Posted on Mon, Oct 29, 2012 @ 09:04 AM
Social media is the perfect way to capture the pulse of the American public. Twitter has become the "go-to" social media network to see what is important to the public right now. This is particularly true about those who watch television and more specifically, sports.
Twitter CEO Dick Costolo recently spoke about Twitter's role in the world as a real-time pulse:
“We used to have a filtered, one-way view of events in the world from the media — whether it was a sporting event like the Olympics or an event like the presidential debates last week. America’s perspective of it, or the world’s perspective of that event, would be seen through the lens of the way that the media described it to them… now with Twitter, people want to know what everyone else thinks and we’re getting this inside-out, multi-perspective view of what’s going on right now as it happens from everybody else that’s watching the same thing we’re watching.”
This really isn't a surprise to those who already use Twitter. A lot of television networks already include hashtags on sreen at all times during their most popular shows. News broadcasts, such as ESPN's SportsCenter, quote tweets just as often as they use press conference clips.
Twitter's success with television is directly related to the smartphone and tablet market. In May 2011, Nielsen wrote that "seventy percent of tablet owners and 68 percent of smartphone owners said they use their devices while watching television." Also, Nielsen reported that tablet owners said "30 percent of their time spent with their device was while watching TV" and "smartphone owners say that 20 percent of the time they use their smartphones is while watching TV."
The term to describe the process of using a tablet, smartphone or laptop to interact with television, video games, music or movies is called using a "second screen."
Outside of Twitter, there are many apps that have improved the way people interact with different mediums:
- Shazam - Shazam recognizes audio from music, television and more and allows the user to get more information, such as release date. Recently, Shazam launched integration with Major League Baseball to provide stats, video highlights, expert analysis and social sharing capabilities. MLB's "At Bat" app is also a very "second screen" app.
- GetGlue - GetGlue is a service similar to foursquare, where users "check-in" but this particular app is for television. Users can share their check-ins to their various social media channels and earn badges.
- Netflix - Netflix launched second screen capabilities a few weeks ago by allowing users to control Netflix on their PS3 with an iOS or Android device. Netflix hopes to roll this feature out to all devices in upcoming months.
- Call of Duty Elite - When Activision launches Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 next month, they want to further integrate their Call of Duty Elite service with their iOS and Android apps. They want to allow their users to view stats, check-in, and plan out when they will be playing the game. They eventually want to add video playback, as well.
What does this mean for your business? Right now is a great oppurtunity to innovate with second screen viewing. The smartphone and tablet market is not slowing down anytime soon. This upcoming holiday season will be particularly kind to the tablet market, as Microsoft releasing the Surface and Apple releasing the iPad Mini.
If you need help devleoping an app that can serve as a second screen, contact us today!
Posted on Wed, Sep 12, 2012 @ 11:04 PM
Unless you've been hiding under a rock, you know that the iPhone 5 was announced by Apple on Wednesday afternoon. The device is faster and lighter than the iPhone 4S, but the main question everyone is asking is does this revolutionize the market?
The iPhone 5 failed to introduce a technology that the market has requested: NFC (near-field communication), the wireless technology which facilitates payments and short-range data transmissions."
If you're unfamiliar with NFC, it was sparked by the idea to allow your phone to replace your wallet. I personally use an iPhone case right now that lets me store my driver's license and debit card. It's the continuation of the idea that I want a phone that also plays my music because it is one less item to carry around.
While the iPhone 5 won't have NFC, that does not mean the Apple will not be addressing this issue. AllThingsD.com interviewed Apple VP Phil Schiller and he explained why: Apple is offering a different solution and it is coming in their next iOS update, which is set for release on September 19th.
The new App is called "Passbook" and it allows you to access your boarding passes, movie and baseball tickets, retail coupons, loyalty cards and more.
It is also time and location based, so you can access your boarding pass as soon as you arrive to the airport without searching for it. It'll also tell you if you're in the wrong terminal.
So what does this mean for your business? Well iOS 6 can put you out of business unless you adapt.
Making your business Passbook-friendly can attract smart phone users to your store. Loyalty-cards can make or break a purchasing decision in this economy for a consumer. It also allows your business to contact the consumer in ways that will drive them to your store by analyzing customer trends.
As Schiller said in his interview with AllThingsD.com: “Passbook does the kinds of things customers need today.” It also opens the door for businesses to revolutionize the market.
If you are not looking at Passbook, your competition surely is. Are your customers with iPhones more likely to use a small local coffee shop or Starbucks? Do you want to learn the hard way?
For more on the iPhone 5 announcement, check out the video below:
Posted on Mon, Mar 05, 2012 @ 05:29 AM
The Next Wave is Convergence
What is convergence? Convergence is the coordinated act of moving toward "unity." It is the ability to integrate your enterprise with your customer . . . and where they do business.
Organizations ahead of the curve are integrating social with their marketing efforts. Beyond encouraging social commenting and sharing on their brand websites, businesses are allowing social sign on, the ability of a consumer to log in to a company’s website using their social site credentials. Companies that allow social sign on receive the user’s demographic information from the social service in return. It may seem counter-intuitive that consumers would share their personal information this way, but according to eMarketer, 77% of U.S. online buyers want social sign on when visiting a new site.
Location-based social media is also gaining in popularity. Businesses can introduce campaigns with Foursquare and Google Places by offering limited-time offers to users who “check in” at their locations using these services. As check-ins are visible to the users’ social networks, it acts as implicit approval of the business, and according to Borrell Associates, mobile coupons are redeemed ten times more frequently than traditional coupons.
Businesses will find it increasingly difficult to attract and retrain customers if they don’t innovate with mobile and social media.
As consumers rely more heavily on mobile devices as an information source, businesses will need to re-consider their marketing plans and online presence to accommodate changing consumer behavior, or be left behind.