#INFOGRAPHIC: Mobile #Marketing, By The Numbers

Mobile is a rapidly developing sector. According to some projections, mobile internet usage will overtake desktop usage before 2015. In preparation, companies are developing new mobile commerce platforms, strategies, and marketing efforts.

Microsoft Tag recently attempted to sum up this constantly changing space with a single infographic.

Here's the summary: The mobile market is large; local searches, games, and YouTube are all doing well on Mobile; and socializing is the most prominent use of the mobile Internet. See the full infographic below.

Published by Mashable.

Explore more infographics like this one on the web's largest information design community - Visually.

5 #Mobile Social Media #Marketing Ideas to Grow Your Business

By Jamie Turner at Social Media Examiner:

Your customers and prospects are using smart phones.

Have you figured out how to connect with them using mobile social media marketing techniques?

Mobile is not as difficult as it may seem, especially when you access it with the social media tools you’re already familiar with.

With that in mind, I’ll reveal 5 ways you can use social media to integrate mobile marketing into your business.

#1: Connect With Prospects On LinkedIn Mobile

The LinkedIn mobile app brings a streamlined version of the desktop site to your smartphone or other mobile device. You’ll have access to all the key LinkedIn features, including updates, your profile, messages and groups.

An example of the LinkedIn home screen on a smartphone.

From your LinkedIn home page, tap on your profile photo to access your profile screen to see who has viewed your profile recently. If someone has viewed your profile, it’s a good indication that they might be interested in hearing from you.

With the mobile app, you can reach out to them from your phone or tablet. Justtap on their profile photo and say hello to them via LinkedIn.

Allowing the app to send you push notifications is a great way to stay in touch with your LinkedIn connections, even when you’re away from your desktop computer.

#2: Build Your Brand on Instagram

Many people think of Instagram as nothing more than a photo-sharing app for personal use, but you can also use it to promote your corporate or personal brand.

In addition to sharing photos of his own travels, Dave Kerpen, author of Likeable Business and CEO of Likeable Media, uses Instagram to build brand awareness by posting pictures of the Likeable foam hand at baseball games around the country.

A picture of the Likeable foam hand from Dave Kerpen’s Instagram feed.

Shelly Kramer, founder of integrated marketing firm V3 uses humor to extend her brand’s personality when she shares Instagram photos with her clients and followers.

Shelly Kramer posted “More evidence of my really bad, terrible, horrible day.”

When you post images from your mobile device to Instagram it can help youform a strong connection with your audience and build a visual representation of your brand. Consider using similar tactics to promote your brand and build awareness through this popular social platform.

#3: Use Promoted Tweets to Target Mobile Users

Did you know that 55% of users who log into Twitter every month do so at least once using a mobile device? You can reach these people by using Promoted Tweets todisplay your tweet to users who access Twitter from a mobile device.

Sprint uses promoted Tweets to capture the attention of potential customerswho are using Twitter from their smartphones with a tweet that offers $100 to people who switch to Sprint as their mobile carrier.

Sprint’s Promoted Tweet is surfaced only to users viewing Twitter on a mobile device.

Mobile targeting on Twitter will let you tailor tweets to appeal to prospects and customers who use smartphones. You’ll want to keep this tactic in mind as mobile usage continues to grow.

#4: Drive Traffic to Mobile Sites With Facebook’s Promoted Posts

Unlike Facebook Ads or Sponsored Stories, which display in the right sidebar, Promoted Posts are visible to mobile users because they display in the Facebook news feed.

Below is an example of a Promoted Post that drives traffic to a landing page on the company’s mobile website. The image on the left shows an ad that’s integrated into a user’s Facebook stream. The ad drives prospects and customers to a landing page on the company’s mobile website, as shown in the image on the right.

Use Facebook’s Promoted Posts to show ads in the news feeds of mobile users.

Retailers, e-commerce sites, mobile app developers and traditional businesses have all used Facebook’s native advertising to acquire new customers cost-effectively.

#5: Use a QR Code to Increase Your Social Audience

Research indicates that 27% of all smartphone owners have scanned a QR code. And, while QR codes aren’t going to be around forever, they’re still a great way toconnect with people using social media on their mobile devices.

Use a QR code to grow your Twitter audience.

Here’s a simple technique you can use to get more Twitter followers using QR codes. Copy the URL and visit Mobile-Barcodes. Paste the URL into the QR code generator and hit Submit. Instantly, you’ll have your very own QR code, which can be saved to your desktop.

