Google Glass Coming Soon? I Just Don't See It

I can cross one worry off the minds of small and medium size business owners. You’re as likely in the next year to see someone in your establishment wearing Google Glass as you are of a Martian handing you a fake ID to get a case of Red Bull for the long, long ride home.

Still, there are those who predict the imminent arrival and mass adoption of these futuristic goggles that provide an augmented view of surroundings in fun and useful ways (walking directions, for instance).

Google Glass was among the most discussed technologies at South y Southwest Interactive. I saw tweets calling attention to an immense line behind one who was wearing them.

So what’s real?

Google recently announced how fans will be able to get their hands on what Forbes called “futuristic goggles that function like a wearable smartphone.”

In February, the company started an application process for creative "Explorers" who will get to try the first 8,000 pairs of Google Glass. The company said it was looking for "bold, creative individuals who want to join us and be a part of shaping the future of Glass."

These "Explorers" will have to pay $1,500 for their pair of goggles, and will have to pick up their pair of goggles at a special event in San Francisco, New York, or Los Angeles. All applicants had to tell the company what they'd do with the glasses (in 50 words or less) and could submit a few photos or a short video to help illustrate how badly they wanted Glass.

Winners will be announced this month.

While Google is looking to bring real reality to the situation by saying that it is in the “early stages” of development, I heard talk at SXSW about augmented reality becoming commonplace within a couple of years or sooner. There was even a prediction that mobile devices won’t be used anymore because Glass and similar products will do everything and more that a consumer could imagine.

What’s the small and medium size business owner to make of all this?

Don’t spend a single dime in the foreseeable future reacting to what may or may not come to be. Like everything else, we need to weigh possible impacts and put time and effort in accordingly.

In the case of Google Glass, I just don’t see the moment of concern anytime soon.

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This post was written as part of the IBM for Midsize Business program http://Goo.gl/t3fgW, which provides midsize businesses with the tools, expertise and solutions they need to become engines of a smarter planet. I’ve been compensated to contribute to this program, but the opinions expressed in this post are my own and don't necessarily represent IBM's positions, strategies or opinions.

Notes From A Mobilized Marketer: The South By Southwest Edition

Innovation was the descriptor for South By Southwest Interactive until we saw piggyback rides.

With long lines inhibiting access and simultaneous events, I believe it's hard to give a representative take on SXSW. Mine? Analytics talk.

A soundbite that I’ll remember from Nate Silver appearance? Analytics and targeting are important but don't forget serendipity.

More Silver, who was one of the most sought-after speakers for SXSW after he accurately predicted the presidential election:

“I think sometimes people mistake what I do as someone who’s saying everything we do is predicable… Whereas really I’m more of a skeptic of prediction. What I’m actually doing is taking polls and averaging them and the fact that it’s so surprising says a lot about where we have to go in terms of science and math.”

My pick for the top SXSW ego buster? Tinder is a dating app that anonymously finds out who (if anyone) nearby thinks you're attractive.

Oh, the whining if iWatch comes to be and we're even more conscious of lost time when clocks advance. Did you catch all the Tweets about Daylight Savings Time. We got it after the first 50 or so. Actually we got it after the first two.

Shaq was on the hunt for innovative tech. If he jumps in, will bad guys look to hack-a-Shaq?

One of the more memorable moments was when we heard that we've gone from a Got Milk? message to a Got Milk, Michelle? message - personalization is key.

Also, a differentiating marketing message is often the technology itself.

Agency Team Detroit’s mantra for bringing innovation: fail fast.

I heard a healthy discussion on how much technology is useful vs. invasive. The upshot is that the consumer should be in charge.

I agree with the statement that the consumer will pick what he or she wants and provide that access and no more.

On Government Involvement With Issue of Text Spam

As I've written in this space, text spamming is on the rise. While it is becoming more worrisome, the issue is tiny compared to the volume of spam delivered via email.

Here's what I told Mobile Marketer about the Federal Trade Commission moving on companies that allegedly are using SMS to send spam:

“It's sad that we can't police ourselves as an industry, but if the end result is no spam and an expanded use of SMS by marketers, the FTC's efforts should be applauded."

I had more to say in the full article which is here - http://www.mobilemarketer.com/cms/news/legal-privacy/14927.html

Beware of Shiny Objects At SXSW

New objects shown at South By Southwest Interactive will be shiny whether or not the sun comes out in Austin, Texas.

My message to marketers: beware.

I’m not anti-innovation. Quite the contrary, in fact. I’m in tech as much for the unknown as the known. But let’s concentrate on the known for a minute. The estimated 30,000 going to Austin are not the norm (in more ways than one). We seemingly all carry iPhones and Macs, and many of us check in on Foursquare.

