big help when you are out of the office and have to sign and scan a contract. It’s so easy; I end up using it in the office. You can do multiple pages, too.

Zombies, Run! A fitness app that encourages you to keep running or be devoured by Zombies? Yes, please. You can earn supplies to help you stay alive and save the human race. How motivating! The wildly popular app has over 1 million users.

Charity Miles. Contributes dollars for miles. Open up the app, and log your miles. When you share your run on Facebook, you essentially post an ad, and you get “paid” with a small contribution to your favorite charity.

Periscope. Brings you into another’s world, in real time. You or one of your Twitter followers can broadcast live. Then, you and other Periscope pals can chat and share the experience together. Weird? Kinda. Fascinating? Yes.

Think you have a cool idea for an app? Joel Comm launched iFart, a tasteless – and hilarious – upgrade to the whoopie cushion. The home screen is brown, naturally, and you choose your fart style by scrolling a roll of toilet paper. Select Bombadier or Burrito Maximo. Classy! I searched Google for the app’s total revenue and I got this answer from Joel:

“We have sold over 800,000 copies at 99 cents each. Apple takes 30 percent revenue share. There are also additional revenues from in-app purchases.”

How about that? You may have the next iFart! Or you may have something really useful, like that energy-saving home automation program you’ve been “noodling” for the last five years.

An app a day, and one that may pay.

Ellen Rohr is an author and business consultant offering profit-building tips, trending business blogs and online workshops at EllenRohr.com. Her books include “Where Did the Money Go?” and “The Bare Bones Weekend Biz Plan.” She can be reached at ellen@ellenrohr.com.