The holiday shopping season is here and many marketers are launching applications to beef up their mobile presence.

So which applications have really nailed it this holiday season? Mobile Marketer consulted some industry experts regarding which applications they feel have really nailed it.

?I think it's important that retailers and brands be present in holiday mobile apps,? said Scott Dunlap, CEO of NearbyNow, Mountain View, CA. ?But it's important to note that you don't have to have your own app to participate ? DealNews can log your sales, NearbyNow can put your catalog in the gift guide and etcetera.

?But [an app] is a great way to reach out to a number of mobile users who may want to continue the dialog,? Mr. Dunlap said.

Based on industry expert opinions, here is Mobile Marketer?s top 10 holiday mobile applications in no particular order:

? Target - The Target application simplifies and streamlines consumers? shopping experience at Target stores and on Target.com. The application connects consumers to great savings, store hours and the perfect gift. Putting the power to save money and shop more conveniently into people's hands is part of Target?s "Expect More. Pay Less." promise.
? EBay Deals application - Available as a free download in the App Store, the Deals application features intuitive navigation, customizable search features and PayPal integration enabling mobile check-out. The application also lists holiday bargains.
? SnapTell - SnapTell is revolutionizing the way consumers and marketers connect. Using a camera phone and SnapTell's image-recognition technology, users can easily and instantly access requested information and content. Marketers can effortlessly create campaigns using existing collateral and can alter their messaging on the fly in response to SnapTell-provided actionable metrics.
? Amazon - With the Amazon iPhone application, consumers get easy access to the millions of products available from Amazon and 9,000 other merchants. The user experience is great and the best part is that consumers can use it to skip long lines at the store. 
? Yahoo Shopping ? The application lets consumers search and buy from Yahoo?s catalog of products. Primarily the application functions as a tool for comparison shopping, but the application also features click-to-buy links to the Web sites of Yahoo?s merchant partners such as Target, Nordstrom, Amazon and Fossil.
? Holiday Gift Guide by NearbyNow ? This application is good for discovering gift ideas for hard-to-shop-for family members. There are 20 gift guides in the application, including Macys, Nordstrom, InStyle, Cosmo, Seventeen, Real Simple, Armani and etcetera. Users just type in a few things about their giftee, and it suggests products from all these guides.
? Christmas Cards by Hit Chili Apps - Instantly create an online holiday card and send. The customization is easy and it doesn't feel like you are spamming.
? Black Friday deals by DealNews - Tracks all the Black Friday specials, great layout. Best because the content is great.
? Kosher Cookbook ? The Kosher Cookbook application gives users access to hundreds of recipes, custom meal plans and the ability to create personalized shopping lists. The Kosher Cookbook includes more than 300 recipes from food writer and well-known member of the New York City Jewish Community Gloria Kobrin, all within the guidelines of the kosher dietary rules.
? Best Buy - Best Buy?s Deals application allows iPhone and iPod Touch users to view weekly and mobile-only specials and find the nearest Best Buy store. The application features product reviews, exclusive content and click-to-buy features.

Research shows that 24 percent of smartphone users make purchases and they are proving to have greater purchase intent than PC users. It?s no wonder that marketers are so attracted to the application market.

Application development best practices
Here is a list of best practices for launching an iPhone application, according to Forrester Research:

1. Weigh advantages/disadvantages ? You need to clearly weigh the advantages of driving brand affinity, customer engagement and revenue versus costs in time and resources and the potential pitfalls of a poorly executed application.
2. Be comfortable with the device ? To develop and deploy successful mobile applications, interactive marketers should obtain an iPhone or a competing device to make sure the company's team members are comfortable with these specialized mobile platforms before proceeding with an application.
3. Know your customer ? You need to understand your customers and how they use mobile devices and services, and ask whether you can provide something of value via a mobile application.
4. Not just about being part of the ?in? crowd ? Don?t rush into a mobile application just because everyone else is doing it. Do your homework, and then plan a strategy that fits your objectives, being fully aware of the possible risks and rewards.
5. Put yourself into the consumer?s shoes ? It is important to be able to see the phone from the consumer's perspective and understand the way most people interact with these types of phones. Smartphones have much more power and functionality than a typical mobile phone, and they change the way most people interact with the Web and a variety of activities, like social networks, video and data services.
6. Device preferences ? It is also important to find out what mobile devices your audience is using. Creating an iPhone application for an audience that is mostly using BlackBerry phones isn't going to work.
7. Query customers ? Companies should query some of their customers to find out how many even own a Palm, iPhone, a BlackBerry or Android G1.
8. Long-term view ? Brands should have a long-term view of their mobile application. It is important to plan ahead for whatever technology changes/enhancements happen in the future. Companies should assign resources internally to make sure that the application is constantly maintained and improved.
9. Listen to customers ? Listen to any feedback customers have. After all, it is the customer you are trying to please.
10. Keep the future in mind ? Consider how adaptable your application is to future marketing messages. Applications that highlight specific product features may be great for driving sales but will need to be updated as your products and marketing messages evolve.
11. Measure the success of your application ? The number of downloads is important for measuring the success of an application, but it does not provide much insight into actual usage.

?Whatever you do, you have to pair the immediacy of local context with what you as a retailer or brand have to offer to sell,? said Nikki Baird, founder of RSR Research, Denver, CO. ?NRF has predicted that sales will be down 1 percent from last year, but my feel for the market is that this is too conservative. 

?And retailers have been buying conservatively as well,? she said. ?If that turns out to be right, then there are going to be a lot of consumers chasing a lot of products. 

?Anything you as a brand or retailer can do to help consumers find the gifts they?re looking for is going to be key.? 

Chris Harnick contributed in terms of reporting for this story