The norm is likely your brand’s target — about half of U.S. mobile subscribers don’t yet carry a smartphone, much less line up to buy a Mac. Their idea of a check-in involves questions of smoking versus non-smoking, a room away from the elevator, and the time the buffet opens in the morning.

What we saw at the Austin Convention Center and environs last year were early-adopter models, ones that caused a ripple on Twitter but not so much on Main Street.

The geo-location startups came into a marketplace that today shows only 30 million global users of leader Foursquare (for perspective, there are well over 300 million mobile subscribers in the United States alone and more than 6 billion worldwide).

So what is a brand manager to do? The smartest ones are relying on a mix of products and services that aren’t necessarily aimed at early adopters. Ford employs a variety of mobile strategies and tactics, including a text call to action in traditional media that produced a 15.4 percent lead conversion. An influencer on Twitter described the program as “meat and potatoes.” As a CMO who hasn’t touched beef in decades, I’ll dine on “meat and potatoes” all day and all night for such lead success.

We’ll certainly again hear lots this year about the mobile wallet. There surely will be hype around near field communication. But cash gone by Tuesday? Ummm, no.

So what should we do in Austin? Live. Learn. But don’t jump in blindly, sunshine or not.

(article first appeared at http://blogs.imediaconnection.com/blog/2013/03/06/beware-of-shiny-objects-at-...)

Notes From A Mobilized Marketer -- The App "Revival" Edition

Remember the predictions of the death of mobile apps? The category just crossed over $25 billion in sales.

It never was going to be either/or with the mobile web. On Twitter and elsewhere, people look for absolutes. Foolish.

Speaking of Twitter, I'm as big on it as the next one, but without a fact checker built in, we'll pass on anything. I have a big problem with that.

After falling behind tablets in holiday quarter, are notebooks ready for rebound? An analyst says yes. I’m not so sure.

On mobile devices and malware comes this quote - “The bad guys haven’t found the right way to get money from the user.” They will.

On similar note, at least 80 percent of mobile apps have security and privacy issues that put enterprises at risk, according to Network World.

Some teens are losing interest in Facebook but still are in the company’s net with heavy Instagram use.

Instagram has reached 100 million users sharing 40 million photos a day.

58 percent of affluent consumers use a second screen while watching television: report. I believe that number is low.

Signed up for mobile alerts on sequester? Me, neither.

Mobile users with household income between $50K and $75K are the most active on social networks, according to Pew. It’s 10 percent higher than income less than $30K.

23 percent of mobile Facebook users only access the social network by mobile. That's 157 million users, according to eMarketer.

13 Major League Baseball teams will accept mobile tickets via Apple Passbook. "Traditional" tickets to fall to less than 10 percent.

Nothing like the problems with email, but there are 30,000 unique SMS spam pitches a month: report.

Relevance matters - I stopped reading an email after it said Dear Frank.

Multi-Year Plans and Scaled Up Mobile Investments

Forrester is out with key mobile trends, and whether you are a Fortune 50 marketer with a large budget or a small or medium sized business trying to find promotional money, the list is a must-read.

The industry analyst firm’s trends for 2013 center on multiyear plans and scaled-up investments.

“Mobile’s dynamics of immediacy and ubiquity will challenge the notion that mobile is immature,” Forrester said in a report http://blogs.forrester.com/thomas_husson/13-02-14-2013_mobile_trends_for_mark.... “Innovators will overcome any concerns about maturity to make big, strategic investments in mobile to pull ahead of their competitors. Differentiating with mobile will require marketers to develop the multiyear visions required to drive real change in their business and their approach to implementing mobile services.”

Forrester wisely calls upon marketers and business owners to address two separate use cases for phones and tablets – tablets are used more in home and for longer periods than phones that are mainly used to find things around the mobile device owner.

As to which one to turn to first, Forrester says, “tablets will be the biggest short-term disruptors.”

Also, Forrester predicts more in-house mobile expertise and brands and other businesses looking to “engage a senior executive capable of taking the lead on mobile. Build a staffing plan based on your long term strategy.”

Forrester does not give a timeline for this change to happen, but it does say that the testing days are in the past.

“Mobile on the cheap is over,” the report says. “Implementing the complex technology to make the most of mobile opportunities requires a new vision of how to interact with customers, significant changes in culture and competencies across business and IT, and more investment.”

While there is little new here, it is an important report given Forrester’s vast understanding of the industry and the insights it gleaned from its relationships with brands and agencies.

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This post was written as part of the IBM for Midsize Business program http://Goo.gl/t3fgW, which provides midsize businesses with the tools, expertise and solutions they need to become engines of a smarter planet. I’ve been compensated to contribute to this program, but the opinions expressed in this post are my own and don't necessarily represent IBM's positions, strategies or opinions.

