A couple months ago, I discovered the joy of LOLcats.  The buzz generated by the LOLcats brand of humor is a case study on the power of the internet.  The best way to attempt to explain it is that Lolcats is the internet version of an inside joke, a really really cute inside joke.  You just need to see it for yourself.  But I digress.

I have subscribed to 5 different mailing lists offered under the “I Can Has Cheezburger” brand, including “Engrish Funny,” “ROFLrazzi,” “FAIL Blog,” “Loldogs,” and “Lolcats.”  This means that every day, I recieve emails containing hilarious captioned pictures and links directing me to the website for more silliness.  The business model behind these emails is simple: Click the link, comment on the picture, and spend time on the main website … which enables the website to charge higher advertising fees justified through higher traffic.

In the interactive field, iPhone apps are a constant topic of discussion.  And, of course, we are supposed to be defining the potential applications of emerging technologies.  But at what point does “being on the edge of cool” stop justifying new ventures that don’t seem to contribute to the bottom line?  This is where Lolcats comes in.

My daily emails began promoting the “I Can Has Cheezburger” iPhone app.  As a consumer, I was all over that app.  As a business-minded individual, I found myself wondering how the app contributes to the revenue model.  In some cases, applications may send you to the website, encourage you to spend time/money elsewhere, or, of course, charge a fee.  The LOLcats application really does none of the above.  It simply provides entertainment to the users.  In this case, an iPhone app is actually counterproductive.  You see, as any logical person would do, I have unsubscribed from my daily Lolcats emails.  No more inbox flooding.  No more going to the website.  All that remains is one click - I pull up my iPhone app, and I’m instantly entertained.

I am a big believer in the value of brand equity - usually, when a consumer is spending more time with your brand, it’s a good thing.  But if they are spending more time with your brand, while driving less money to your brand…the math simply doesn’t add up.  I would pay for this iPhone app.  I might link to the website to comment.  But please don’t tell the Lolcats.  They’ll turn me into nomz

I recently wrote a guest column for MobileMarketer.com. The topic was making sure that SMS messages comply with carrier rules - something that seems straightforward … however, it’s anything but. This topic is definitely something I think our blog readers will find interesting, so you’ll find the article below.

Also, make sure to the check out MobileMarketer.com - it’s a terrific resource for mobile marketing, media and commerce.

Ensure SMS messages comply with carrier rules

Ensuring your SMS messages are compliant with carrier rules is not as straightforward as you would think.

The level of inconsistency and mixed interpretation is mainly due to a lack of oversight and standardization in the industry.

In order to avoid costly lawsuits such as Timberland’s $7 million, carriers have attempted to protect themselves, which is ultimately positive for consumers, but a pain for marketers.

When sending SMS messages to subscribers across multiple carriers – AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, et cetera – it is very difficult to conform to the exact requirements without knowing which carrier each subscriber is using.

For example, carriers require an opt-out message such as “Text STOP to Unsubscribe” and a message telling subscribers they might get charged for the SMS.

In this instance, the exact requirement from Verizon is, “Standard message charges apply” and for T-Mobile it is, “Other charges may apply.”

Not knowing which carrier the subscriber is using makes it easy to violate this requirement.

To be fair, I am sure the carriers lend a blind eye to which version you use as long as it says something close, but technically, you may be breaking one or more carrier’s requirements.

It’s standard to ensure that these types of messages appear on initial subscription confirmation and system transaction messages, such as “text HELP” and “text STOP.”

Most marketers assume that once they have provided this initial notification to the subscriber, it is acceptable to use the full 160-character message allotment for their message. However, this is not quite the case.

An examination of what Verizon and T-Mobile require for Mobile Originated (“MO”) messages or transaction responses (that is, someone texts in a keyword and receives a response), reveals that these messages must include the “Standard message charges apply” for Verizon and “Other charges may apply” for T-Mobile in their total characters.

