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Vinyl made up a third of all physical music sales in the first half 2015 in the US.Notably, vinyl sales generated more revenue for...

Does this mean that fans would rather pay for “their” songs - and not curated playlists?

I can understand that.

#Music

R&D company Mactro Technologies (www.mactro.com) introduces the Mactro SMS Broadcaster, a breakthrough product specifically designed for communicating with people during disasters. (Newswire.net -- September 26, 2015) Sunnyvale, CA -- Headquartered in Hong Kong with an affiliate in the Philippines, Mactro’s parent company lost valuable equipment and property during Typhoon Haiyan. The Mactro SMS Broadcaster was inspired by the realization that natural calamities can tear down telecommunications infrastructure – and when they do, new means of communicating – for first-responders, aid workers and the general public – have to be set up immediately. The idea behind the MactroSMS Broadcaster is decidedly simple: it takes advantage of the widespread use of mobile phones, and the familiarity of text messaging. When phone and internet services go down – as they did following Haiyan’s horrific landfall in the Philippines’ Visayas region – the Mactro SMS Broadcaster can be set up within minutes, and used to send out messages to all cellular phones with power, whether or not they had working telecom signals or services. The Mactro messages appear on the phones just as regular SMS, landing in the text messaging inbox and identified by the name of the sender. Available in portable configurations, the SMS Broadcaster can send messages to all phones within a radius of up to five kilometers, regardless of the standards they use (GSM, UMTS, 3G, LTE), the telco services they subscribe to, or their brand. It is able to acquire all the international mobile electronic identifier (IMEI) numbers (present on all mobile phones) within its range, and sends messages using these as the recipient ID’s. Mactro’s SMS broadcast technology does not require it to acquire actual phone numbers (given by telcos) or any other personal information about the recipient. Purposely-built for disasters, the Mactro SMS Broadcaster does not need an internet connection to operate, or electricity, drawing power instead from the sun or from a car battery. Following Haiyan’s landfall, it took three days before telecommunication services started going back online. It is this crucial period when crucial communications services are down, that Mactro wants to address. With the Mactro SMS Broadcaster, local governments and aid organizations will be able to reach out to those in need of emergency assistance immediately, increasing the odds that lives can be saved.

#SMS #SMSBroadcasting #SMSBroadcaster #Disaster #DisasterCommunications #Emergency #EmergencyCommunications

Over the past five decades, James Bond has been thrilling audiences across the globe. The last 23 films feature stirring...

#MusicMarketing

The unlikely advocate for Alzheimer's disease research struck a chord because he knew how to tell a story and give a speech. Here's why it worked.

Worth viewing, sharing and learning from, for many reasons. From @Inc

Superb summary & sell of what #OOH can & should do. From @OutdoorMC via @DOmedia.

Hope this works out and catches on... LevelUp Will End Your Business' Credit Card Processing Fees. Really. | Fast Company

Credit card processing fees are such a common part of the consumer-merchant retail experience that we hardly give them any thought. So we tend to forget that it costs merchants money every time we pay with our credit cards, or that the extra cost is then passed along to us in the form of a higher price.

Starting today, LevelUp, a service from Cambridge-based SCVNGR that lets you make mobile payments via a QR code linked to your debit or credit card, is eliminating processing fees for its merchants, making it the first payments company to nix charges that cost merchants $50 billion each year. SCVNGR’s Chief Ninja Seth Priebatsch refers to the concept as “Interchange Zero,” and says it’s the next step toward building an ecosystem in which payment companies’ worth is measured only by how much value they can provide to their merchants beyond simply helping them make transactions.

“Right now, the competition is over who’s the most entrenched or who’s the cheapest,” Priebatsch tells Fast Company. “But eventually, who gets to move money will be about who can create the best value to add to the business, which isn’t a bad thing at all.”

The logic behind Interchange Zero is simple: Decades ago, processing fees were a necessary evil because they covered material costs to lay the physical lines that connected merchants to payment networks and develop anti-fraud technology. Then innovators in the mobile payments sector started to crop up, from PayPal to Square, and figured out how to lower processing costs even further. But the payment companies kept interchange rates between 1 and 3 percent, meaning they continued to profit without providing extra value to merchants. That’s where Interchange Zero comes in.