On Mobile, If The Shoe Fits, Wear It

I'll admit that I was skeptical when I first heard that there was a big business opportunity to change the paradigm and sell clothes and shoes online.

Who would buy without the chance to try the merchandise on?

As with many things, I was wrong. Big-time wrong. Proof? Zappos has merchandise sales of $1 billion annually.

With that knowledge, I responded to questions from Mobile Marketer about Barney's running ads for shoes on the mobile web site of the New York Times.

“Given the demographics of the New York Times reader, extending advertising to mobile makes perfect sense for luxury brands. Beyond smartphones, tablets are an ideal option given the lean-back nature of the activity and the time tablet users take in applications and are on Web sites.

“Zappos and others have proven that shoppers no longer need to go into a physical store to try on and buy. For luxury brands especially, it is about convenience and service, especially if a shopper decides a product is not right."

Zappos recently extended its return policy to a full year.

The full article is here http://www.luxurydaily.com/barneys-boosts-mcommerce-with-new-york-times-mobil...

Forget Tonight's Oscars - What Happens Tuesday?

I'm as vocal as anyone about the lack of mobile calls to action on mega telecasts -- it has been nothing short of damn frustrating.

Tonight provides another opportunity for advertisers with the Oscars.

Here's what I told Mobile Marketer about what I would like to see:

"Smart brands take the opportunity to not only talk to consumers but also build stronger one-on-one relationships. As with the Super Bowl, I'm most interested in how advertisers will use the occasion to build engagement and community.

“Rather than pre-Oscars, and on Sunday, what happens next Tuesday? The wise brands will keep the conversation going that could lead to more sales and brand loyalty."

The full article is here, including comments about second screen behavior. http://www.mobilemarketer.com/cms/news/content/14829.html

Face Facts That Even Facebook Loses Its Luster Over Time

For a lesson on the need to hedge marketing bets, note the new Pew Research Center study that more than six in 10 take breaks from Facebook that last a period of several weeks or longer.

According to Pew, http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2013/Coming-and-going-on-facebook.aspx ,two-thirds of online American adults are Facebook users, making Facebook the dominant social networking site in this country. That fact alone is often enough for many small and medium sized businesses to commit to spending on Facebook.

But consider what Pew is telling us – times and interests change. Of the 61 percent who leave Facebook at least temporarily, the largest group -- 21 percent -- said that their “Facebook vacation” was a result of being too busy with other demands or not having time to spend on the site. Others pointed toward a general lack of interest in the site itself (10 percent mentioned this in one way or another), an absence of compelling content (10 percent), excessive gossip or “drama” from their friends (9 percent), or concerns that they were spending too much time on the site and needed to take a break (8 percent).

Also, 20 percent of the online adults who do not currently use Facebook say they once used the site but no longer do so, according to Pew.

Facebook has several options for small and medium sized business including ones tied to mobile. For instance, Nearby allows users in a mobile application to discover new places their friends like.

Beyond that, businesses can tap into Sponsored Stories that recommends brand pages and content based on friends' activities. Early results showed effectiveness of ads 12 times higher on mobile compared to desktop on average, plus the ads were 45 percent less expensive.

Another option is Promoted Posts that uses the News Feed to highlight content from pages that a user’s friends Like.

The upshot of the Pew study: much like a business can’t carry just one style of shoe or suit, it should use even limited promotional dollars in diversified ways to cover the changes interests of customers and prospects.

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This post was written as part of the IBM for Midsize Business program <http://goo.gl/S6P7m>, which provides midsize businesses with the tools, expertise and solutions they need to become engines of a smarter planet. I’ve been compensated to contribute to this program, but the opinions expressed in this post are my own and don't necessarily represent IBM's positions, strategies or opinions.

Notes From A Mobilized Marketer: The Battle For Public Opinion Edition

With mobile and social, a brand can lose the battle for public opinion in two minutes rather than the two hours you read about in crisis management textbooks. Carnival Cruises is the latest case study proving this.

93 percent of time spent on social networking in United States is on Facebook. I read that a day after seeing a headline proclaiming the impending doom of Facebook.

Yet to drive revenue despite 125 million downloads, Bump has added mobile to PC sharing.

If your mobile stats are as old as your feature phone, you stand little chance to succeed.

Verizon now rates apps by how much data, battery life they consume. This is useful and should be duplicated.

Only 18 percent of iPad users check email more than 10 times a day, according to eMarketer. It’s secondary access for most.

Dish says it bought Blockbuster to open wireless stores. In my neighborhood, it is vacant. And that's common.

Headline: The iPad Business Is Collapsing. My reaction? And by 2014, more will walk around with nine toes on each foot.

50 percent of mobile users will be "addressable" this year: Forrester. Why aren't more brands creating opt-in programs?

Primary mobile users on Twitter are 63 percent more likely to click on links than those who mostly access via PC.