Effectively, what this does is reduce the available characters from 160 to 128 in the case of the Verizon example, if you add a space or hyphen to separate this from the rest of the message (“-Standard message charges apply.”).

This adds up to about 20 percent less copy. If you require as many characters as possible don’t follow this clause, I’d suggest using acronyms instead; “-StdMsgChrgsAply” or “-OthChrgsMayAply” which is 16 characters, or 10 percent of the 160-character allocation.

To illustrate this point, here is a hypothetical situation.

A commercial airline could provide customers a free flight-information service. Subscribers might text their flight number “DL323” to 33581 and receive a message back on the status of the flight.

Because this is considered an MO, the commercial airline must put “Standard message charges apply” at the end of every message, even if the subscriber has SMS’d 10 times in the same day to get the flight status.

Ultimately, it doesn’t matter if only one carrier has a rule and the others don’t.

To be safe, you’re better off ensuring all messages conform to the tightest of requirements, especially if you don’t know the exact carrier the subscriber is using and you want to avoid complex business rules with your SMS technology provider.

Furthermore, it is likely other carriers will follow suit soon and perhaps require tighter rules on all SMS messages regardless of the type of message.

Ideally, the industry needs to receive consistent standards and regulations in order to simplify SMS message requirements.

If you think about it, it’s not that different than the inconsistent ISP rules we had for email marketing before CAN SPAM.

I hate to say it, but perhaps we may need more lawsuits before SMS spammers destroy this medium, and carriers get even more confusing.

I was one of the first to receive the new T-Mobile G1 phone last week (known to some as the Google Phone, GPhone or Google Android phone). It has been a lot of fun getting to know my new phone and there is definitely quite a bit of “WOW factor” from friends who play with the gadget.  While I have not had too much time to really learn all of the features, below are the major functions that I have been utilizing.  As I find more features, I will comment on this post.

Here are the things I love about my new phone:
• Amazing form factor with crisp, super responsive touch screen and easy to use slide out keypad
• Crisp vivid imagery, icons, etc. with highly customizable desktop
• Easy browsing and fast connection through the 3G or WiFi
• Pattern unlock is faster (and cooler) than typing in a numeric code
• Small scroll ball as an additional navigational tool – this comes in really handy when trying to click something smaller than my finger tip
• 3 megapixel camera is easy to use with button where it would be on a regular camera
• Awesome Google Maps integration with GPS and Google Street View including Compass View (you can actually rotate the phone and the view of the street changes with the angle of the phone)
• ShopSavvy Application - you can scan a barcode and compare product prices with many online sites
• Shazam Application - the application will listen to music and tell you what is playing, then can connect you to YouTube or the Amazon MP3 store.  I have even tested it with obscure songs, and it has been able to find it every time.
• Compare Everywhere Application - similar to ShopSavvy, except it tells you what local stores are selling a product you scan
• Open Source Android Market - many, many more useful applications should be on their way

What I don’t like:
• No integration with Microsoft Exchange Outlook email. Supposedly third party developers are working on fixing this
• When the charger is plugged in, it is hard to use the flip open keyboard
• No “pinch and spread” multi-touch on the screen

If the goal for the first “Google Phone” was to compete favorably with the Apple iPhone, then the T-Mobile G1 has hit a home run. The potential for this phone becomes even greater as time passes and more developers leverage the open source Google Android Marketplace to develop additional functionality. Also the form factor of the devices launched by carriers will change as more handset providers design for Android.

Issues, personalities, gaffes and SNL parodies aren’t the only interesting things to look out for this election season.  It has been fascinating to see how the candidates are using media, particularly digital media, to their advantage.

Taking a look at the candidates’ digital media usage, both have a presence on Facebook, as well as run-of-the-mill campaign emails.  Obama has a section of his website devoted to media and has enlisted text messaging, ringtones and site widgets to name a few.  The newest addition?  “Obama ‘08,” a free iPhone application that can be downloaded from the Apple.com iTunes store.  It is currently #15 on the ‘Top Free Apps’ list.