Now you can add the QR code to any printed materials—business cards, brochures, posters, even T-shirts. People who scan the QR code will be driven to your Twitter page, where they can follow you from their mobile device.

Go on, grab your smartphone and scan the code.

There’s no such thing as social or mobile anymore. There’s just social and mobile.

Today, approximately 40% of all Internet activity happens via mobile devices. It won’t be long before the majority of your prospects will be connecting with your company via mobile.

These five ideas on how to use social media to connect with people on their smartphones are just the beginning.

What do you think? How are you connecting with your customers on mobile devices? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

#INFOGRAPHIC: How Users Interact with Mobile Marketing Campaigns

Mobile marketing is everywhere. The ability to run a promotion that people can interact with immediately using their mobile phone - instead of having to use their home computer - is driving a TON of conversions. But most businesses arn’t doing it right! I’m surprised when people still give me cards or flyers with promotions that cannot be accessed on my phone, because 99% of the time it’s going in the garbage. If they gave me an easy way to enter on my phone right when my interest has been peaked - with say a shortlink to a mobile-optimized entry page - they would increase their coversion rate of getting me as a new lead by 1000%. The following infographic shows how people use their phone to shop and interact with promotions - and hopefully will convince you that mobile campaigns are a great addition for your marketing mix.

Published by WishPond

How Users Interact with Mobile Marketing Campaigns infographic

How To Make The Most Of New Photo Tagging On Instagram

By Lauren Fischer at Simply Zesty: 

Instagram has introduced its most Facebook-like feature yet, following  last year’s acquisition. Since it launched web profiles, which pretty much replicated the layout of Facebook timeline, we haven’t seen Instagram change much. Following the hype around Flickr’s app relaunch, which appeased users who were frustrated that Instagram pics stopped appearing in tweets, the app had yet to follow up with any improvements. But now, it’s taken the social concept of the app even further by introducing the ability for users to tag themselves and other users in photos.

It functions much like Facebook tagging, except that only the owner of a photo can tag. To tag a photo, just click on more by tapping the three dots on an image you’ve uploaded, then click on ‘add people’.

Running Competitions

Right now, there are fewer restrictions for running competitions in Instagram than on Facebook, and the new photo tagging functionality is great news for brands. This is a great opportunity to run competitions around the feature with your users. As the update from Instagram also includes a section in user profiles which contains ‘photos of you’ , by tagging your followers in a (non-spammy) competition, you can gain awareness in front of other users who might not be connected to you.

A competition using tagging should be considered carefully as randomly tagging your followers won’t do much for you. However, if you’re a fashion brand, for example, you could tag pictures of items of clothing that you know a particular follower would like. A tag could mean they get a discount on that item, or even get it for free.

Cataloging photos

The ‘photos of you’ option is useful for brands who maintain an active Instagram account, gathering hundreds of photos. Images of you are shown in the top right hand side of your profile.

Separate from the social sharing aspect, there may be particular photos you want to draw your users to like pictures of your latest collections, or current dishes on your menu. If you tag and untag yourself strategically in photos, you can effectively keep a smaller, current catalogue of the most relevant photos you want people to see.

The link to the ‘photos of you’ section can also be promoted to your users through other marketing channels, ensuring they’ve access to all your content if they need it, but are seeing the content you’ve prioritised first.

Events

This new feature is great for organisations who run events or can gather photos of large groups of their consumers. We’ve seen great mass photo tagging campaigns run by the likes of Orange and Manchester City, and the new Instagram feature allows brands to do this in a platform built natively for mobile.

This gives the Instagram platform a huge plus over Facebook and allows brands to encourage fans to tag themselves in a simple one-tap process. Brands not on Instagram should already think about how photo tagging can be run at events, encouraging word of mouth among followers.

Internal Comms

Photo tagging is also a nice way to encourage social sharing and communication among employees. Many brands will now run named Twitter accounts, or will sign off tweets with the name of the actual person who wrote the message.

As the Instagram platform isn’t complicated by different categories for personal and business profiles, you can more easily include employees in your social communications. So tagging your social reps in photos will help give visibility to employees for customers, or tagging your CEO can help encourage more crossover between the company’s platforms and those individuals influential in the business.

No Time to Waste: 6 Mobile Musts

By Anna Bager at ClickZ:

It is finally crystal clear that mobile is here to stay. And, in keeping, we see a world in which consumers will be using mobile to executive the majority of their daily activities, if they aren't already. However, even with all of the buzz surrounding mobile, most sellers and buyers seem somewhat unclear about how they can make money from it.