Also, those who access Twitter primarily on mobile are 86 percent more likely to be active on Twitter several times a day.

Headline: Is mobile video the new TV commercial. Me: no.

10,000 Home Depot employees are switching from BlackBerry to iPhone for productivity, improved customer service. This follows Lowe's’ playbook.

Does the word beta give Apple more forgiveness in Siri shortcomings? And how long can a beta phase last?

One More Pass On The Lack of Mobile in Super Bowl Telecast

I’m guessing that I need professional help given the fact that I’m having more difficulty getting over the Super Bowl than San Francisco 49ers coach and celebrated crybaby Jim Harbaugh.

A week after the blackout that marred the game in New Orleans, I’m still in the dark as to why mobile calls to action were as infrequent in the $4 million ads as Harbaugh complementing a referee for a good call.

I previously wrote that I would say Hallelujah if a brand finally used the forum to create meaningful second screen action that would lead to an opt-in monetizable database.

Instead, I’m left to say WTF.

Through cleaner language and on a panel sponsored by AAF Seattle and PSAMA, I since have had the opportunity to ask a Who’s Who in the Seattle advertising community why the Super Bowl telecast had a 1983 feel to me.

Appearing were:

• Chris Elliott, executive creative director at Wunderman.

• Frank Clark, owner and creative director of Square Tomato advertising

• Paul Huggett, design director at Tether

• Mike Hayward, creative director at Copacino+Fujikado

Theories as to why mobile wasn’t inserted into ads ranged from a desire to not interrupt the viewing of the game and next spot by asking someone to use a wireless device, to the risks involved in doing something new, to the storytelling that would be adversely affected by an intrusive call to action.

These dudes are the smartest of the lot, but I want to respectfully challenge the theories:

• It’s illogical to believe that devices weren’t in hand and being used throughout the game by tens and tens of millions of viewers. Rather than having them reach for a phone, a call to action would capitalize on the activity already underway

• Risk taking is often the very reason why advertisers spend so lavishly on Super Bowl spots. Differentiation via the first real mobile call to action in telecast history would fit that mold. And as long as the backend is bulletproof – an example being American Idol ably handling mobile voting – the risk is minimal

• Storytelling and interaction by viewers are ideally suited for each other. Ram’s “God Made A Farmer” spot was arguably the best of the day. The salute to hard workers touched us all. Beyond that, likely many viewers had their own hard working dad, mother, teacher, or other who they would’ve loved to commend with the communications device within reach. How about a contest triggered by mobile that identified these heroes and perhaps had a charitable component to boot?

Among the missed opportunities:

Pizza Hut lost out on the chance for more dough by failing to set up a name capture as part of its free product giveaway on Tuesday.

Denny’s made the same mistake in the 2010 Super Bowl telecast when it gave away Grand Slam breakfasts, but had no way to reach out later to invite customers in for more business of the paying variety.

In contrast, consider how Arby’s introduced its Roastburger sandwich.

For the launch, Arby’s had Jimmy Kimmel create, eat and promote the product on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Viewers were urged to text the word ROASTBURGER to a short code to receive a free sandwich with the purchase of any drink.

After texting, customers were asked to respond with their zip code to be entered into a local database and receive additional offers from Arby’s. By doing this, the restaurant gained a valuable re-marketable database.

As a result of the one segment, Arby’s received 177,745 total entries from 152,280 unique participants; 65,000 people opted-in to join the mobile loyalty club; and the restaurant created 172 local databases to cater to the opted-in customers on a hyper-local level.

By now, Pizza Hut’s customers have come and gone, much like the chances the brands had that they muffed.

Next year will be different, right? The panelists predicted more digital real-time interaction given Oreo’s success during the blackout. As to planned mobile calls to action, I’ll pass on making that prediction.

(column first appeared on imediaconnection.com - http://blogs.imediaconnection.com/blog/2013/02/10/should-super-bowl-telecast-...)

Tradition Is For Sports, Not Super Bowl Telecasts

I’m a traditionalist when it comes to sports. I go for vintage uniforms and zero rules changes so we can have apples-to-apples comparisons of players from one era to another.

But when it comes to coverage of events and advertising within telecasts, I embrace change. After all, I sit with a smartphone and tablet within reach, and have an interest in interacting with the programming as well as brands that interest me.

On Super Bowl Sunday, more than 100 million were there for the advertisers. Yet few brands took advantage of the fact that for many, television viewing has moved from passive to interactive.

On other days, we vote. Or text to win. Or go to mobile Web sites to learn more, be entertained, and to buy.

On Sunday, all we did was wait.

It had a 1983 feel to it -- and felt as stale as a 30-year-old advertising concept (nerd kisses model, Coke makes us feel good).

Missed opportunities to engage and sell more stuff?