But eliminating transaction fees also happens to zap one of LevelUp’s major revenue sources, because it’s no longer charging merchants a flat 2% transaction fee on the $2 million it currently processes each month. So how can LevelUp conceivably expect to stay afloat? Priebatsch says the answer is LevelUp’s suite of merchant campaigns, including customer acquisition and loyalty programs. Now, when a merchant uses a LevelUp campaign--say a store offers $10 for every $100 you spend--LevelUp will make 35 cents for every dollar of credit redeemed through that campaign. That way, a large part of LevelUp’s revenue is its ability to help its merchants make more sales.

Priebatsch’s hope is that others in the mobile payments industry will follow suit, eventually making the idea of charging merchants to move money a thing of the past. Of course, if the idea of Interchange Zero does catch on, LevelUp will have to create more sophisticated campaigns to keep competitive. For example, Square recently added an in-app punchcard feature to its Pay With Square app; Starbucks just launched mobile payments on Android. Currently, 66% of LevelUp customers return within 30 days. That’s impressive, but "66 isn’t 100," Priebatsch says, which is why LevelUp is constantly devising new solutions for merchants that push the boundaries of a typical rewards program. Right now, they’re testing a campaign that offers special incentives to drive customers to stores when it’s raining, when sales tend to suffer.

LevelUp is also partnering with banks to create custom loyalty programs for certain cardholders. Sovereign Bank noticed its cardholders using LevelUp were active purchasers, but few in numbers. So last month, LevelUp ran a campaign that gave Sovereign cardholders $5 in free credit as an incentive to link their card. And it expects to have similar partnerships with about two to three dozen banks by the end of the year, Priebatsch says.

The question is how many businesses will be interested in adopting the setup LevelUp offers. It’s a natural fit for small businesses, which make up the majority of LevelUp's 3,000-strong merchant network, but you're not likely to start waving QR codes around at Walmart or Costco anytime soon. But Priebatsch says LevelUp is about to sign its first retailer with more than 500 stores, and they now serve more transactions at a given partner business than American Express in a 30-day period.

"Now we’re able to start approaching everyone but the top merchants in the country and have serious conversations with them," he says. "Of course, not all of them will say yes."

[Image: Flickr user WSDOT]

via fastcompany.com

Good read on In-Store Digital Media from DigitalSignageConnection.com | Customer-facing Technologies: Enabling a New Generation of Pinpoint Marketing

Consumers are more versatile than ever, better informed and often acting less than loyal to brands. They want to buy at the best price and expect excellent service from retailers. Traditional mass marketing is losing impact in a world in which customers are confronted with thousands of advertising messages daily. Newly empowered customers have nearly unlimited access to information on products and prices through the Internet and mobile devices. And they use this information, even if they continue to shop in brick-and-mortar stores.

Retailers will continue to invest in technologies that allow them to reach their customers more individually and efficiently across all channels. These customer-facing technologies comprise online and mobile applications, as well as in-store solutions, such as kiosk systems, electronic shelf labels or digital merchandising equipment.

Retailers Will Invest in Digital Merchandising Use of digital media for advertising and information purposes has become extremely popular in public spaces and customer areas, such as malls, restaurants, banks, petrol stations and retail stores. In some cases, digital media were installed simply to create a specific ambience in a store or a mall. The use of this technology is showing significant growth rates inside as well as outside of the retail space. In the world of retail, digital merchandising solutions so far mostly support promotions or new product introductions, provide more detailed product information, or help to create an atmosphere that engages customers and enhances the shopping experience.

Many retailers are still experimenting, trialling different options of implementation and business cases. The most common business model is based on selling advertising space and time to suppliers of consumer goods brands or other third parties, which allows the system to practically pay for itself.

Image copyright: Planet Retail Ltd. Tesco shut down its network of 5,000 screens across 100 stores five years after launching it.

A Look at Tesco’s Failed Digital In-Store System Tesco, one of the pioneers of in-store TV, began using screens in its stores in 2004. Five years later, Tesco shut down the network of 5,000 screens across 100 stores because the equipment was “outdated and energy inefficient.” But instead of another green initiative, this decision was more likely a general problem of the in-store advertisement market in Europe and the U.K. In truth, Tesco TV wasn’t living up to its expectations and always had a lack of advertisers. Even Tesco’s famous in-house consultancy and data analyser, Dunnhumby, which tried a turnaround with taking over responsibility for Tesco TV in August 2007, failed with a new concept.