What I think is the first priority - no matter who you are - is dipping your toe in. You can't wait for the mobile ecosystem to simplify itself. Too many agencies and marketers are taking that stance. While we can work together to improve the workflow, the number of devices and platforms will continue to evolve and proliferate. The longer you wait, the more complicated things will get. The time to take action is now.

In that vein, I thought I'd offer up a few suggestions and tips on how to launch a successful mobile campaign, focusing on what a marketer needs to think about when it comes to mobile.

1. Avoid buzzwords in your request for proposal (RFP). When drafting up an RFP don't use every buzzword in the industry. It won't make you sound smarter and it makes it more confusing for your media provider to fulfill. It fogs up your true intent, and you need to be specific at all times. Do you have Foursquare and Yelp feeds dynamically updating in your rich media creative? Great, say that instead of the fact that you will be "leveraging social media to enhance your creative relevance." It is important for media providers to be clear that you want to target your campaign to the right properties and audience to meet your campaign needs.
2. Hyper-local isn't always the best strategy. Hyper-local is probably one of the most used words when it comes to talking about mobile. It is true that users are walking around with a device in their pocket at all times, often providing you with their precise location. But, keep in mind that while a large portion of your audience has that device with them, they may not be opting in to allowing their precise location to be passed along to all their apps. Even if they are opted in, are you missing scale and reach? How many users are in that three-mile radius from your store and using their smartphone during your one-week promotional campaign? Going with a bigger local target and undertaking creative optimization may be a better option to meet your campaign goals.
3. Don't get caught up in all the fragmentation. It is true that there are a lot of differences that emerge dependent upon operating system, device model, app developer to app developer, etc. However, the mobile industry has been advancing rapidly to meet these challenges to create a robust marketing channel. With so many mobile-focused companies out there mastering the fragmented marketplace, many have found ways to handle different sized screens and use MRAID to improve the right media experiences. Publishers know their apps and how they behave on different devices, so it is important to work with them and give them enough quality assurance (QA) time before the launch of a campaign.
4. Don't expect the world from a test campaign. Right now, many advertisers are testing the mobile waters. They aren't clear on how the mobile channel will enhance their overall goals. As a result, they are running small test campaigns to try different strategies all at once. That won't work. Use test campaigns to test out specific goals and learn about your audience.
5. Be clear about your goal. What is the real objective of your campaign? Are you driving people to a store? Getting them to sign up for something? Or are you seeking brand awareness? Being clear about what your goal is will help publishers and other media providers fulfill your IO and produce a campaign that is successful across the board, instead of just meeting impression goals.
6. Mobilize your website. This is where a great number of users will first see your site. Therefore, your mobile presence is where initial perceptions and opinions will be formed and, if played correctly, it is also where a lot of business will be made. If you don't have a site optimized for mobile, your customers may look elsewhere.

This Thursday, the Interactive Advertising Bureau and its Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence will again host the annual IAB Mobile Marketplace conference and I foresee this event breaking new ground and offering up keen insights that are needed to drive mobile forward for consumers, agencies, marketers, and technology vendors alike. Throughout the day, we will bring industry leaders together to tackle mobile from all angles - and also challenge the mobile definition, as we know it.

This event is one of many things that the IAB is doing to try and answer the issues I've noted above. And, where a meaningful guideline or answer does not exist, we will try to find or develop a solution.

#INFOGRAPHIC: Is Social Media Bad For Your Phone?

We all love being connected to each and the rest of the world via our phones, but we need to look at what this is costing us. Are the economical and emotional drains on our resources worth it? Our infographic has some surprising facts and figures.

This Infographic is Designed and Published by Cordless-Phones.co.uk

Is Social Media Bad For Your Phone? infographic

INFOGRAPHIC: Mobile Marketing On the Move

Mobile is a powerful force in marketing that has enabled people to stay connected, view content and respond to messages from wherever they are. This infographic explores the expanding universe of mobile that has impacted the way we communicate, play and work.

This Infographic is Published and Designed by Hawkeye

Learn about data visualization software.

INFOGRAPHIC: How Social Media, Smartphones And Tablets Are Transforming Online Shopping

By Shea Bennett at Media Bistro:
Did you know that 64 percent of smartphone owners shop online using their device, and that the social media savvy are amongst the most active shoppers around, with 60 percent of Facebook users saying they would discuss a product or service if they were offered a deal of some kind?

Modern technologies such as social media, smartphones and tablets have transformed the retail business – 167 million people are expected to shop online in 2012, spending on average $1,800 per person – and links to user-generated content on Facebook, Twitter and review sites make up a quarter of the search results for the top 20 brands in the world.

