My Initial Thoughts On Facebook Home

Facebook is further looking to redefine the home experience. I say further because one billion people worldwide already have seen massive changes in their home life given the time they spend daily with the social network -- desktop users are on for an average of around 6 hours every month on Facebook, according to comScore. Mobile users are in the network for 11 hours. 

CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s unveiling of Facebook Home was described as an opportunity to give mobile owners the ability to see the world through people instead of apps. This road has been traveled before – Windows Phone positions itself similarly. And it hasn’t been a home run for Microsoft.

Despite Facebook’s massive appeal and domination, it can be argued that home screens are best personalized through customization, not all Facebook all the time. Some want a Twitter feed, others want a quick path to LinkedIn, etc. I know I do.

Speaking of which, how long before the Twitter phone comes to market?

While obviously tremendously important, monetization of Facebook Home was not discussed in the formal presentation. Apparently afterward, company executives said that ads would be coming but not at launch. Wall Street surely has questions for Zuckerberg, as do marketers who would be ponying up budget.

Chat Heads is an interesting name for the messaging product given that the average age for a Facebook user is reportedly just above 30 years of age. Imagine the eye rolls when the young user hears Mom or Grandma self-described as a Chat Head.

Chat Heads work with both text messages and incoming Facebook messages and can be sent and received in-app. Cue the “traditional SMS is going to die” nonsense. If anything, this will make messaging more popular. 

By the way, according to Arbitron and Edison Research, the most popular activities on smartphones are making or receiving calls (97 percent), followed by sending or receiving text messages (94 percent). Imagine that. Voice and text. Not apps, web, augmented reality, or the mobile wallet. Or being on Facebook.

Notes From A Mobilized Marketer - The Like and Tweet Edition

Smartphone users check Facebook 14 times a day. That’s when they are not tweeting.

Anyone other than me think it was a mistake to bring the first new BlackBerry without a physical keyboard? Touchscreen is me-too.

It's not a T-Mobile contract - it's an Equipment Installment Plan. Wasn't this going to be dead simple?

In-app purchase revenue has hit records: 76 percent Of U.S. iPhone app revenue, 90 percent in Asia. Not just any apps - games.

54 percent of retailers see mobile as biggest growth area. The others are destined to fail.

According to eMarketer, Twitter will earn $308.9M in 2013 mobile ad revenue -- more than they earned in 2012 total, from any ad type.

An analyst says that the iPhone 5 got five times as many tweets as the Galaxy S4. Meaning what? Little to nothing.

IDC: tablet sales grew 78.4 percent year over year in 2012. They are expected to pass desktop sales in 2013, portable PCs in 2014.

Apple plans to triple the number of authorized resellers in India by 2015. That could coincide with a cheaper iPhone.

News that an Australian business is charging $5 to "fight" showrooming was trending but it won't create a trend. It more likely will put the company out of business.

From the Wall Street Journal no less came a feature on the Mets PR director it calls a "butt dialer" for inadvertently placing mobile calls.

JetBlue plans to offer fast onboard Wi-Fi free of charge. Hopefully that’s the start of a trend.

HTC is no longer "quietly brilliant" in its marketing. It will be louder. As for brilliant, we'll see.

Young Americans send almost ten times as many texts as Americans over 55. What's noteworthy is that the 55+ set texts.

Findings? How About Half-Truths?

Forrester Research got headlines with its new digital marketing report, but did it get everything right? Hardly.

It’s unknown if the $499 report was shared in its entirety with reporters and bloggers. I certainly haven’t received it.

What I have seen are a slew or posts that portray the report based on a survey of 58,000 online consumers as an indictment of text messages from brands.

“Text message communications were the least trusted, while online banner ads barely rated above spammy SMS in the trust stakes,” wrote Techcrunch.

What?

Brands don’t send “smammy” text messages, at least in any meaningful number. Rules established by the carriers and Mobile Marketing Association prohibit dissemination of texts by brands without a consumer requested one after a call to action or an opt-in to a permission-based database. If a brand does send such a message, it is often shut down by the mobile operators.

Do mobile users want to join such loyalty clubs? Hipcricket annual surveys consistently have shown about one third of those polled interested or very interested.

Once they are in, do mobile subscribers opt out? Not in large numbers – something well less than 5 percent in my experience.

Do SMS programs work? Readers of my Mobilized Marketing book know the answer is yes. Ford drove a 15.4 percent lead conversion by adding SMS calls to action to traditional media. A car dealer sold 34 automobiles in one day after not selling one for a month. A maid service had to hire more help after its sponsorship of a text to win ticket giveaway pushed demand beyond its capabilities. There are dozens of other examples in the book and thousands elsewhere.