The end of Tesco’s network changed the way the retail industry discussed digital in-store media. Other major European retailers were also complaining about not enough investments of brand manufacturers into digital in-store advertisement. For Tesco, advertising sales didn’t even cover the expenses of the network.

How Walmart Set Benchmarks With its Smart Network In September 2008, U.S. retail behemoth Walmart presented a revised in-store media concept to agencies and marketers. The Walmart Smart Network was the result of two years and U.S. $10 million in research and development used to identify the optimal locations, applications and programming for reaching the millions of consumers who visit the retailer's stores each week. Walmart completed the chain-wide deployment in early 2010.

Walmart is the first retailer in the U.S. that has rolled out a next generation of in-store media that is supported by a flexible, open enterprise platform powered by Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) technology that allows the retailer to monitor and control more than 27,000 screens in more than 2,700 stores across the country.

One pillar of the Smart concept is the so-called Triple Play. In a first step, a welcome screen greets shoppers entering the store. Department screens, mounted only a few steps away from the products show content related to the category. Finally, smaller end-cap screens at each aisle provide customers with the final piece of information needed to make a buying decision.

Walmart's "Triple Play" comprises Welcome signage, category screen and display at gondola end.

All of the content on the Walmart Smart Network is customised and designed to deliver product information to consumers at the point of decision, when and where they need it. The network deploys response measurement and message optimisation technologies to enable delivery of the most relevant content to shoppers – by store, by screen, by day and by time-of-day.

Image copyright: Planet Retail Ltd. Rewe Group commissioned T-Systems to deploy a digital merchandising network to 480 German supermarkets.

Europe Follows Suit So far, European retailers have been less successful in deploying a similar business model. Some retailers may not be big enough to attract enough advertisements from the manufacturers. More importantly, FMCG manufacturers in Europe have been slow to recognize digital in-store media as a relevant marketing platform. This is changing, as powerful retailers began initiatives and started negotiating this topic with suppliers.

For obvious reasons, most retailers prefer a business model in which the digital signage platform is paid from advertising revenues. Nevertheless, some smaller independent retailers have been investing in this technology without securing income from third parties. They are looking to differentiate themselves from competitors using screens to enhance their own brand image and their customers’ shopping experience.

Image copyright: Planet Retail Ltd. Digital merchandising screens enhance the shopping atmosphere at an Edeka store in Aachen, Germany.

In conclusion, a large number of trials and different types of implementations can be observed in the European market. In many cases, retailers are deploying a mixture of promotions, product information, image- or ambience-creating content, supplemented with news and weather forecasts or local information and advertising. Production and compilation of content is expensive and in most cases outsourced to specialised service providers. Some of these agencies have been developing specialised content related to local markets or specific segments. These offerings are also enabling small and independent retailers to participate in the trend.

(Click image to see larger version.)

Joachim Pinhammer is Senior Retail Technology Analyst with PlanetRetail.

via digitalsignageconnection.com

The more things become complex, the more we have to go back to basics. From Forbes: Public Relations Goes Digital

Guest post written by Sabrina Horn

Sabrina Horn is CEO of Horn Group, a public relations agency.

Sabrina Horn

Public relations is going through a fundamental shift that will change how marketers think about and deploy it forever. Simply put: PR can’t operate in a silo anymore.

Instead, PR pros must now wield multi-disciplinary skill sets. They must be able to weave together traditional PR with social media, interactive, even advertising. They must also be able to tie communications challenges to core business problems and outcomes. That means a greater understanding of business, leadership and company operations overall, across multiple audiences, markets and the global economy.

The bottom line is, PR has evolved into digital communications. And for the chief marketing officer, that means big changes in how to engage audiences with market brands.

How We Got Here

Life today is becoming more and more digital. Much of what we do at work and at home has gone online, with technology driving change at an accelerated rate.

In this environment, where everything is connected, PR pros have to think beyond the confines of their traditional upbringing. Specifically, it’s crucial that communicators learn the art of design thinking.

Why? Because the written word and spoken word need graphics, pictures and motion; a company’s brand is affected by all the ways in which it is portrayed, expressed and explained. What makes communications today “digital” is the delicate combination of PR with these interactive Web capabilities and social media – all the channels by which a company now gets the word out about its brand.

What It Means

Determining the mix of channels and services that will best market a brand requires a sequential approach that requires thinking beyond siloed communications:

Identify Your Primary Business Challenge. Take a big-picture approach. Rather than determine which campaign should go viral on social media or whip media, identify your main objective or challenge: what business problem are you really trying to solve?

