Friday, January 22, 2010

Have You Got an App for That?

It seems that app development is where it's at in social. According to a recent eMarketer article, mobile apps for social networks - in addition to phones - are under consideration by more marketers than ever before. As you can see in the graphic below, the leading platform for an app (unsurprisingly) was Facebook, followed by the iPhone.

Fewer than half invested in mobile or social apps last year, but most plan to create one this year. Lest you think that this is simply marketers chasing the latest shiny object, or the boss claiming G.M.O.O.T. ("get me one of those!"), there's some solid reasoning behind the choice to move more resources to mobile.

The strategy: create more opportunity for engagement with customers. On social networks, we'll see a greater opportunity for reach, targeting and sharing, but with mobile there's more creative control and the ability to have a message stick with the recipient longer.

And let's face it: we are increasingly moving to a mobile society. As smartphones - the iPhone, Android, Nexus One and others - become more affordable and widely available, we'll see an explosion in mobile access of the web. And with that, customers will require more custom interaction with the sites and brands they're passionate about - in many cases having news and product information come to them directly.

Enter the app. Or, more appropriately, the hundreds of thousands of additional apps we're about to see.

Labels: mobile, social networks, trends

Posted by Scott Monty at 12:21 AM

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Friday, May 08, 2009

Oh, Mama!

There's no question that so-called "mommy bloggers" are an interesting demographic. Recent statistics show that there are more than 36 million of them online, and they definitely wield influence in purchasing power. Which is why many companies think this community can be a key in their word of mouth efforts.

A few key facts:

Of the 36.2 million women actively participating in the blogosphere weekly as either publishers or readers, 46% -- or just over 16.5 million -- have children at home.
67% of moms online look for help making a purchasing decision.
Overall, full-time working moms use technology at the highest rates.
The cell phone is the technology used most often by moms to communicate with their kids, and 80% say it is the direct line to their child and babysitter.

But I think the notion that all mommy (or daddy) bloggers are the same is extremely shortsighted. They're just as diverse and different as any of us. And while it's tempting to think they do things in lock-step, there are many different niches and interests that can be explored - lifestyle, safety, green, frugality, parenting, sports and family issues are just a small set of the many segments you'll find.

And aside from the blogs, what are moms actually doing online? Here's a chart that breaks down the top 10 activities of moms online:

Looking at the points of transaction, it opens up an opportunity for conversation and engagement with moms on other sites & platforms as it relates to those activities. And let's not forget those cell phone statistics - busy moms are on the go and use their handheld devices more.

Image credit: Top 10 Online Activities for Moms (MarketingCharts.com)

Labels: blogging, blogs, Marketing, mobile, moms, study

Posted by Scott Monty at 8:30 AM

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Sunday, July 20, 2008

Television Viewership Grows - Just Not on TV

This may and may not come as a surprise to you. The thing that grabbed my attention was that Americans are viewing more television than ever before . I thought that it would have dropped off recently, with the advent of the other ways people are spending their time. But it appears that commercial TV is growing by 1 percent a year.

The part that didn't surprise me has to do with viewing habits: the viewership of television on various types of media skews when you look at different age groups.

Most interesting to me are the 35-44 and 45-54 age groups: both show a significant increase of viewing video online rather than on TV; and the 25-34 cohort shows a twofold increase in viewing mobile video over TV.

This is only going to continue to skew as technology advances. We just need to ask ourselves if we're ready for more advertising interruptions on our mobile devices and if we'll settle for the same-old same-old pre-roll that we've come to expect in online video. As Hulu has shown, people have no problem accepting limited and clearly demarcated commericals in return for high-quality video on demand.

The real question is, where will we the viewers draw the line? How much is too much and what should we give up if we're not paying to watch online video? And if we're paying for mobile access to multimedia, should we be free from commercial interruptions? What do you think?

Labels: mobile, news, television, Video

Posted by Scott Monty at 11:25 PM

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Sunday, January 27, 2008

Where My Money Is on the Super Bowl

It never fails. Every year, the Hail Mary of marketers is the Super Bowl. And this year is no exception, as we continue to see the price for a 30-second spot on national television eclipse Donald Trump's annual hairspray budget. (For the record it's $2.7 million for an ad).

In recent years, we've seen more interactivity built into the ad process, with Doritos' contest for a consumer-generated ad being the most notorious. This year, we're seeing some interesting angles as well.

Some of my favorite commercials during the Super Bowl have always been from Anheuser-Busch. Whether it was the once-funny "True" series (aka Wassup) or the very touching Clydesdales' tribute to September 11, 2001, Budweiser has rarely disappointed during the big game.

A-B actually has a channel on YouTube where they're previewing a number of their ads - you can see where some of them are going, but you'll have to tune into the game (or any Web site the day after) to see if you predicted the story line. You can check them out in the badge below.

Get your own youTube badge

But here's where it gets moderately interesting: there's a mobile promotion running simultaneously. Over the next two weeks, visitors to BudBowl.com, BudLight.com and Budweiser.com will be invited to participate in an interactive program during Super Bowl where they can rate the Super Bowl ads.

Following each of the commercials, you'll receive a text message to your cell phone prompting you to reply with a rating
Following the final ad, you'll receive a final text message with a code that allows you to unlock the secret 11th spot available via your video-enabled cell phone or on BudBowl.com
Anyone who views the secret spot will be invited to send a customized message to their friends inviting them to view the secret spot

As far as as contest goes, that's pretty cool. But more than that, Budweiser is going even further in terms of distributed content:

All of the ads will be available for download to PDAs, phones and iPods on Budbowl.com
For the first time, they include a widget that allows you to post your favorite ads on your own site - blog, MySpace page, Facebook profile, etc.

A couple of years ago, I found a site that made about 85 of those hilarious Real Men of Genius radio spots available as mp3s. I grabbed them, but later found the site was the victim of a classic cease-and-desist order from the Anheuser-Busch lawyers. Understandable from a rights-management standpoint, but when you think about branding and free content distribution platform, it was a shortsighted move.

So it goes almost without saying that I'm impressed with what they've managed to put together for Super Bowl XLII. Let's hope that the Patriots manage to pull off a perfect season and make the game something to remember.

Labels: Advertising, mobile, social media

Posted by Scott Monty at 10:02 PM

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Wednesday, November 08, 2006

Mobile Social Media Marketing

What could be more social than a phone? It's built specifically to empower communication over distances. It's a natural fit then, that social media marketing should find its way to the phone. I'm talking about YouTube going mobile.

On November 2, TechCrunch picked up on an AdAge article that stated YouTube would be mobile within the next 14 months. They correctly assumed that the unveiling would occur sooner - though not as soon as this.

The November 7 Wall Street Journal carried an article about a deal between Verizon Wireless and YouTube which will allow Verizon's customers to view videos from the user generated media leader. This is a huge stroke of luck for advertisers.

Traditionally, the mobile market has been nearly impossible to advertise on. It's pretty much a closed system, controlled by the service providers and giving marketers no direct access to customers. With the advent of YouTube videos being available through Verizon Wireless, it's a gold mine of opportunity for those savvy enough to pull it off.

Let's not forget that, even though anyone can post a video on YouTube, it still takes that special something to make it into the most popular videos. While authenticity counts, so does entertainment value. And sometimes, there's no telling what the public will engage with.

It's quite fitting then, as reported by Online Marketing Blog that YouTube was named TIME's 2006 Invention of the Year.

Labels: Marketing, mobile, New Media, social media, Video

Posted by Scott Monty at 12:42 AM

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