Notes From A Mobilized Marketer - How McDonald's Views Choice As The Killer App

For 43 years, the slogan from McDonald’s said,  “You deserve a break today.” These days, when it comes to patrons accessing product information and offers, the quick service restaurant believes that we deserve choice. Despite an impressive 10 million mobile app downloads, McDonalds has installed kiosks in its restaurants, too, giving options to its customers beyond cellphones and the traditional information found on boards behind the cashiers.

An example of my Apple Watch frustration? A gate change that doesn't come with tap when that’s exactly what's needed. Now, you have to notice. And often don't.

Mobile captures 2 out of every 3 digital media minutes in the U.S., per comScore.

One in five U.S. households have bought groceries online in the past month, according to eMarketer.

Apple will likely sell its one billionth iPhone later this year.

This is permission-based, but still raised more than one eyebrow - when you open the Domino’s app, it automatically sends you a pizza unless you cancel within 10 seconds.

78% of food shoppers say they want to save as much money as possible via mobile, according to Gfk. This is one constant in wireless era – pre-recession, during recession, post-recession, people want deals.

75% of consumers say relevancy matters when it comes to the rewards that businesses provide: Colloquy. The others didn't understand the question?

British mobile phone users’ movements could be sold for profit, as reported in The Guardian. That brings worries that location data will be used by criminals.

10 million did their taxes on mobile last year with Intuit.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says that the secret to a harmonious life is to stop obsessing over your smartphone. Many of us know this but won't/can't/don't believe that we can do anything about it.

Native ads will make up 63% of mobile display ad spend by 2020, a Facebook & IHS study finds.

52% of users view push messages as annoying, according to Localytics. Better practices, more value and education are keys to improving that number.

My eye doctor was appalled when I told him that his vendor was sending appointment text reminders at 4 a.m. to people who haven’t opted in. We will see if anything changes.

Notes From A Mobilized Marketer - Will A Coming Ad-Blocking Option Limit Mobile Advertising?

With an ad-blocking option coming with iOS 9, some headlines have suggested that Apple will be taking a big bite out of the mobile advertising opportunity for marketers. The truth is that it’s too soon to tell.

For background, apps will be able to include “content blocker” extensions that define resources (like images and scripts) for Safari to not load. The biggest question is whether users will proactively elect to install and use the blockers. If they do, the thinking goes that fewer ads will be seen on Apple devices and the business return on ad spend in the channel will suffer.

But as a Forrester analyst and others have pointed out, it has taken massive security breaches involving worms, viruses and malware for consumers to take note of options to “protect” their environment. And, in alarmingly large numbers, users have ignored the calls to act.

The same is likely here.

Dads are four times more likely to buy things for their families via mobile than the average consumer: Millennial Media.

You can now order a pizza via a text message. Dominos is smartly giving consumers another purchasing choice and another reason to join its loyalty club.

In the last minute and in the next, 3.6 million texts will be exchanged by U.S. mobile users. Brands, it’s time to consider use of SMS-based loyalty clubs.

Apps are responsible for 42% of all mobile sales by the top 500 retailers, per Go-Globe.

Study: 99% of users ignore share buttons on mobile – Moovweb.

86% of consumers discover new brands or services thru their mobile device, according to Accenture.

On June 14, nine of the top 10 purchases on eBay occurred on mobile devices, totaling more than $1.7 million in transactions.

A Heinz QR code directed users to porn.

37% of users will think less of brand if its mobile app crashes or causes errors, per Dimensional Research.

20% are supposedly buying a spare band for Apple Watch. Me? I'm still trying to get fair value for what I spent.

Users get 14 times more views with a profile photo on LinkedIn than without.

60% of SMBs plan to purchase newspaper advertising, most allocating 20% their budget to newspapers: Borrell.

Starbucks Mobile Order & Pay has expanded to 3,400 additional U.S. stores.

Amazon is considering paying ordinary people to deliver packages. There’s a future for me.