Define Success. What are your preferred outcomes? Force yourself to get specific. Lay out what a successful campaign looks like, and make sure everyone understands the desired end result.

Evaluate Your Strengths and Weaknesses. Also critical is an analysis of your company’s assets and complications. This is where it pays to be brutally honest: what’s working for and against you? What can you leverage and what could really get in your way of achieving success?

Build Your Communications Mix. Only after a comprehensive evaluation of all of these factors can you focus on specific campaigns and ideas. With objectives, success, strengths and weaknesses defined, you’ll be able to better pinpoint the combination of services that fit your specific needs, rather than taking a campaign idea and trying to retrofit it to your business.

The key here is that these campaigns will, by default, be integrated. For example, a company launching a product into a new market can’t implement a viral social campaign that drives people to a subpar website; that would negate the success of its social efforts. Similarly, a company might choose to run a thought leadership campaign – perhaps including special events in key markets, complete with a celebrity – that’s seeded through traditional publicity pushes. But that company might discover those publicity pushes would be even more effective by requiring consumers to go to the company’s Facebook page – meaning its social presence would need to be up to par as well.

via forbes.com

KPCB Internet Trends 2012

via scribd.com

Toys R Us continues to increase summer sales via bigger QR code push - Mobile Commerce Daily

Under the mobile umbrella

Toys R Us is using QR codes to promote more than 20 of its large outdoor items and is letting consumers visualize how the product would work and look in their own backyards.

Since many of the outdoor items are too large to display in-store, Toys R Us is using in-store signage that lets consumers scan the QR code of a product in which they are interested. According to the retailer, this is its largest QR code program to date.

“Customers are increasingly using their smartphones while shopping to find details on the products they are looking to purchase,” said Meghan Kennedy, a spokeswoman for Toys R Us, Wayne, NJ.

“With these QR codes, Toys R Us is providing customers with an engaging in-store experience that allows them to see these outdoor items, which are too large to display within our stores, in action,” she said.

Toysrus.com is the Web portal for Toys R Us Inc., one of the biggest toy retailers in the world. The company operates 1,550 stores, including 849 Toys R Us and Babies R Us stores in the United States and more than 700 international stores in 33 countries.

Toys in action The QR code implementation is meant to help Toys R Us customers see the backyard toys in action.

Consumers can scan the mobile bar code next to the product with their mobile device to view video footage or images of the item fully set up.

Additionally, many of the products have corresponding videos that showcase kids playing with the summer toys.

Many of the outdoor items featuring QR codes include trampolines from Bravo Sports, pools from Summer Escapes by Polypool and a variety of products from Step 2, such as sandboxes, slides, clubhouses and picnic tables.

Consumers can learn more about the products via the QR codes

“The display is prominently positioned in Toys R Us stores across the country for the summer months,” Ms. Kennedy said. “Customers can simply scan the QR code of the product they are interested in with their smartphone to view video footage or images of the item fully set up.

“Many of the products have corresponding videos that showcase kids playing with these fun summer toys,” she said.

Past initiatives Last year, Toys R Us rolled out a virtual store that let consumers scan QR codes featured on billboards and shop the company’s 2011 Hot Toy List.

On-the-go commuters and travelers in the New York metro area were encouraged to take part in the initiative.

Billboards located in John F. Kennedy International Airport, LaGuardia Airport and nearly 40 NJ Transit Stations feature the showcased items (see story).

QR codes are a hot commodity and the technology is helping marketers bridge the digital and traditional world.

“We continue to look for ways to enhance our mobile capabilities and provide a seamless shopping experience for our customers,” Ms. Kennedy said.

Final Take Rimma Kats is associate editor on Mobile Commerce Daily, New York

Rimma Kats is associate editor on Mobile Commerce Daily and Mobile Marketer. Reach her at [email protected].

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via mobilecommercedaily.com

Point-and-Pint? | From PSFK: Guinness QR Code Pint Glass Can Only Be Scanned When Full

Guinness wanted to get more people talking about the brand, so they gave local bars some new pint glasses. At first glance, the glasses looked like a regular pints- but bartenders and patrons learned that when they were filled with a Guinness, the glasses were actually printed with a QR code.

