Archive for April, 2011

Posted on April 27, 2011 - by Wayne Sutton

Google releases new smartphone data showing how everything is going mobile

79% of top advertisers don’t have a mobile optimized website

 

Today google is hosting a webinar called “The Mobile Movement: Understanding Smartphone Users” at 11am PST/ 2pm EST (Registration link). Promoting the webinar google published a blog post with a lot of data showing how everything is going mobile. One stat not included in the text of the post but in the promotional video was that “79% of top advertisers don’t have a mobile optimized website” which is kinda of shocking to me. It’s 2011 and you know how big the mobile/smartphone market is, so what are you waiting for? Contact me if you need help.

Other important mobile data from the Smartphone user study shows mobile movement under way post:

• 74% of smartphone shoppers make a purchase, whether online, in-store, or on their phones
• 95% of smartphone users have looked for local information
• 72% use their smartphones while consuming other media, with a third while watching TV
• 88% of these users take action within a day, indicating these are immediate information needs
• 71% search on their phones because of an ad exposure, whether from traditional media (68%) to online ads (18%) to mobile ads (27%)

 

Here’s the google video providing more mobile data insights.

via Smartphone user study shows mobile movement under way – Google Mobile Ads Blog.

Posted on April 26, 2011 - by Wayne Sutton

NewME Accelerator featured in the Wall Street Journal. Deadline for startup pitches ends Friday

Last week was an an amazing week as I attended Where 2.0 location conference in Santa Clara, CA and had a chance to visit the headquarters of the startup world, Silicon Valley (San Francisco, Mountain View, Palo Alto and more. Also during the trip I had chance to visit Citizen Space, Path HQ and catch up with a few friends and mentors who will be taking part in the NewME Accelerator.

Last week was a big week for the NewME Accelerator as it was featured in the Wall Street Journal by Lizette Chapman. The post was called, “MC Hammer To Minority Entrepreneurs: “Let’s Get It Started” which was a short version of the VentureWire News release called “New Accelerator Program Aims To Boost Minority Entrepreneurs”

Here’s an excerpt from the “MC Hammer To Minority Entrepreneurs: “Let’s Get It Started” Wall Street Journal article.

As VentureWire reports today, Hammer, whose real name is Stanley Burrell, is lending advice to minority entrepreneurs in the New Media Entrepreneurship, or NewMe, accelerator program in Silicon Valley this summer. Starting June 16, seven minority-led start-ups from across the country will live in a rented house in Mountain View, Calif., and can work there or in a shared space in San Francisco. Additional Bay Area start-ups will also be invited to participate, but will not live in the house.

Hammer’s advice to start-ups? Don’t give away too much equity too early and look for a profitable niche within existing markets.

“You don’t have to invent the wheel, but you might want to be the company that invents the rims,” said Hammer in a phone interview.

Here’s an excerpt from the New Accelerator Program Aims To Boost Minority Entrepreneurs article via VentureWire.

Speakers and mentors will run the gamut. Participants include Foundry Group Partner Brad Feld, angel investor Eghosa Omoigui, Foursquare’s Tristan Walker and Twitter’s Doug Williams.

The mentors will provide a range of advice, from negotiating the legal maze around starting a company to dealing with technology and business-model issues and pitching VCs. The driving force behind the program is the belief that minority entrepreneurs–defined by the program as people of color and females–often find themselves at a disadvantage due to the networked nature of the tech world, especially in Silicon Valley.

“Everything is based on relationships. It doesn’t mean people are racist, but it means that you don’t know who to pick up the phone and call to get advice or to write a check,” said Hajj Flemings, chief executive of Detroit-based GoKit Inc., one of five companies already selected to participate. “You think you’re doing all the right things, but it’s like you’re a gerbil on a wheel not advancing and you can’t figure out why.” Black Web 2.0 Founder and Publisher Angela Benton said she first got the idea of providing a platform for minority entrepreneurs while at a conference last year in Washington D.C. Then, a report published a few months later pushed her to take action.

Since then we have received a ton of new speaker request and startup submissions. Speaking of submssions, the deadline is this Friday, April 29 to submit your startup. You can pitch your startup here http://www.newmeconference.com/startups/pitch-your-startup/. Good luck!

Also we’re still seaking sponsors/partners for the NewME Accelerator. It’s seven startups, three months, one house in the Valley. Can you say coffee, food, transportation and vampiremode! Interested? Contact Us.

Thanks for the support everyone. Fun times are ahead along with a lot of work!

Posted on April 26, 2011 - by Wayne Sutton

Privacy is still a top concern for U.S. Location-Based Smartphone App Users

When most people are talking about popular location-based applications such as foursquare, yelp, gowalla, and loopt the conversation is more about users, badges, check-in specials/rewards and value and less about privacy. Even though has changed a little with the recent news about both Apple and Google tracking smartphone users. Privacy using location-based applications is still a topic that is not discussed enough.