The application is very thorough and easy to use.  One of the unique features I found particularly interesting is the ‘Call Friends’ tab.  It organizes your contacts by battleground states and keeps track of the calls you have made.  Another interesting feature is the ‘Issues’ button which allows you to expand each issue of this election to read Obama’s plan for each one.  Also not to be missed is the ‘Donate’ button in green, with an election countdown next to it.

To maintain fairness, a thorough review of McCain’s website was conducted to see what media is being used.  Like his opponent, he has his campaign commercials, interviews and speeches.  The website also highlights videos that are available on YouTube.  However, you cannot click on the YouTube icon to take you to the campaign’s channel.  I also was not able to find a link to their Facebook application.  If I was not a political junkie, it is unlikely I would have known he even has a presence on Facebook.  It should also be noted that at the time of the Obama campaign’s launch of the iPhone application, the McCain campaign did not have an iPhone application available.

Regardless of who your vote goes to in November, it has been so interesting to see from a digital marketing standpoint how these candidates are using digital media to their advantage and the impact it will have on how future campaigns will be run.

I was showing off my iPhone to my uncle in SF the night before my flight back to Atlanta and decided to try checking-in for my flight from Delta’s Mobile site.  What i didn’t expect to see was a link to print a boarding pass. I took a screen grab of the boarding pass for safekeeping.
It uses the next generation of 2D barcodes that can store a lot more information than the linear barcodes we’re used to seeing.

Knowing I shouldn’t hang my hat on something so new, I printed a regular boarding pass at the airport to make it past security (TSA highlighter on my iPhone screen probably wouldn’t work so well). When I asked a Delta rep at the gate, it seemed like they had heard about it, but hadn’t seen someone come through with one of these new boarding passes yet.  They followed me up to the scanner at the jetway door only to find that the scanner wasn’t able to read the new barcode.  Totally possible that it was user error, but I wasn’t about to earn the ire of everyone behind me trying to board while I tinkered with my mobile boarding pass.

If anyone else tries the Delta mobile boarding pass and is able to get it to work successfully, I’d love to hear about it.

Another reason why this is exciting (or at least interesting) is that I could take a coupon with me on my phone to any retailer that is equipped with barcode scanners that can handle 2D barcodes. No more Sunday paper coupon clippings everywhere, plus imagine the benefit to advertisers b/c of the amount of information that could be embedded with the 2D barcode on a coupon.

 

I recently attended an AiMA event (Atlanta Interactive Marketing Association) in which Multi-Channel Marketing was the topic of discussion. “Multi-channel,” “integrated,” “multi-level,” “using different media channels” … same stuff, different terminology. Needless to say, I wasn’t expecting to hear anything groundbreaking. I learned something, however, that shattered my perception of new media and its ability to actually capture genuine interest rather than brief attention.

One of the evening’s presenters shared their integrated campaign for Anheuser-Busch’s Budweiser Select brand. It had all the elements of what has become a traditional nontraditional campaign. Mobile, events, website, etc. Any marketer can send out text messages, just as any marketer can deliver recorded celebrity voicemails. What distinguished this campaign was the innovative way his company used multiple stages in its mobile strategy to generate buzz and drive consumers to multiple Bud Select parties across the country.

First, website visitors who opted-in received recorded phone calls from Bud’s new brand ambassador, Jay-Z, informing them that they were on the exclusive guest list for a party happening in one of five states. They were then told that they would be receiving a follow-up phone call to let them know the date of the party. A third and final phone call from Jay-Z gave them the location of the event and a special text message that they would need to show at the door to get in.

What did this accomplish?

1) Promote the brand image - People actually felt like they were members of an exclusive in-crowd. They were invited to join a party where people would be turned away at the door for not being on the “list.” This furthers the image of the brand in ways that no advertisement can.