Created by BBDO NY, the QR code could only be scanned when a Guinness (or for argument’s sake, any dark beverage) was in the pint glass; regular beer didn’t create enough contrast, and when nothing was in the glass, the QR code just looked like a creatively etched design on the side of the cup.

When bar-goers scanned the QR code with their smartphones, the app shared the news to friends that they were enjoying a Guinness via twitter, foursquare, Facebook, and Instagram updates. Scanning the QR code even sent out the bar-goers’ locations– with the hope being that friends who saw the updates would join their pals at the bar for more Guinness drinking.

Guinness

via psfk.com

Simple & Sensible OOH-Meets-Mobile Marketing. | From MediaPost: Point And Shop: QR-Coded Outdoor Campaign Helps Commuters Plan Dinner

Answering the age-old question of what’s for dinner is an outdoor and mobile campaign by Allrecipes running in Los Angeles.

The "Fix Dinner" campaign uses pictures of the most popular local recipes in L.A. on Allrecipes.com during the month of May alongside a QR code.

Snapping that code with a smartphone will allow users to open the recipe and create a shopping list accessed via phone or the Allrecipes.com Dinner Spinner app.

Here’s a look at the top 10 recipes in L.A. for May:

1. Actually Delicious Turkey Burgers

2. Lime Chicken Soft Tacos

3. Grilled Salmon

4. Yummy Honey Chicken Kabobs

5. T’s Sweet Potato Fries

6. Grilled Corn on the Cob

7. Chicken Tikka Masala

8. California Grilled Veggie Sandwich

9. Simple BBQ Ribs

10. Asian Lettuce Wraps

The out-of-home campaign is Allrecipes’ first. The bus stop takeover is no coincidence: Allrecipes found that traffic (the online kind) to its site increases significantly at the end of each workday. Lisa Sharples, president of Allrecipes, devised the month-long campaign when she was standing at a bus stop after work, trying to decide what to feed her five children for dinner.

Allrecipes is currently tracking the number of recipes accessed by QR codes by location and recipe, for some recipes appear in more than one location.

via mediapost.com

Survey Says: Airports an Attractive Audience to Advertisers - Scarborough (USA) via @ScalaInc

A nationwide Scarborough research survey found that Business Frequent Flyers are 83 percent more likely than all American adults to be the first to try or buy new products and services. This custom study was commissioned by Clear Channel Airports (CCA) and conducted by consumer market research firm Scarborough. The survey results highlight the value to advertisers of targeting frequent travelers while they are in transit in airports.

The study included nearly 2,000 adult participants age 18 or older, and highlights the importance of airports in today’s busy multimedia world. Airports, a “high dwell-time environment,” deliver a captive audience and provide advertisers with a potential for strong returns on investment. In addition, according to the survey, approximately three in four Frequent Flyers and Business Frequent Flyers both notice airport advertising and take the time to actually read the message.

The national survey found that airports provide advertisers with a saturated audience of affluent, educated, tech-savvy travelers. The two key audience groups identified by the survey are Frequent Flyers (adults who have taken three or more round trip flights in the past year) and Business Frequent Flyers (adults who have taken three or more round trip business flights in the past year). Frequent Flyers account for more than 38 million adults, and Business Frequent account for more than 11 million adults, with an average household income of $125,000*. While Frequent Flyers and Business Frequent Flyers represent 36 percent of total flyers, they account for 70 percent of all airport impressions due to their more frequent travel.

The survey also showed that airports have a number of unique, high-visibility touch points — from security lines and concourses to connection hub, baggage claim and ground transportation areas — that allow advertisers to reach captive audiences in impactful ways. Clear Channel Airports is able to capitalize on these touch points through innovative programs that complement the unique airport space, such as compelling digital networks in gate hold areas, baggage carousel wraps and interactive experiential brand exhibits in the heavily trafficked concourses.

“This is an important study that highlights for companies of all sizes the significant buying power of frequent travelers,” says Toby Sturek, president, Clear Channel Airports, Allentown, Pa. “This study identifies a consumer demographic that spends time and money engaging with airport advertising and is very receptive to new products and services. The study is clear: Airports deliver high returns for advertisers.”

"The survey revealed that frequent business travelers are key market influencers. It is noteworthy that even with smartphones, iPads and many other mobile devices, frequent travelers are influenced by airport advertising," said Scott Willoth, senior vice president of analytics & insights for Scarborough. "This research is consistent with the unique value that Scarborough provides by focusing on customized studies that offer deep and actionable insights."