With that being said here’s some valuable information from the “U.S. Smartphone App Users Concerned with Privacy When it Comes to Location” post via the Nielsen Wire.

According to The Nielsen Company’s latest research on mobile applications, most mobile app downloaders, which Nielsen defines as those mobile subscribers who have downloaded an application in the past 30 days, are concerned about privacy when it comes to sharing their location via mobile phone. This concern is more pronounced among women app downloaders, with 59 percent reporting they have privacy concerns compared to 52 percent of male app downloaders.

Age is a factor as well. Mobile app downloaders between the ages of 25-34 were the least likely to have privacy concerns. Privacy concerns were considerably higher among those over the age of 45.

 

Is privacy your number one concern for not using location-based apps to check-in or you just want better check-in rewards/specials?

via Privacy Please! U.S. Smartphone App Users Concerned with Privacy When it Comes to Location | Nielsen Wire.

Posted on April 26, 2011 - by Wayne Sutton

Save $1,000 off your next Mercedes-Benz with a foursquare check-In at The New York Auto Show

I’m a few days late on this post as I was traveling last week to attend Where 2.0 location conference but if you were lucky enough to attend the The New York Auto Show last week and wanted to save $1,000.00 off your next Mercedes-Benz all you had to do was check-in with foursquare. Awesome right?

Photo credit: 2011 Mercedes SLS AMG Gull Wing Photo by: ccho on flickr at the New York 2011 International Auto Show.

Here’s a quote from the press announcement.

In its first-ever Foursquare promotional offer, geo-social users checking in at the Jacob K. Javits Center in Manhattan, NY, will be encouraged to locate a Mercedes product specialist and show him or her their phone screen. Then, they will receive a $1,000 off voucher for a new car purchase. NYIAS 2011 runs from Friday through May 1.

“We are not nibbling around and watching Ford, Lexus, and GM try these things,” said Steve Cannon, the German carmaker’s U.S. VP of marketing. “I believe you’ve got to dive in.”

 

While I’ll give Mercedes-Benz a B- for using foursquare at the New York Auto Show and I’m sure some people who are looking to buying a new Mercedes-Benz are like awesome a $1,000 the promotion is also like giving away a one free doughnut when you’re buying a dozen. But at least Mercedes-Benz is trying and didn’t just try to offer a check-in badge. I think a better deal and/or promotion would have been the following:

• A special 2011 Mercedes-Benz auto show foursquare check-in badge with the $1,000 off
• One free Mercedes-Benz to a foursquare user  checking in during the  2011 New York Auto Show
• Either $4,000 off for the first 400 or 100 foursquare check-ins (get it, “4″) plus badges
• A nation wide foursquare badge and special at all Mercedes-Benz dealerships during the New York Auto Show
• Include all marketing channels (TV, Radio, Web/social) which I’m still don’t get why more companies don’t use all of their marketing resources to promote a LBS and/or social promotion. Then they wonder why it didn’t provide the results they thought it would.

Note: Mercedes-Benz may have offerend more and I just haven’t read or seen it.

Do you think the “Save $1,000 off a Mercedes-Benz with a foursquare Check-In at The New York Auto Show” was a good idea or do you think Mercedes-Benz could have done more or something else with foursquare?

via Mercedes’ 1st Gear on Foursquare: $1,000 Check-Ins [Video] | ClickZ.
tip Mercedes-Benz offers $1,000 off a car for checking in at the NY Auto Show | About Foursquare

Posted on April 25, 2011 - by Wayne Sutton

Genius mashup of using QR Codes and your printed resume to help you standout above the crowd

Inspired Use Of QR Code On CV, Victor Petit printed a QR Code on the back of his resume. What’s the big deal? Well, like I’ve said previously its less about the QR Code and more about the content that is being delivered after a user scans the QR Code along with the entire mobile experience that makes QR Code valuable. Get it? If not, just watch the video clip below.

As you can see, it’s a genius mashup of using QR Codes and your printed resume to help you standout above the crowd. It’s smart and the video has already been viewed over 49,000 times. In Vimeo numbers that’s.. hate to say it but “viral”.  Not to get into the whole NFC technology vs Google Goggles vs Bar Codes vs QR Codes war, which really there is not one just silly marketing/tech blog ramblings.  This is why QR Codes are successful.  Note I did not say “winning” but successful. QR Codes are successful despite the fact that the common everyday internet/mobile user or business may not be aware of QR Codes or how to use them, a common everyday internet/mobile user or business can create a QR Code mobile marketing experience like the Victor Petit video above and see instant results of their efforts by the number of scans or the lack there of for marketing and/or  customer engagement.  Something the small business or you and I cannot do with NFC technology or Google Goggles at this time. Maybe in a few years but just not right now.

 

Have you seen other QR Code resume mashups like the Victor Petit video? Let me know in the comments.

via Inspired Use Of QR Code On CV | Mobile Inc and HackerNews.