By 2014, it’s estimated that the internet will influence 53 percent of all retail sales – both online and off.

This infographic from Symphony Teleca takes a closer look at how smart devices and social analytics are transforming retail.

Browse more data visualization.

INFOGRAPHIC: How to Grow Your Mobile Presence

The world is going mobile and your business does not want to be left behind! Make sure your website can be viewed on mobile devices by creating a responsive design or a mobile optimized version of your site. You should also make sure your emails are optimized for mobile devices and that you are testing your mobile strategy often.


Published by Hall Internet Marketing and Designed by Caitlin Brown

 

INFOGRAPHIC: 55% of Smartphone Owners Run Price Comparisons in Stores

By Lauren Indvik at Mashable:  
An increasingly large subset of U.S. shoppers are using their mobile phones in stores. Some retailers, like Target, are encouraging that behavior, giving shoppers gift cards and other rewards for checking in and scanning merchandise. Others, like Best Buy, are doing their best prevent it, even going so far as to strip the standard barcodes on products to discourage shoppers from running price comparisons with other retailers.

Emphatica recently issued a survey among 6,500 U.S. Internet users — a little more than half (52%) of whom identified as smartphone owners — to take a closer look at how they’re using mobile in stores. Impressively, 55% of smartphone owners said they’ve used a mobile device to compare prices between retailers. Thirty-four percent said they’ve scanned a QR code, and 27% have read online reviews from their devices before making purchase decisions.

Those findings and more are showcased in the infographic below. Note that the statistics in the third category only include responses from smartphone owners.

Infographic originally published on Mashable.com. Browse more Social Media infographics.

The 20 Best iOS and Android Apps Of 2012

By Brad Sprrison at TechCrunch:  
Halfway into 2012, there are now more than 1.2 million mobile applications available to download to iOS and Android devices. With so many options literally at our fingertips – including dozens of worthy titles introduced to us each day – the task of compiling a mid-year “best of” list of new apps is more challenging (and enjoyable) than ever.

Out of the hundreds (if not thousands) of titles worthy of inclusion, our favorite 20 iOS and Android apps released so far in 2012 can do everything from appraise the value of a home merely by taking its picture, to supplying users with loyalty swag merely for checking-in to their favorite TV shows. We also salute a highly anticipated game sequel that somehow catapulted beyond its otherworldly hype.

A quick primer on our methodology before we get going. All apps picked were either released or significantly updated between January 1 and June 30 of this year. Titles that debuted on iOS or Android in 2012 that were previously available on another platform are eligible for inclusion.

All of our selections were sourced, ranked and finalized by Appolicious Advisors and members of our community.  In all, about a dozen members of the Appolicious editorial team offered their favorites. We also surveyed the most active and influential users of Appolicious sites and applications. We did not account for the number of app downloads or overall popularity. Our qualitative assessment is based primarily on the production value, utility and creativity of baked into each cited application.


Let’s get going.

 

Best iOS apps

Camera Awesome (iPhone, iPod Touch: free)

While Instagram’s sale to Facebook dominated the headlines earlier this year, the best new app of 2012 so far is another photo-sharing service that actually helps you take better pictures. Created by 10-year-old photo-sharing site SmugMug, Camera Awesome is a revelation in iPhoneography and yet another reason why many of us can ditch our digital cameras. Beyond Camera Awesome’s stunning interface, there are several ways this app can “awesomize” your pictures, including automatic levelization and color adjustment. All presets and filters can be purchased in-app for $9.99 (or a la carte at 99 cents a pop). The ability to capture videos up to five seconds before you press record is also a great option. Finally, Camera Awesome makes it dead simple to share photos across your favorite social networks (Instagram included).

Pocket (Formerly Read It Later) (Universal: free, also available for Android)

Independent “read later” apps may become an endangered species this fall when Apple incorporates its Offline Reading List into Safari as part of iOS 6. Until then (and perhaps thereafter), the best bookmarking app for your buck (actually free) is Pocket. Formerly known as Read It Later, the app’s April rebrand involved more than just a name-change and price reduction. Pocket’s new features, which include the ability to seamlessly view videos and images as well as grid-based article lists, do not undermine the app’s simple and elegant interface.