2) Generate buzz - The series of celebrity phone calls kept people eagerly anticipating the next one that was promised to come with more information. This prolonged the time people spent engaging with the brand. Additionally, people forwarded the secret text message to a) look super cool and b) to gather a group of friends to hit the club.

3) Influence trial - You can damn sure believe people were ready to drink some Bud Select by the time the parties rolled around. All the cool kids in the five selected markets drank Bud Select all night long, and once they were hooked, their tag-along friends were sure to follow.

The big takeaway from this marketing campaign is CREATIVITY. It is simply not good enough to shift some marketing dollars into the interactive arena. At this point, you really aren’t being that innovative. The key to unleashing the potential of your brand is to identify ways to keep consumers engaged and buzzed. A text message certainly won’t do this. But a website opt-in, which leads to a multi-staged celebrity phone call feature, which leads to an exclusive party, certainly will.

Don’t just use the same marketing communications that your competitors are using. New media needs to be more than a means by which we advertise the same message in the same way. Seek out ways to align your marketing tactics with your message. If your beer is exclusive, then dammit, your text message guest list better be exclusive. But it must not stop there - create a multi-level strategy which extends beyond grabbing eyeballs and actually immerses your target in your brand. Intertwine multiple communication elements to show the consumer just how exclusive your beer really is.

Well, they say 4th time’s the charm.  I finally got my new 16GB 3G iPhone this weekend.  I really loved spending early Saturday morning in line at Lenox Mall.  Thank you Apple!  What else would I have done with those 4 hours?

So let me just say that the phrase “learned behavior” has taken on a whole new meaning for me.  I had no idea how ingrained my last 6 years of BlackBerry use was, which resulted in some awkward trials this weekend.

Don’t get me wrong, I am delighted with some of the new features my iPhone offers.  But I totally miss the way you speed dial from your BlackBerry by hitting one button (ah, the buttons…), or the amazing battery life (this once a day iPhone charge is never going to work) or the actual keypad where I was a one-handed SPEED typer.

On the flip, the iPhone display is amazing and the fully integrated apps ROCK - it’s particularly nice to consolidate my ipod mini and my phone. The email readability is tops, and I love to finally browse in style. And I thought the BlackBerry was crack.

But why can’t we get the best of breed phone? Wouldn’t that be ideal?

And has anyone else made the switch and still find themselves looking for the blinking red light on your phone?

Google seems to be entering the formidable teenage years and learning that it has talent but it can’t excel at everything — in other words, it can’t rule the world! Yeah, we all know that Google was touted as a prodigy because it revolutionized the search world with its search engine/friendly user interface. And it has been accustomed to constant praise - the latest comes from Harris Poll which exclaimed that Google has towered over Microsoft in reputation. But Google is hitting a wall as it tries to expand beyond search marketing.

Google’s business can still be summed up in two words — online search. It is heavily dependent on search to sustain itself (99% of Google revenue comes from search), whether through Google-owned websites or partners network. The good news is that Google’s business model will remain viable as marketers continue to invest money in advertising alongside search results. However, Google needs an alternate revenue source if it aims to protect its current position, much in the way that Apple is reliant on more than iPod/iTunes to generate revenue (Mac desktops and laptops sales are also responsible for Apple’s continued success). The problem is that Google can’t seem to focus on alternative revenue streams — in checking out future offerings on Google Labs one will find mostly search solutions. In my opinion, this is way too narrow of a focus if Google is to consider the future.

According to a recent Washington Post article, Google actually intends to focus on several areas this year, including mobile. And while mobile has produced services like Mobile Google Maps and GOOG411, a free directory assistance service, these applications have failed to generate significant revenue for Google (currently reported at only 1% of Google’s total revenue). And to add to this pain, news has surfaced yesterday via the WSJ that phones using Android, Google’s new mobile operating system (OS), are not likely to be available by the end of this year as initially promised due to integration issues and slow-going development of customized applications that run on the OS. While this should come as no surprise — The Street hinted of a potential delay earlier this month (Google denied that this would occur) — the delay is one additional setback in Google’s struggle to expand.