I could name one for every minute of stadium blackout time.

For example, Pizza Hut lost out on the chance for more dough by failing to set up a name capture as part of its free product giveaway on Tuesday. Denny’s made the same mistake in the 2010 Super Bowl telecast.

In contrast, consider how Arby’s introduced its Roastburger sandwich. For the launch, Arby’s had Jimmy Kimmel create, eat and promote the product on "Jimmy Kimmel Live." Viewers were urged to text the word ROASTBURGER to a short code to receive a free sandwich with the purchase of any drink. After texting, customers were asked to respond with their ZIP code to be entered into a local database and receive additional offers from Arby’s. By doing this, the restaurant gained a valuable re-marketable database.

As a result of the one segment, Arby’s received 177,745 total entries from 152,280 unique participants; 65,000 people opted-in to join the mobile loyalty club; and the restaurant created 172 local databases to cater to the opted-in customers on a hyper-local level.

Elsewhere Sunday, Oreo actually added a mobile element to its $4 million spot, but the call to action -- go to Instagram to decide if Oreos are great because of the cookie or the cream -- was confusing and hardly inclusive, given the large number of viewers who aren’t Instagram users.

Pepsi sought to give away one million bottles of Next, but the URL shown flashed on the screen so fast that it likely was missed by most. In fact, the call to action said to go to the site by midnight Sunday for a chance to win, yet a visit there Monday morning had the contest still live.

The eagerly anticipated Clydesdale spot hit the yearly emotional right note. Budweiser easily could have built off of the moment with a mobile site showing previous Clydesdale efforts and by running a contest to determine from viewers which year’s ad was the most heartwarming.

What’s behind the reluctance to add mobile calls to action to Super Bowl spots? Some say it’s the silos in agencies where traditional and digital media are separate entities. Others throw out the idea that agency creatives don’t want to muck up 30 seconds of “art.” Still others say engagement after the Super Bowl takes a backseat to the buzz built off of a $4 million buy.

On a day when a football winner is decided, we need a champion off the field -- someone from the traditional media side who sees the opportunity to run a Super Bowl spot with a mobile call to action that takes into account the viewers’ behaviors and interests -- not to mention the brand’s need to keep the conversation going and to sell product days and months later.

(article first appeared on mediapost.com - http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/192645/tradition-is-for-sports-...)

Highs and Lowe's At MMA Forum San Francisco

At the MMA Forum San Francisco Jan. 28-30 in the city where the coach with a mindset of “Never Stop Improving” replaced the successful quarterback and reached the Super Bowl, we heard from brands with the same attitude using mobile to sell more stuff.

Sean Bartlett of home improvement retail chain Lowe’s is one such example. Never Stop Improving is actually his company’s mantra, but that hardly gave Bartlett a blank check to bring mobile innovation into the 65-year-old retailer’s 1,700 plus stores.

Bartlett, who is director of mobile strategy and platforms, convinced senior management that Lowe’s would be better off if it could differentiate via the integration of mobile throughout the customer journey.

Unlike 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh, he did not replace anything or anyone – he supplemented his company’s sales and marketing programs with mobile products, services and technology smarts.

Bartlett led an effort to get iPhones in the hands of 42,000 sales associates so they could deliver a level of customer service that would combat showrooming – the employees share information with shoppers via the smartphones.

The executive built a mobile application with such transparency that it actually shows competitors’ pricing. He uses Wi-Fi in the 1,700-plus Lowe’s locations to give shoppers what they desire – easy and free access to product reviews and social networks.

And Bartlett is seeing business results that are justifying even more effort and dollars in mobile.

Bartlett’s insights were among the highlights at the two-day event where we moved past the maddening question of whether this is the Year of Mobile – I am rich with a dollar for every time I have heard it since 2005 – and spoke of innovation and issues that face us in 2013.

Here is more of what I remember from the show:

Chase, one of the nation’s leading banks, is not resting on its significant mobile laurels. It is continuing to build capabilities, including the ability for consumers to open checking and credit card accounts through mobile products.

An executive also talked about the customer experience and Chase’s need to move at the speed of now.

“Mobile gives us a rapid, immediate view if something is going wrong and we address it immediately," said Russ Eisenman, head of mobile product marketing and partnerships at Chase, San Francisco.

For its part, Mercedes has gesture control and the full windshield used for connected contextual content on its roadmap.

In an era of distracted drivers, the German carmaker faced questions about whether more mobile activity in the car is wise. It sought to assure those in attendance that while new connected services in the car are coming, safety is Mercedes’ primary concern.

Another session by Google executives introduced the search giant’s enhanced ability to gather data from cross-platform users. Then, they were hit with a series of questions about privacy and whether the data will be sold to marketers. It will not happen, they said.