Khan Academy (iPad: free)

The best thing about this app is how it doesn’t clutter or distract from the expert video tutorials that are produced by next-generation educator Salman Khan. The more than 3,200 educational videos that touch on everything from “Getting a seed round from a VC”, to  “Earth Formation” to “The Bay of Pigs Invasion” are categorized within a simple taxonomy. The YouTube-hosted videos that contain subtitles are extensively logged, allowing users to quickly and easily locate a phrase or passage that may have gone over their heads.

TouchTV (iPad: free)

From customized news provider SkyGrid comes TouchTV, which beautifully showcases video clips from broadcast and cable networks onto the iPad. TouchTV runs video clips (typically up to five minutes in length) from 16 official providers including ESPN, Bloomberg Television and Jimmy Kimmel Live. While downloading TouchTV alone is not enough to “cut the cord” from your satellite or cable provider, the app offers a glimpse of what an app-enabled television universe can look like. TouchTV joins video discovery services like Showyou and Squrl (which each received significant updates this year) as among the best iOS apps to currently watch on Apple TV.

Any.Do (iPhone, iPod Touch: free)

Our favorite Android app of 2011 in June finally made its way to iOS devices. And it was worth the wait. Any.Do, which is backed by Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt, is an uber-productivity app that lets you easily create and complete tasks with the swipe of a finger. The app’s voice-dictation technology reliably records tasks without a user needing to type anything. You can also share your to-do lists with friends in the hopes they might help out with whatever needs to get done.

Highlight (iPhone, iPod Touch: free)

Coming out of the South By Southwest bracket of the 2012 mid-year app tournament is this social mobile local app. Highlight alerts you when a Facebook friend or individual with similar interests is nearby, and lets you learn more about other Highlight users when they are in your vicinity. Like similar services including Sonar, Banjo and Kismet, Highlight is only effective if there is a critical mass of other users in your area. While each service has its strong points, Highlight looks to have the greatest chance of any to crossover to the mainstream.

Viggle (iPhone, iPod touch: free, also available for Android)

Receiving discount cards from the likes of Amazon, Starbucks and the Gap just for watching TV for many could be considered the American dream. Viggle makes it a reality by letting users check-in and earn loyalty points for watching their favorite programs.
The app performs reliably, while offering additional features including trivia questions, polls and curated tweets as gravy.

LinkedIn Update (Universal iOS: free)

The best thing about LinkedIn’s April iOS update is that the app is now finally compatible and optimized for the iPad. Presumably inspired by Flipboard (where it has a key presence), LinkedIn functions best as a social magazine on the iPad.
The magic of LinkedIn on the iPad is how it integrates content shared by your connections with the ability to map common relationships with the sender in ways not possible via any other app or site.

Clear (iPhone, iPod Touch: $2.99)

Clear is the to-do list for those who just want to get their stuff done and move on. While it lacks many of the features of heavy-hitter task-managers like Omnifocus and newer contemporaries like Any.Do, Clear excels in letting users quickly create categories and list the things they need to do that fall under those categories. The app’s beautifully designed interface also lets users sort these listed items by priority and quickly swipe to erase them when they’ve been completed.

HomeSnap (iPhone, iPod Touch: free)

While HomeSnap can’t do much to bring the nation’s housing market back to pre-crash levels, the app – with an assist from augmented reality – can help users determine the value of a home merely by taking its picture. In addition to financials, you can also see school information, historical data and the number of bedrooms and bathrooms in a given home. HomeSnap is not 100 percent reliable, but neither is information provided by a seller or broker.

Best iOS and Android games
It’s no accident that most of the top games to come out so far in 2012 are available on both iOS and Android devices. While there are constraints involved in making sure games are compatible across myriad Android form factors and operating systems, developers realize they need to embrace the platform in order to achieve a critical mass of users.

Draw Something by OMGPOP (Universal: $2.99, also available for Android)
While the momentum for this touchscreen-based and unofficial variation of Pictionary slowed down after it was acquired by Zynga in March, there are reasons why Draw Something generated tens of millions of downloads in only its first few weeks (faster than Angry Birds, Instagram, and any other app in history). It’s really fun to play! The premise of the game is simple enough for a five-year-old to pick up. Further, Draw Something’s social integration via Facebook and email makes it easy to play the game with a friend or stranger regardless of what kind of iOS and Android device they own. Don’t own a device on either platform? No worries, you’ll soon be able to watch the upcoming Draw Something primetime game show.

JAZZ: Trump’s journey (Universal: $2.99, also available for Android)
Loosely based on the life of Louis Armstrong, JAZZ: Trump’s journey plays well as a “greatest hits” for platform games. With beautiful graphics that capture 1920’s era New Orleans, great controls, and of course a killer soundtrack, Trump’s journey has enough features and depth to appeal to established gamers while also serving as a spirited and soulful introduction to newbie players.