So what should Google do?

Again, the people at Google are bright so they must look at where the money is flowing to make a wise bet. And while enterprise applications seems to be a lucrative area (Google can just take on the evil Microsoft Office Productivity Suite), the elongated sales cycle and issues surrounding privacy (Google can now look at your data) along with industry regulations (Sarbox) should, if they haven’t already, make Google reconsider this option.

Another area that makes most sense is mobile. Why? Well, there are several reasons including:

• With mobile phone adoption reaching 50% (see article), Google has a potential market of 3.3 billion users worldwide to target with its new OS.
• Competition is virtually non-existent. Mobile marketing is still at its early stage so Google can get in on the ground floor. If it needs a catalyst, it can use its cash to buy a company.
• Mobile devices are undergoing a major transformation. Users have always complained that these devices are not user friendly due their small screen size and speed. But with the introduction of the touch-screen interface of the newly popular iPhone and investments in mobile data infrastructure/networks, users are finding that the new breed of mobile phones are actually useful replacements for their laptops.

There’s no better place for Google to break into than the mobile world — it is the greatest opportunity that it has in the pipeline. Google just needs to get  focused about mobile and show its peers that it can be successful at more than just selling online search. Otherwise, it may face the same future that the has-been Altavista has suffered and that’s rough, especially for a company that has so much talent and potential.

According to a recent Wall Street Journal article about the US economy and spending habits, consumers at every rung of the socio-economic ladder are changing their purchasing behaviors. To better deal with rising food and energy costs, consumers are increasingly turning to the web for ways to save both online and offline. To make matters complex, online retailers are accustomed to seeing high visitor falloff or abandonment. In fact, according to Marketing Sherpa shopping cart abandonment rates are normally pegged at almost 60%. This challenge presents the need to better connect the online and offline world.

In one of my recent blog entries, I discussed the online-offline gap and the methodology used to test new techniques to shorten this gap in order to understand consumer behavior. In this blog entry, I present three techniques that can potentially shorten the gap.

Solution #1: Coupons (Online coupons and mobile coupons)

The recent spike in food and energy cost has driven US shoppers to use coupons more frequently. While coupon usage rates vary, the up tick is expect to continue beyond the short term (see article). To better understand consumers, some retailers have offered coupons in exchange for personal information, including an email address. The benefit of this technique is that once a retailer has the email address, they can use their analytics packages to track visitors from an offer in an HTML email to a website. This allows to retailers to identify and track anonymous users on the website.

The new challenge is that retailers are now focusing on introducing coupons in the mobile space. McDonald’s has recently initiated a mobile coupon campaign in Salt Lake City. The campaign provides McDonald’s with aggregate data for respondents, including their phone number, age, gender and zip code). While these may seem to be valueless, a consumer’s mobile number can actually serve as a unique identifier as consumer demand continues to grow (mobile subscriptions have reached a level that’s equivalent to half of the world population).

Solution #2: Click it and Pickup

Some retailers have implemented a purchasing program that allows consumers to place an order online yet pick it up at a nearby store. This feature entices consumers who normally abandon a site due to high shipping costs to complete the purchase (this is one of the top reasons shopping carts are abandoned). The neat thing about this solution is that visitors who are anonymously browsing the website will log in to complete the purchase and retailers can then track their identity.

To implement this feature, retailers need to tie their inventory management system to the web so that employees in the store can prepare the online order for pickup. To accomplish this, retailers need to establish a solid order management process which is actually harder to do than it sounds. Retailers such as Wal-Mart (specifically Sam’s Club) and Best Buy have rolled out these programs only to get spanked due to reports of incomplete orders or items being improperly packaged/prepared for pickup. Other retailers, such as Circuit City, have perfect the process by also attaching a guarantee. The additional benefit of an in-store pick up program is that it further grows sales.

