This is a ridiculous video (see below). And like many ridiculous videos, it’s now closing in on one million views. There’s a narrator who explains how this is a lesson in leadership. But I don’t agree. (more…)
Fancy Smartphone Apps are Taking Your Car for a Spin
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In 1983, horror film master John Carpenter brought to life Stephen King’s book Christine. The book and movie were about a 1958 Plymouth Fury possessed by the devil. While the film is camp at its finest, even by today’s standards, we’re sure somebody in Hollywood is cooking up a reboot which involves a smartphone-powered car that suddenly turns demonic. Smartphone apps have become an essential part of digital engagement and mobile marketing and car companies are releasing apps at the speed of light. From Ford to Dodge to Volkswagen and beyond, it seems every car company has a special app designed to make your car so smart, it’s downright scary.
Ford, a leader in mobile and social media marketing, gave car lovers an exclusive look at the latest in mobile/motor matrimony during the Forward with Ford conference. The company unveiled SYNC App Link, a clever little device which comes standard on many of the 2012 models and controls your favorite smartphone apps via voice control. From the safety of their driver’s seat, Ford owners can turn on Pandora, find restaurants and send tweets. The inside of most Fords even look a little like smartphones these days. My Ford Touch features the teched-out operating system most models come equipped with that uses a touchscreen interface to control the car’s basic functions.
Volkswagen has been accused of being “app happy” — and that’s no exaggeration. The company seems to release a new and much-talked-about app on a regular basis. The latest won’t help you open the door or change the channel on the radio, but it might convince to buy a new Cabriolet. To celebrate the return of the car often seen driven by movie mean girls, VeeDub has introduced an augmented reality app that gives French shoppers an inside peek at how the car works and what it looks like without ever having to enter a showroom. From an iPhone, the car can be looked at from all angles while users click on features to get a closer look at how the new Cabriolet works.
Come to think of it, maybe it isn’t the cars we should worry about turning on us and becoming evil. Maybe it’s the smartphone apps. A satanic iPhone could make for an interesting movie. Hmm… You think John Carpenter is busy?
Dial “S” for Shopping
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Mobile commerce is kind of like some sneaky dictator from an old movie who overthrows a country without the rest of the world knowing it. Seemingly overnight, we now buy things with our phones like it’s something we’ve always done. And speaking for myself, using my phone to shop makes me feel cool. I have literally been near my laptop, but chosen to use my smartphone to buy movie tickets instead because “it’s easier” (although I’m not sure how true that really is) and because it is so fun. A dieting friend of mine recently dumped the Papa John’s Pizza app on his phone because he knew within minutes he could fall off the wagon and into a vat of cheesy, saucy goodness before he knew what happened.
Since nearly everyone with a smartphone has been swept up into the mobile commerce tornado and marketers are moving fast to satisfy the need. We and tons of other marketing blogs have been keeping our eyes on this phenom for quite some time. Diana Adams at Bit Rebels, for example, has been covering the topic for a while (and might I add, doing a bang-up job of it). Also carefully monitoring the trend is Microsoft, which recently cooked up an infographic which tells us how and why mobile commerce works. While fascinating (and confirmation of our suspicion that nothing is real unless there is an infographic to go along with it), the real revolution happening here for marketers can’t be covered with a brightly-colored picture. Social media marketing, digital engagement and mobile marketing have all kind of melted into one giant engagement blob which requires marketers to think of all of the channels when creating a campaign. Taking into consideration whether our clients can get their products sold via smartphone is the next marketing compatibility test.
So, dear readers, let’s start the week with a little conversation. Is mobile commerce a good time or merely just another way to avoid human contact? Do you have a mobile marketing plan? And lastly, tell us your fave ways to spend coins with your smartphone.