Angry Birds Space (iPhone and iPod Touch: $0.99, iPad: $2.99, Android smartphones: $0.99, Android tablets: $2.99)
With a launch promotion that was literally out of this world, there was a concern that Angry Birds Space wouldn’t live up to its hype, or just be a slight variation of previous versions of the game. That fear was flung into the stratosphere once we actually began playing it. With new gravity-based mechanics, awesome new birds, a darker color palate and bizarrely amusing space aesthetics, Angry Birds Space is arguably the most refreshing and enjoyable title in the franchise.

N.O.V.A 3 (Universal: $6.99, also for Android)
If you are a fan of first-person shooters, than this is the game for you. Developed by Gameloft, N.O.V.A. 3 more than any other title available on mobile devices moves and feels like a console game. N.O.V.A. 3 has you blasting aliens and enemies through a number of planets (including a war-torn Earth). The multiplayer aspect of the game will have you sharing your battle with as many as 11 other players. Each beautifully animated level takes about 30 minutes to complete, offering a lot of bang for your seven bucks.

Spellsword (Universal: $0.99)
With furious and addicting gameplay, unique mechanics, and retro graphics and music, Spellsword is a fresh new platform game contained within a sword and sorcery kind of environment. Use your single sword to strike down enemies, and launch fireballs along the way. As you proceed through the missions and maps, new spell cards will be introduced along with new enemies. The best thing about Spellsword, at least for more competitive gamers, is that it contains no in-app purchases, and all of the achievements must be earned by the player.

Best Android apps

Many of the best new releases on Android – including three of our five favorites – were originally created for iOS devices. When the best titles are finally available on multiple platforms, we all win.

Flipboard (free)
Our favorite iPhone app of 2011 finally and officially arrived to Android in June. The socially curated magazine – which beautifully presents news, photos and status updates shared by your social graph – included YouTube integration as part of its Android launch (Google+ integration arrived a few days earlier). Flipboard is also the best way to read content from third-party publishers on mobile devices, including the New York Times which on June 28 debuted its NYT Everywhere service to subscribers within the app.

Instagram (free)
Instagram’s arrival to Android was a positive development to say the least for the photo-sharing pioneer. Within one week, Instagram attracted more than 5 million downloads. A few days later, the company was acquired by Facebook for what was at the time a 10-figure valuation. The company’s immediate triumph illustrates how apps need to be available for both iOS and Android devices to emerge as a true pop-culture sensations.

Google Drive (free with subscription, also available on iOS)
In our two months of using the service, we are finding that Google Drive is a superior and more cost-effective solution for storing and sharing documents than Dropbox. For individuals and organizations that already rely on Google Docs, migrating to Google Drive is a no-brainer. The app works seamlessly across all of our Android devices.  Now that the service as of June 28 is available to download to iOS devices, there is not much else standing in the way of market domination.

Airbnb (free)
Airbnb’s arrival to Android in January, after previously being available online and via iOS devices, was more than just a copy and paste job from one platform to another. The service, a vacation-rental marketplace, for the first time made it possible for property owners and travelers to quickly instant message each other for questions or go over any issues that arise during a stay. There are more than Airbnb 200,000 listings across the world, as well as curated travel recommendations from the likes of Ashton Kutcher and Jack Dorsey.

Chrome (free on Ice Cream Sandwich devices only, also available on iOS)
If you use the Chrome desktop browser and own an Android smartphone or tablet powered by Ice Cream Sandwich, owning this app is a no-brainer. The Chrome mobile and desktop apps interact seamlessly with one another, meaning you can access your bookmarks and browsing history on the app. The app also lets you swipe between tabs without ever having to go to the tabs menu. The Chrome app also supports voice search, bookmarking and private browsing. Like Google Drive, Chrome launched on iOS devices on June 28 during Google I/O 2012.

Mobile Marketing: Understanding How People Use Smartphones

By Shelly Kramer at Social Media Today:  
Mobile is huge—and getting bigger by the day. You’ve likely implemented—or are at least planning—a mobile marketing strategy as part of your overall integrated marketing strategy. Right? And what’s even more critical is to understand which of your consumers are using mobile technology like smartphones, and even more importantly, how they’re using that technology to interact with others, consume content and even make purchase decisions.