Solution #3: Customer Satisfaction Surveys

According to a 2007 consumer behaviors survey by Accenture, the quality of service was the leading reason that customers abandoned a provider (this reason actually outweighed price by 20%). In fact, retailers such as Borders are relying on these surveys to better understand how consumer behavior is driving more sales. These surveys are commonly rolled out on sales receipts; retailers encourage customers to complete these surveys by offering a monetary prize (ranging from $500 to $1,000). While these survey engage the user after the purchase is complete (unlike the two solutions above), consumers can be identified when they provide their personal information to win the prize. By combining the consumer’s purchase history with their attitude (aka satisfaction survey) and their online behavior (website analytics), retailers get a more robust profile of consumers that they want to attract and retain.

More Than Three Solutions

The solutions above are only the tip of the iceberg as far ways that retailers can bridge the gap between the online and offline worlds. In addition to the above solutions, retailers that want to bridge the gap should consider investing in a customer relationship management (CRM) solution. A CRM allows the retailer to store the necessary data on consumers (transactions, attitude, personal info), analyze the information and build customer profiles for targeting.

The “A-ha!” moment for cell phone marketing - and capturing the attention of the 82.4% of Americans who own them - may be right in front of us.  Not so long ago, Stephanie referenced an AdAge article that said more than “86.1% still use mobile devices primarily for talk.” I know I fit into that group of people.  I use my cell phone to talk and, even more importantly, to text.  This could be seen as some discouraging news for those looking to create a “mobile boom.”

A study by Pew Internet found 85% of 18-29 year-olds text message, while only 31% of the same age group access the internet from their mobile phone.  Think it’s just us Millenials? 65% of 30-49 year-olds text message and only 22% access the internet from their phone.  So, what does this mean?

I’ve recently discovered Google.  Now, before I have a million “What?!”, and “You’re kidding, right?” responses, let me clarify.  I have discovered Google for my cell phone, and it has quickly become one of my favorite things.  The service is GoogleSMS, and it’s free. 

With GoogleSMS, I can not only find the nearest Target, but can get driving directions to the nearest one and find out what the weather will be like on my way there.  I can look up the definition of a haiku, or even find out how to say “knee” in Spanish for the times my mind draws a blank.  (It’s rodilla for those of you who were wondering.) 

All I have to do is text message my inquiry and send it off to 466453 (or GOOGLE) and wait about 5 seconds for a text message with the answer.  Then at the end of each message it gives a Tip, such as what to text if you want movie show times, stock quotes, etc. 

Two days ago, I discovered that Atlanta Perimeter Mall lets you search the mall for an item and check to see if it’s in stock.  Once you find what you’re looking for you fill out a short form, choose if you want the store to hold it for you, and have them notify you by email or text message.  In the text message it even tells you who to ask for when you get there.  Both of these are not without their occasional glitches, but overall, it’s a great service.

         

Still not convinced this could be the beginning path for mobile marketing?  I love watching the news in the elevator.  Yesterday I saw a blurb that the Grand Canyon is now offering audio tours by cell phone.  At certain stops, you dial a number and a ranger voice recording gives a two-minute description of the site.  Yes, it uses your cell phone minutes, but you could always visit on a Saturday or Sunday.  I’m sure they could find a way to bring in sponsors, and at the end of each “tour” message, have a “Brought to you by” moment.

What strikes me most about these services is that they are getting a message out there by mobile phones using their purpose - calling and texting!  Maybe instead of dreaming of using a phone as a computer right away (something I will do when a hologram screen can be projected to save having to squint at a tiny screen), maybe we should go back to basics and figure out a way to use what we already have to take advantage of this technology today; so when the time comes when not having a mobile site is unthinkable, GoogleSMS and Grand Canyon cell phone tours will be a fond memory of how the mobile boom all started.  In the meantime, I think I’ll text Google for directions to the Grand Canyon.