Meanwhile, an advertising panelist from 4D complained about the lack of transparency in mobile advertising, saying that too often buying mobile ads is like buying “mystery meat.” Happily, that comment came after lunch.

An executive from Mindshare also encouraged the hundreds in the crowd to “fail smart, fail fast."

There was significant time and attention paid to messaging with surprisingly large crowds that included major brand representatives attending Mobile Marketing Association messaging committee meetings.

Left unanswered were whether the majority of marketers are ready to deal with big data, commit to engage with a customer or prospect after a click or other mobile interaction, and spend significantly more on mobile this year than last.

We will not get there in one day or one year.

But it was gratifying to hear the unified sentiment that we would leave San Francisco with a promise of Never Stop Improving.

(article first appeared on Mobile Marketer - http://www.mobilemarketer.com/cms/opinion/columns/14700.html)

Quicker Reactions Needed For Businesses In Mobile Age

Small and medium sized businesses will never be like Chase – many don’t yearn to be – but they certainly can learn from the banking giant.

Chase has had to adapt to the speed of communications given the fact that customers carry mobile devices and a forum to take good experiences and bad ones to social networks.

“Mobile gives us a rapid, immediate view if something is going wrong and we address it immediately," Russ Eisenman, head of mobile product marketing and partnerships at JP Morgan Chase, New York, said at this week’s Mobile Marketing Forum in San Francisco.

Customer expectations have never been greater, according to Eisenman, and activities that used to be niche have gone mainstream.

"Depositing a check is no longer a fun thing to do - it's part of the every day ritual,” he said.

Next up for Chase is providing the ability for consumers to open checking and credit card accounts through mobile products.

“We want to be sure that we are building around the mobile-first mentality – it is a reality that the moment that you wake up, you have an alert that is sitting in your queue that says, ‘here’s your bank account’,” he said.

Checking account balance is the top activity for mobile users, with push notifications and messaging playing a major role in making a mobile device the first place that users go to access their financial information.

The takeaway for small and medium-sized business owners?

In their own ways, they need to respond to meet and exceed the hopes of customers and prospects who wake up every day knowing that, with mobile, it’s no longer business as usual.

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This post was written as part of the IBM for Midsize Business http://goo.gl/S6P7m program, which provides midsize businesses with the tools, expertise and solutions they need to become engines of a smarter planet.

I'll Say Hallelujah If I See A Super Bowl Mobile Call To Action

I don't want to sound preachy, but if the Super Bowl telecast includes meaningful mobile calls to action for the first time, I will sing out Hallelujah.

More than that, I will respond to the marketer’s ask for me to take out my phone or tablet – ok, one will be in each hand, so taking out will be unnecessary – and I'll participate. I’ll learn more about a new product, be entertained by a brand beyond what was possible in a 30-second commercial, and even text to win.

So will millions or perhaps tens of millions of others.

Marketers buy into the Super Bowl telecast because it is the one time of the year when consumers are actually tuning in to commercials instead of muting the volume or fast-forwarding on their DVR.

Here’s an old school recipe for success:

One part new product or service offering upgrade

A tear-inducing script (Tears can be a result of hilarity or a message that pulls at the heartstrings.)

One teaspoon of a timely message (Think Valentine’s Day and/or tax season)

A cute animal or hot celebrity – or in some cases, both

A tease in the media

Yet, mobile calls to action have been missing this day of 24/7 social, mobile consumers.

Why is this an opportunity missed?

It takes that near-perfect, talked-about-for-days ad and extends its value. By including, for instance, an SMS call to action and engaging with consumers, companies can ultimately build remarketable databases that tie directly to their loyalty programs and enable ongoing communication.

Last year, Super Bowl advertisers relied on simple URLs, some of which weren’t even mobile-specific. Other ads directed consumers to social media prompts via a plethora of hashtags (Audi’s #SoLongVampires, Bud Light’s #MakeItPlatinum, H&M’s #BeckhamForHim, etc.).

Hashtags are catchy and make people want to join in on the trending. They create a following, for a short time at least. But they are hard to track and measure for true value. Instead of (or in addition to) a hashtag, why didn’t they include an SMS option for viewers to receive more information? Doing so also creates a sense of exclusivity, and allows consumers to be part of a special network of people who receive deals, coupons and other special treatments that promote customer loyalty, repeat shopping and increased purchase value.

Here are five ads that could have been improved with a simple mobile call to action:

1. GoDaddy. The brand teased viewers that its “NSFTV” ads were available online if they scanned a QR code. They could have used an SMS in addition to a QR code (which is sometimes hard for viewers to see, much less get them to fire up their scanner and capture the code onscreen before it disappears) to “see more now” that would have brought users to the coveted “Too Hot For TV Internet Only” versions. By offering multiple means of engagement, GoDaddy could have increased its reach.