My friend Tom Webster (who makes me laugh because he’s a goofball and swoon because he loves data even more than I do) is also someone who gets the importance of the mobile space. When I read his latest research report, The Smartphone Consumer 2012, well, I did a little happy dance. His follow-up to the report is certainly worth a read, too—it just might change the way you look at smartphones and how consumers are using them.

You may have heard marketers refer to smartphones as a “third” or “fourth” screen. Yet Tom makes a brilliant point: “When we talk about this or that medium as the ‘third’ or ‘fourth’ screen, we gloss over the fact that, for millions of Americans, mobile is the first screen. And even for those Americans who haven’t quite made that leap, mobile is the only screen when they are out of home. All of this requires a shift in your strategic thinking.”

For me, mobile is most definitely my first screen—and often my only screen. Are you nodding right here? If that’s the case for you, I imagine that’s the case for your customer and prospective customers, too.

If you’re in marketing, you might as well get that quote tattooed somewhere on your body so that it stays at the forefront of your mind. Think about your own smartphone use—if you’re anything like me, your phone is never far from your hand. And you probably spend more time collectively looking at your phone than you do your computer and television.

Sure, not everyone uses a mobile phone this much. But you can’t deny that smartphone ownership continues to grow—and that growth pattern is expected to continue for the foreseeable future. According to The Smartphone Consumer 2012, just about half of all Americans over the age of 12 who use a mobile device are using some kind of smartphone.
That’s a big, big group—and the teenagers included in the research? They’re your future customers, so it pays to be tapped into what they’re doing and thinking so that you can proactively prepare your marketing strategy to reach that particular demographic.

Another interesting finding? Not only are smartphone users more likely than non-smartphone users to be active on social media sites (which makes perfect sense), smartphone users say that Facebook is most likely to influence their purchasing decisions when compared to other platforms. Here’s another marketing lesson: If you have a product to sell (and don’t we all?), are you on Facebook? Do you have a strategy in place to target and engage with your consumer base? They’re there—and if you’re not, you’re missing the boat. Big time. Oh, and by the way, having a Facebook strategy doesn’t mean spamming them with incessant sales pitches—but that’s a whole ‘nother blog post.

The better you can understand your brand’s target audience, their behavior, their patterns, what they tell you that they need and what their pain points are, the more effectively you can reach them via your marketing strategy. This isn’t brain surgery—it’s Marketing 101. And this data from Tom’s report (as well as your own analytics data, which I know you’re paying close attention to) is evidence that the mobile space is most likely where a vast percentage of your target audience already are. How are you adapting your integrated marketing strategies to take that into consideration?

INFOGRAPHIC: Mobile Data Growth and What it Means for You

Via Mobiledata: The infographic below offers a snapshot of the sharply increasing mobile device usage by Americans and explains why government must move immediately to make more spectrum available both to meet consumer demand and keep our economy competitive and growing. This Infographic is designed by iStrategyLabs

Are You Going SoLoMo? – The Combined Power of Social, Local and Mobile Commerce

By Sherice Jacob at KISSmetrics:
Do you speak SoLoMo? Despite sounding like something you’d order at a Starbucks, it stands for: Social, Local and Mobile, as they apply to media, applications and technology. SoLoMo combines the best of all worlds to deliver an experience that’s as natural to do on a mobile device as it is in real life; bridging the gap between user and website.
Some of the best examples of SoLoMo in action include GoWalla, Foursquare and Groupon – service startups that use social marketing and mobile check-ins as a way to drive business to local merchants.  But even these cutting-edge services are only scratching the surface of what’s possible.  The good news is, you don’t have to have a retail storefront to take advantage of this growing trend.

What Exactly is Mobile Commerce?

Contrary to popular belief, mobile commerce is not simply buying something with your smartphone.  Most of the time, the website you bought from happened to use a mobile-friendly interface that made the exchange easier, but at its core (and at the risk of splitting hairs here), that’s not true mobile commerce.
Mobile commerce, and its SoLoMo cousin, include features that let you purchase goods by way of an app that acts as a go-between from your smartphone to the store, cutting the website completely out of the picture.  And, interestingly enough, people seem to prefer it this way – with 60% of mobile users making a purchase through their phone from their home.