From user demographics to the impact geographic signposts have on advertising impressions, the survey demonstrated airports to be an ideal environment in which to engage an audience of affluent consumers. Among the key survey findings:

Frequent Flyers are 56 percent more likely than the average adult to be the first to try or buy new products and services.

Business Frequent Flyers are particularly hard to reach with advertising in more traditional media due to their busy lifestyles. For example, Business Frequent Travelers are 48 percent less likely to be heavily exposed to television compared to the average adult.

Business Frequent Flyers are more than twice as likely to download a paid app in the past year, and are 128 percent more likely to scan a QR code with a smart phone, compared to the average adult. High dwell time and compelling, large-format inventory provide the perfect venue to reach tech savvy travelers with modern, interactive media campaigns.

The survey also focused on the amount of time air travelers spend in different areas of the airport, examining how that “captive audience time” helps drive advertising impressions and purchasing decisions. Notably:

89 percent of Frequent Flyers spend up to 30 minutes in airport security, meaning that fixed points of interest, such as security lines, are ripe for advertising.

Half of Frequent Flyers spend 45 minutes or more in airport concourses after clearing security.

Three out of every four travelers have purchased food and beverages from airport concessions.

73 percent of Business Frequent Flyers spend up to two hours in connecting airports during layovers, underscoring the importance of hub airports as advertisement investments.

89 percent of Business Frequent Flyers spend up to 30 minutes in baggage claim and 80 percent of Frequent Flyers have checked their luggage at least once during their last three personal trips.

The data in this press release is from a custom study conducted by Scarborough in fall 2011. Scarborough measured 1,983 adults nationwide in the areas of Frequent Flyers and Business Frequent Flyers.

*This data is from Scarborough USA+ release 2, 2011.

via digitalsignageconnection.com

Hmmm... now, that's a thought! From AdAge: Are Consumers Ready for Mobile Grocery Shopping?

Since few shoppers can wait for Amazon to ship their gallon of milk, smartphone usage in grocery stores is an entirely different beast than in big-box and electronic retailers, where the "scan and scram" phenomenon of price comparing runs rampant.

Consumers aren't price checking against the Piggly Wiggly down the street the way they compare the values at Target vs. Best Buy, so mobile apps are popping up as tools for shoppers to find manufacturer deals and make lists as they trawl the supermarket aisles.

Consumers are using mobile more in grocery.

--> Food and medicine are the categories that see the least smartphone usage for research and shopping, according to an online survey from Omnicom Media Group and Microsoft. Phones are used more for shopping for entertainment products, restaurants and consumer electronics.

"You see more scan-and-scram when you're buying a TV than when you're trying to save a $1 on Kleenex," said Daniel Blackburn, VP-mobile for interactive agency Rosetta's Level Studios.

Sixty-five percent of the 3,500 shoppers in five global markets wanted their cellphones to find in-store promotions, according to Omnicom's survey. Making shopping lists and finding items in stores are also top mobile priorities.

In recognition of this, last month, Catalina, the company that powers loyalty programs for 30,000 stores nationwide (including those back-of-receipt coupons), acquired mobile commerce company Modiv Mobile.

Modiv, now Catalina Mobile, is behind mobile apps in 110 of Ahold USA's Stop & Shop stores in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut. Here's how it works: A shopper walks into the store, opens the store-branded app and receives offers based on their shopping history. To skip the line at checkout, shoppers can scan barcodes of items they put into the cart to buy the haul right on the phone. Catalina says the app will be available in 200 more Stop & Shops this summer.

The Ahold partnership predated Modiv's acquisition by Catalina, which operates in more than 85 U.S. chains, including Target, Kroger and Safeway, and distributes coupons for major packaged-goods brands. Catalina reaches 75% of U.S. households across 30,000 stores, said Todd Morris, the company's exec VP-brand development and marketing innovation.

Its focus remains on using mobile to change purchase behavior in stores, rather than warding off online grocers such as Fresh Direct. "Sure, I'll use Red Laser to compare prices on electronics, but no one's going to do that with a box of cereal," said Mr. Morris of the price-comparison app eBay acquired in 2010.

"The whole use case of scanning dozens of boxes of Cheerios to see which is cheaper is a little silly," said Dhana Pawar, director-mobile product management at Coupons.com, which updated its Grocery iQ mobile app this month.