2. Teleflora. This ad was racy and tied in with the upcoming “holiday of love.” Perfect timing, of course. However, it could have used a text campaign for a Valentine’s Day coupon instead of just posting teleflora.com and trusting that consumers will travel there on their own without an incentive. An initiative like this could have led to Teleflora building an opt-in list of people who like to give flowers to their loved ones and would probably do so again on their birthday or anniversary.

3. Coca-Cola and Audi. Both brands had multiple spots but did not set up the next ad. For instance, they could have created some type of scavenger hunt or delivered a message, such as, “prepare to use Shazam next time you see Coke,” to tie-in the experience across ads.

4. Best Buy. This ad was entirely about mobile innovation, yet had no mobile innovation of its own. It did not embrace the very technologies that it was commending. There was a real missed opportunity to expand on each of the founders’ stories for more consumer inclusion and engagement.

5. The movie clips (Transformers, The Avengers, John Carter, etc.). These movies were built up as the blockbusters for 2012, yet there was no incentive to check them out beyond the digital effects and big-name celebrity rosters. Think of the perks for both brands and consumers if they had incorporated a mobile campaign to see “Sneak Peaks” or an opportunity to win tickets, all while building a database of future prospects.

Will this year end with a Hallelujah? Or will it be another sermon about opportunity lost? We shall see.

(article first appeared on imediaconnection.com - http://blogs.imediaconnection.com/blog/2013/01/27/ill-say-hallelujah-if-i-see...

Notes From A Mobilized Marketer - Unlocking The Mysteries Edition

Starting this week, you can't unlock your smartphone. But this year you can unlock certain hotel doors with your device.

Of course, buying a list and using mobile numbers is against the rules. Beyond that, lists are often wrong. My name is not Jess, yet I’ve received hundreds if not thousands of emails addressed to me that way.

To the naysayers who call Twitter a waste of time, the valuation is $9 billion. That’s not to mention invaluable personal and business connections.

43 percent of U.S. adults said they used mobile devices to showroom, according to Harris Interactive. A defense for retailers? Customer service.

Apple sold 10 iOS devices per second last quarter. We should all have such problems.

Super Bowl ads are 34 percent more memorable and 42 percent better-liked than ads airing a month earlier, according to Nielsen. Now if they only included mobile calls to action that led to opt-ins and even longer engagement.

More than 700 million smartphones shipped in 2012. My reaction? Don’t forget the hundreds of millions who have feature phones.

There are more than two billion iMessages sent a day on iOS devices. That speaks to the popularity of texting and free.

As we get closer, it’s worth repeating - SXSW will get headlines, but it’s not place to go to build foundational mobile programs.

One in five advertiser dollars on Facebook went to mobile. That should increase significantly with more proof that it works.

Rumors say Apple will release three iPhones this year. Let' start a new one. I say seven. Ready, spread the rumor.

Cosmopolitan readers have to pay 2x to get iPad version vs. print edition. I just glanced at this month's headlines. OMG.

The Launch of Online Mobile Marketing Curriculum Training

With mobile passing the stage of “nice to have” to essential, many marketers have come to the conclusion that they'll suffer if they fall behind or stay even with the pack.

These folks are asking for more than what a conference presentation might bring. They want detailed how-to lessons that can be applied quickly and effectively.

They know that everything and nothing has changed – marketers still need to sell more stuff, but the how is different with mobile so universally used by customers and prospects.

I’m pleased to say that I’ve joined forces with Market Motive, the leader in complete end-to-end online curriculum training. Beginning immediately, marketers can learn mobile marketing fundamentals http://www.marketmotive.com/mobile-marketing-training-promotional-video before going through a comprehensive course designed to give them an advantage.

Through Market Motive, instructional videos, certification tests, and course components are constantly updated and streamed through a network of partners that includes leading universities, industry associations, and training providers, as well as Market Motive’s own learning portal. The curriculum is constantly updated by bestselling authors, keynote speakers and industry leaders as the digital landscape changes.

Participants in the Market Motive program view online courses and interact with faculty to learn the latest online marketing practices. The structured curriculum includes web-based training videos, weekly live webinars, and online testing. After testing and certification, certified professionals stay current via updated video lessons, conversations, and interactive workshops with the online marketing industry’s bestselling authors and speakers.

Market Motive also provides faculty-coached web-based training in SEO, Web Analytics, Social Media Marketing, PPC Advertising, and Conversion Optimization. These Master Certification courses are 100 percent online, and include weekly coaching, a final project defense, and endorsements from the top authors and thought leaders in online marketing.

Ongoing memberships are available to groups and individuals for training updates.

I’m stoked to get this initiative going. I hope you’ll join me.

Some Basic Truths About Marketing

Know the customer is rule one whether you are marketing luxury goods or a low cost commodity. Yet, according to a leading consumer neuroscientist, brands fail every day to act upon some basic truths.