What is a small or medium sized business to do?

Meet their customers and prospects on mobile. Mobile is not really a “nice to have” anymore. There are inexpensive ways to meet or beat expectations – something as simple as implementing a quick payment solution like Square, talking to their local radio station to sponsor a relatively inexpensive mobile-enabled promotion that could drive traffic, or even find an inexpensive way to create or enhance a mobile web presence. Google makes it easy at www.howtogomobile.com

Another way to is to listen in on many free webinars that talk about mobile marketing programs and share best practices. I’m conducting one April 10 for Market Motive and registration is free here - http://www.marketmotive.com/training/tutorials/conference-calls-and-workshops...>

I hope to see you there. Or at least on mobile.

-

This post was written as part of the IBM for Midsize Business program  http://Goo.gl/t3fgW, whichprovides 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.

Predicting Oil Prices and Aliens Arriving On Earth

There’s no better illustration of what Ford Motor Company futurist Sheryl Connelly calls the “balance between provocative and plausible” than the fact that her team talked about $100 barrels of crude oil nearly a decade ago, but also had a discussion about what would happen if aliens landed on Earth.

Of course, to our knowledge, only one of those scenarios came true. Whatever. Such is your life when your role is to create a Center of Excellence for global consumer trend insights and a forward-looking mindset that can support and inform design, product development, strategy, business and marketing functions throughout Ford.

Speaking to a packed audience (granted seemingly every venue was overflowing), Connelly offered Lessons From A Futurist during South by Southwest Interactive.

Many of her assertions were on the surprising side. Among them:

She once thought that the future is a mystery and best unexplored.

Connelly cautioned against the use of SWOT analysis that attempts to look at a company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. She said that such endeavors limit thinking and fail to take change into account.

“It’s foolish for an organization to think it owns its strengths,” she said. “Those are defined by the marketplace.”

Connelly describes her job as a mission to look outside the automotive industry to understand what's happening in social, technological, economic, environmental and political arenas so that we can understand shifts that are coming that may influence consumers' values, attitudes and behaviors. She looks for those insights and collaborates with people in Ford Design and Product Development who try to turn them into business propositions.

She said that SXSW was the perfect venue to talk about “information addiction” which she said is a medical condition. Further, she cautioned attendees from information overload, adding that it takes away self-reflection time that spurs innovation.

“Explore what you can't control,” Connelly said. “Use scenario planning - what if's.

You don't have to be a victim to the future - you can help develop it.”

(orginally posted on imediaconnection.com - http://blogs.imediaconnection.com/blog/2013/03/12/predicting-oil-prices-and-a...

Notes From A Mobilized Marketer - The "Don't Make Me Hurt You" Edition

Said Prince to a South By Southwest crowd: "Don't make me hurt you -- you know how many hits I have?”

About as many as mobile notes I’ve jotted down recently. Here’s some of what’s on my mind:

How quickly things change in mobile. Mailbox reportedly was the third most-used iPhone utility app last month. 

There is some buzz around the Hater app. That’s because the world needs better ways for us to express hatred.

Chinese consumers spend 50-60 percent of their time on mobile.  How as marketers do we sell more to them? That’s one of mobile’s big opportunities in the years ahead.

With three days of meetings on mobile healthcare apps, the question has been posed as to whether Congress is stifling innovation. Or is oversight necessary to protect the public?

Gartner says it will take three years for BlackBerry to reach a 5 percent market share - and it's not sure thing. When it comes to share shifts, that’s often not a quick process, even in mobile.

Instagram added 5 million daily mobile users in three months after the Facebook acquisition.

Samsung confirms that it too has a smartwatch in development. Likely dozens of others do as well.

Mobile-initiated product research by affluent consumers doubled year over year in 2012, according to eMarketer.

23 percent of teens have a tablet computer, a level comparable to the general adult population, Pew reports. Many believed tablets skew older.

Gestures in Samsung’s Galaxy S4 will be either make you more efficient or look dumb - or both.

Samsung may sell 10 million Galaxy S4 units in a month, half the time it took to sell 10 mil III's, according to analysts.

As of the other day, Apple shares were up 5,749 percent since 2003. Samsung’s were up 373 percent.

Google says the mobile consumer is 18 to 24 months ahead of most marketers. Ahead? For sure. Two years? Gosh, I hope not.

Technology's Dramatic Impact On Our Lives

I thought I had a good grasp of how technology impacts people. Then I watched this video. And got chills. Again and again.

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.

-

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.

-

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.

-

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.

-

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.