www.youtube.com/watch?v=cn0sfJPUH0c

The app is a great example of what I refer to as the ‘ubiquitous check-in’. By placing connected objects on the person or in the environment, the activity of that person can be monitored and then provided back to that person in a meaningful way. With Epic Mix, skiers never stop doing what they are doing but they get access to stats on their ski performance, photos and easy to use apps that help relive the excitement of their ski trip. Now compare the value of Epic Mix with a better known Check-in app, Foursquare:

• Every person on the mountain with Epic Mix is automatically checked-in 100% of the time. The Foursquare picture is less complete with comparatively few users and infrequent check-in activity.
• Epic Mix badges and awards are based on what you have done, rather than where you say you have been.
• The value of ski performance stats, pictures and being able to share your story is much greater with Epic Mix.

Many have asked how leading check-in applications like Foursquare and Gowalla can evolve and become more relevant? Epic Mix, using smart UX, data, social graph integration and game design around a Ubiquitous Check-in, provides a good answer to this question.

Technorati Tags: Check In, Connected Products, Ubiquitous Check-in

The above chart shows that more of the top web companies are now coming from outside the US with countries like China and Russia climbing the list of top online companies. These trends mean that online businesses need to look at other markets around the world and think about what needs to be done to get into those markets.  China alone has almost double the amount of internet users compared with the US and countries like India, Nigeria, Russia and Japan are all adding more users compared with the US.

Technorati Tags: Online Strategies, Web2.0

www.youtube.com/watch?v=0g9vmtG7r7c

Technorati Tags: Online Strategies, Web2.0

Personally, I regularly share through Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. But what am I sharing?…usually it’s information about (1) my company blog, (2) news articles that interest me or (3) videos and music that interest me. Reinforcing the value sharing has to publishers all you need to do is look at the sharing options on any article on Techcrunch, Mashable, HuffingtonPost or other mainstream news sites. It’s a slam dunk, sharing on content sites is brilliant stuff!

Sharing options as seen on most news and publishing websites.

But How Effective are Sharing Options for Businesses?

It got me thinking about the effectiveness of these share options for businesses. As a consumer when was the last time you clicked on an option to share or recommend a service?

Sharing or recommending a business usually puts a number alongside the share button to indicate how many people have shared that content, but browsing through Yellow Pages or any other online directory you will struggle to find business listings that have had anyone share, tweet or like small businesses.

Sharing options as seen on most business listings.

My feeling is that most businesses have implemented some form of sharing button because everyone else is doing it, and it can’t hurt! But, if the objective is to help your business and engage with people who visit your website or directory listing then perhaps it’s failing.

Why would a customer click on a share button on your business page? What possible motivation do they have to ‘like’ your business? How do you meaningfully engage with customers visiting your website?

Would love your feedback if you run a small business and have used social media sharing options here.

Technorati Tags: Add This, Reward Me, Social Media Sharing

Technorati Tags: CrowdSauce, Location Based Services, Mobile Apps

Setting up a Business Page is now a necessity. If you continue to use your initial personal profile to blatantly promote your business, you run the risk of being shut down by Facebook. Plus, your personal profile on facebook is limited to 5000 friends.  If you have a personal profile, you need to create an Official Page(s) for Business, which is  free, and does not have the 5000 friend limit.

You should create an Official Page. If you don’t have Facebook account yet, which includes either a personal profile account or official page, it is straight forward to get started. Simply log onto Facebook.com and you will immediately be given the option to “Create a page for celebrity, band or business”.

The italicised  text above is taken from an email on Social Media and Email Marketing by www.SocialMediaNationRadio.com. I encourage you to visit the site as it’s a great reference for businesses interested in Social Media.

Technorati Tags: Business Promotion, Facebook

The ‘Myzerr App’ is a Facebook Coupons Tab that allows franchises and businesses to promote deals from their business via their Facebook Page. It’s free to install and takes about 3 minutes to setup*.

Planet Chocolate

On Friday last week (10 days ago) we assisted a small Franchise called Planet Chocolate with adding a Coupons Tab to their Facebook Page. Planet Chocolate, who have 4 outlets didn’t previously have a a Facebook page so we assisted with setting up their Myzerr group, Facebook page and Twitter account and linking the three.

The coupons they have promoted provide genuine value and give their fans who ‘like’ Planet Chocolate a reason to engage. A sample of their page can be seen below.

To access the deals customers can print off coupons or use the Myzerr iPhone app to claim the deal in-store and each sale is registered in Planet Chocolate’s group database.

Planet Chocolate Promotion Results

In the first week, promoting deals via the Facebook Coupons tab has resulted in over 287 ‘likes’ on their Facebook Page and 65 additional sales. These results are exciting given the relatively small footprint of  Planet Chocolate. For more information on the app please download the Facebook Coupons Tab PDF.

*3 minutes applies to those businesses on Myzerr. If not on Myzerr businesses need to setup a page on Myzerr as part of the process.

Technorati Tags: Facebook Coupons, Franchises, Social Couoons, Social Media Marketing

About Raz: Raz is a Social Media specialist and the author of 8 Steps to Linkedin Success! – a comprehensive guide to Linkedin for Business Development, marketing, and recruiting.

Technorati Tags: Deal of the Day, Linked In, Raz Chorev, Social Couoons

The experience was frustrating. Firstly, it was difficult to get accurate location based information due to networks only being able to pinpoint location down to 200-300 meters. Secondly, it was expensive and you needed to deal with telecommunications companies that did not open up their location based information freely.

Then came iPhone and the app store along with freely available location information from companies like Google and Skyhook wireless. The development process for this new type of smartphone was simple and using the handset, the developer, and end user, could find themselves on the map. These developments allowed me to develop my app and while its a work in progress, it does what I intended and is a great tool for business.

So what should businesses do?

If nothing else, think about the opportunity. Since late 2008, that’s just under 2 years ago, over 270,000 applications have been added to the iPhone app store and location based services are so pervasive that they are being incorporated into many many applications. Some early uses of location include:

• Check-in Applications – allow you to check-in to tell friends where you are and earn credits, points, rewards. Examples are Facebook, Foursquare, Gowalla, Crowdsauce.
• Around Me – allow the end user to search on a nearby map for businesses, reviews, coupons and local information. Examples are AroundMe, Yelp, Myzerr.
• Travel Apps – access information in cities to tell you where to go. SitOrSquat, Tripit, Flight Status Pro.

I could go on and on about the clever apps available but the ability to pull up a map and find things using your handset presents all sorts of exciting opportunities. So as a business think about how you can use location to market your business:

1. Add your store to apps like Facebook, Google, Myzerr, FourSquare and location services that help end-users find your business.
2. Think about how location is used in your business and explore the build cost for developing an app. In my opinion, not having an app for a smart phone in 5 years will be like not having a website for your business today.

For more information on location based apps and how you can get started I recommend joining your local Mobile Monday group. If you are in Melbourne sign up at  Mobile Monday Melbourne and I hope to see you as a fellow guest at one of their functions.

Technorati Tags: Google Maps, Location Based Services, Small Business Marketing

In my opinion, the ongoing reference to these sites as Group Buying is misleading. A ‘group’ implies that members have a relation to one another, in the case of ‘deal of the day’ sites the only connection is the fact that users have signed up to an email database and accepted to receive an email each day.

Group? No  Email List? Yes

Quite clever really, getting thousands of people to voluntarily offer their email address so that they can receive a random deal in their city each and every day. But this is very different from traditional affiliate marketing in which a business elects to promote a deal to the local school or professional association.

Technorati Tags: Group Benefits, Groupon