Coupons.com, a behemoth in digital coupons that's raised $285 million in funding over the past several years, focuses on bringing packaged-goods brands into the list-making process with an app called Grocery iQ. In the first quarter, 71% of shoppers made their lists at home, according to the SymphonyIRI MarketPulse survey.

Shoppers create lists in the app by scanning barcodes or typing in entries, then the app organizes those items by aisle. The most recent update ports coupons into the search tool so that, say, a shopper may add one brand of yogurt to the list over another because Coupons.com offers 50¢ off. Coupons.com reports that Grocery iQ has "millions" of downloads and active users use it three to four times a week. It's also added brand advertising: Hormel has sponsored the meat and seafood tab in the app.

To redeem coupons from the app, users can email coupons to print at home or sync the app with their loyalty cards at participating stores, including Safeway, so savings are automatically deducted at checkout.

via adage.com

From Holy Kaw! Pocket money: The power and growth of mobile marketing [infographic]

Via HighTable.com.

Like infographics? So do we.

via holykaw.alltop.com

Fascinating. From HBR.org: Great Businesses Don't Start with a Plan?

You want to start a business. So you need a plan, right? No. Not really.

As part of the research for a book I'm co-authoring — Heart, Smarts, Guts, and Luck, due out in August from HBR Press — my colleagues and I interviewed and surveyed hundreds of successful entrepreneurs around the globe to better understand what it takes to be an entrepreneur and build a really great business. One of our most striking findings was that of the entrepreneurs we surveyed who had a successful exit (that is, an IPO or sale to another firm), about 70% did NOT start with a business plan.

Instead, their business journeys originated in a different place, a place we call the Heart. They were conceived not with a document but with a feeling and doing for an authentic vision. Clarity of purpose and passion ruled the day with less time spent writing about an idea and more time spent just doing it.

It's not that all planning is bad. It's that efforts to write the "perfect" business plan usually lead to being precisely incorrect rather than approximately correct. One problem is that the content that most people focus on in business plans has little to do with the reality that will actually emerge. Many start-up plans emphasize some gigantic potential market and how getting just the smallest sliver of it will make them and investors rich. A colleague of mine offers the hypothetical example of selling a bar of soap for a dollar every month to just 0.5% percent of the people in China. It's nearly a $100M business! Good luck making it happen, though.

At a business's inception, resources are limited, and the best content for a business plan is real-world data based on testing aspects of the concept. These experiments need not be complex. You want simple, iterative tests that are easily measurable and let you know whether you are winning or not.

It's not just start-ups. The strategic architecture of any business should incorporate facts from real world testing to allow one to adjust course as necessary. This is what Henry Mintzberg, a seminal figure in competitive strategy theory, once described as "emergent" or "evolutionary" strategy. My business partner Mats Lederhausen (formerly global head of strategy for McDonald's as well as former Executive Chairman of Chipotle) has his own saying for it: think big, start small, then scale or fail fast.

So don't worry too much about a business plan. But to guide your thinking, improve a pitch to prospective investors, or better align your teams, consider these design points:

1. Identify and clearly articulate your Heart and purpose. Whether you want to call it vision, Heart, purpose or calling, be very clear on the why of a business — the bigger goal at hand.

2. The team is more important than any idea or plan. The top three priorities should be people, followed by people, and then people.

3. Think big, start small, then scale or fail fast. Per Lederhausen's advice, set the right first "start small" milestone; it will usually involve seeing people's willingness to buy or at least try your product.

4. Focus on a well-defined market sub-segment or niche. At least to start, think of where you can potentially be the best. This strategy is almost always more successful than being just another player in a massive market.

5. Understand your business model. How you will make money is more important than pages of Excel showing financials that are simply too hard to predict at this early stage anyway. Understand instead the basic way you will make money - is it through transactions, advertising, subscriptions, etc?

There appears to be a perennial market for how-to classes, books, and templates that promise almost "color by number" instructions for populating business plans. While aspects of those tools are helpful for a structured approach, they are more likely to mislead because of their emphasis on completing the plan of a business before uncovering its soul and demonstrating whether others connect with it. People feel a sense of accomplishment upon completing their plan, but what does that plan really get them? Filling worksheets can never replace zeroing in on the passion and purpose of your business. That Heart has to be there day one. The most researched business plan holds little value without a genuine Heart behind the idea and the Guts to just get it going.

via blogs.hbr.org

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