Order burritos and tacos from the comfort of home with Chipotle’s smartphone app

Adding the Social and Local to the Mobile Commerce Picture

The real advantage to SoLoMo is being able to customize deals, coupons and offers for individual customers, either based on their prior shopping history with the store, or by way of their likes and shares on social networks.  Considering that 80% of mobile users prefer local-based ads and 75% are more likely to take action after seeing a relevant local ad – this presents a huge opportunity for retailers to segment their offers and reach customers with personalized recommendations.
Neiman Marcus is already developing such an app – a product which seamlessly connects shopper and sales associate.  The customer highlights their favorite items and preferred associate, and the associate is alerted in-store when the shopper enters.  With this connection, the sales associate will instantly see the customers favorite items along with a Facebook photo for easier recognizability.  Other retailers and standalone services are also testing the waters with personalized recommendation apps:
Walgreens has already blurred the line between mobile shopping and check-ins.  By partnering with Foursquare, they’ve been able to develop an app which will give customers a coupon when they check-in. But the app itself does more than just deliver discounts.  It can also be used to refill prescriptions (yours or a family member’s), make a shopping list, or remind you when to take your medicine.

Walgreens SoLoMo app lets smartphone users shop, refill prescriptions, and get local coupons

What SoLoMo Means for Design and Conversions

Although SoLoMo-enabled commerce is still in its infancy, there’s already some preliminary data out from retailers – and the results look promising.  Home furnishings store Touch of Class recently ported its products to an m-commerce platform, and found that, in just one month, mobile sales jumped 81% and mobile revenue as a percentage of overall online sales went from 0.74% to 1.2%.
Touch of Class is currently comparing the shopping habits of its mobile versus desktop customer base to learn their shopping habits and possibly create an app that recommends products accordingly.
As for the design of mobile apps – simpler is better.  This basic lesson is all-too-familiar to ToolFetch, which recently redesigned its mobile interface to include helpful items like Live Chat and a slimmed-down selection of only its most popular items for mobile shoppers.

ToolFetch’s mobile site might not be pretty – but it gets the job done.

The end result?  The site’s performance tanked.  ToolFetch went back to the drawing board, and did a little more renovation, taking out the live chat option and other scripts and images that were bogging down its load time.

Action Steps for Getting the Most Out of SoLoMo Commerce

So you’ve decided that SoLoMo is the way to go and you want to put your best foot forward when it comes to profiting from mobile commerce.  Here’s what to keep in mind before you launch your new app to the masses:

• Find Out if Your App Idea Already Exists on the Market.  A great design is only half the battle.  You’ll also want to do your homework and determine if your app idea already exists on the Android or Apple marketplace.  If your competitors are not yet in the SoLoMo market, they will be soon enough.  The time to grab your share the bustling customer base is now.
• Be Sure You’re Prepared for Fixes, Patches and Updates.  Not to dissuade you, but for every Angry Birds success story, there are hundreds of apps withering away in the digital graveyard.  Be ready for bug fixes, updates, patches and new version roll-outs, and make sure you have both the personnel and time/budget commitment to see your app through to completion and beyond.
• Give Your App a Feature that will Engage People  Look for ways that your SoLoMo app can better enrich someone’s life or give them an experience that they’ll want to tell their friends about.  For more details on going beyond the sleek user interface, check out this set of mobile design guidelines from Smashing Magazine.

Whether SoLoMo is right for your business or not is a decision you’ll have to make on your own.  But you can’t discount the ripple effect that it’s having on smartphone users.  By simplifying and shortening the gap between customer and product, SoLoMo has the potential to completely change the way we do business online.
What are your thoughts?  Is SoLoMo more of a passing fad, or will it be as rooted in our vocabulary as “dot com” is now?  Share your comments below!

About the Author: Sherice Jacob helps website owners improve design and increase conversions with SEO copywriting and consulting.  Download your free conversion checklist and web copywriting tune-up at iElectrify.com or follow @sherice on Twitter or Google+.

Facebook Will Put Ads On Your Mobile Phone

By Jim Edwards at BusinessInsider: 
Facebook is preparing a mobile ad product that could feature animations and video content, according to a report in DigiDay.
Facebook doesn't currently run any ads on its mobile apps, even though 425 million people use Facebook every month on their phones and iPads. The social network says its failure to get into mobile is actually a drag on its revenues.
Razorfish mobile practice lead Paul Gelb told DigiDay his agency was engaged in a pilot program for “mobile and cross-platform rich-media ads”:

Gelb implied advertisers will be able to reach users across all devices with a single buy. Judging by Facebook’s desktop ad formats, it’s likely they’ll be disseminated across users’ networks as they interact with them.

The units themselves, meanwhile, will offer similar functionalities to other mobile rich-media ad providers such as Medialets and Crisp Media, Gelb suggested. Ads powered by those companies typically feature interactive elements and animations, video content, location-based features and various calls to action such as tap-to-call and tap-to-coupon.

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