Like “women shop, men buy.”

And shoppers react more favorably to curves than they do to squared-off products and store displays.

And don’t ask the customer to do more than three things. If you do, he or she will bolt.

And offering an interesting fact to a consumer in a marketing message produces a dopamine rush that could lead to a sale.

These observations were shared this week in New York at a CMO Summit http://nrf.a2zinc.net/rama13/public/Content.aspx?ID=20865 that was held during the National Retail Federation conference. I presented mobile learnings from the just concluded holiday season, but Nielsen’s A.K. Pradeep stole the show.

Pradeep is the founder and Chairman of Nielsen NeuroFocus, which has numerous patents for its advanced technologies and a blue-chip client list representing many Fortune 100 companies across dozens of categories. NeuroFocus became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nielsen in 2011.

More than funny, Pradeep was smart. According to him, each year a trillion dollars is spent on communicating to and persuading the human brain, yet few understand how the brain really works—what’s attractive to it, how it decides what it likes and doesn’t like, and how it chooses to buy or not buy the infinite variety of products and services presented to it every day.

Pradeep says that neuromarketing research is revealing a myriad of fascinating insights that help improve the effectiveness of every aspect of clients’ brands, products, packaging, in-store marketing, advertising, and entertainment content.

He says the female brain has four times as many neurons connecting the right and left hemispheres, greatly enhancing its ability to process information through both rational and emotional filters—a fact that must not be ignored when crafting a message.

Among the five senses, vision is the most pronounced and the brain will discount information that is not in concert with the visual stimuli it receives. The sense of smell is quite powerful too, as it is the most direct route to emotions and memory storage. Being linked with a pleasant, iconic smell can significantly improve a product’s success in the marketplace.

Brains are also quite empathic, Pradeep believes, and it is a neural “monkey see; monkey do” mechanism that can help companies around the world create and market products and services that consumers will find naturally compelling.

Mirror neuron theory says that when someone watches an action being performed, he or she performs that action in his or her own brain. Activating this mirror neuron system is one of the most effective ways to connect with consumers.

Of course, Pradeep’s instruction works just as well for the small and medium sized business owner as it does to the marketer pushing $3,000 suits and mass market soft drinks.

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This post was written as part of the IBM for Midsize Business http://goo.gl/S6P7m program, which provides midsize businesses with the tools, expertise and solutions they need to become engines of a smarter planet.

Notes From A Mobilized Marketer: The "Proof Is In The Tattoo" Edition

To woo younger consumers, T-Mobile will allow tattoos and piercing on employees at retail locations. The day we see an iPhone tattoo is the time we’ll know the coveted phone is a member of the T-Mobile family of devices.

87 percent of broadcast TV & 93 percent of cable TV viewing still occurs live, according to Nielsen. Why? In part, this is because you can’t time-shift social media. That factor is growing. Community works best in real time.

The $4 million Super Bowl TV ads will have mobile calls to action, right? How easy is this? Rather than come in for free breakfast, respond to the CTA and opt-in for more.

Mark Zuckerberg says a Facebook mobile phone would be the "wrong strategy", yet signals point to January 15 announcement of one?

Could this be the year of no “Year of” designations?

The iPotty was introduced to train a toddler to use the toilet via iPad education. The only surprise is it took this long to come to market.

An app to help you catch more fish? More important is one to have us eat more fish.

BlackBerry's browser has long been its weak link - now it "smokes" iOS and Windows 8 phones?

Groupon has expanded its Square-like mobile payments to Android. The company doesn't see profit on this. Rather, it’s an avenue to more core business.

AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile and Sprint will carry BlackBerry 10 phones. Of course, the question is how many users will do the same.

An app that can call 100 phone numbers at once? I never have --or will have -- that need.

25 percent of the U.S. population used a tablet at least monthly in 2012, a figure expected to rise to 34 percent this year: eMarketer.

I disagree with the headline "CES has sadly become a complete waste of time". Dealmaking with players all in one city is the reason to go.

Saving The Hoosiers' Fieldhouse

As we've seen in many campaigns, donors don’t have to jump through hoops to donate with their mobile devices.

Speaking of hoops, Butler University is employing mobile giving in its efforts to renovate famed Hinkle Fieldhouse through a $16 million raise.

Butler aims to preserve the 84-year-old Fieldhouse's classic architecture and feel, while improving interior spaces to better serve student-athletes and fans. Hinkle Fieldhouse was the center of the basketball world in 1986 when it was featured in the film "Hoosiers."

Mobile users who text HINKLE to 32333 can donate $10 to the University. The charge will appear on the mobile subscriber's carrier bill.

Successful philanthropic efforts are inclusive and these days that includes giving through mobile devices.