Kik It Up A Notch

Kik, a new entrant into the smart phone app market, has seen impressive growth so far. The company went from zero to one million downloads in fifteen days. For now, the app touts "Free real-time texting...By making Kik Messenger insanely fast, and by showing when a message has been sent, delivered, and read, texting with Kik feels like a face-to-face conversation." Created by Ted Livingston, Kik hopes to build its community and then given its capabilities eventually to roll out additional features. "Basically, Kik’s technology [will] let you wirelessly 'sling' any content on your phone to any device...I can go to my friend’s home and stream an HD movie from my phone onto his TV." While the app currently does not offer any of these features the advanced streaming technology could allow this application in the future. For now, Kik is very excited about the growth and is navigating legal red tape before releasing any music/video sharing technology.

Virtuality Sold In Actuality

Facebook credits, currently sold at Target will now be offered at Walmart and Best Buy as well. Think about that for a second, intangible virtual products sold tangibly; non-physical goods sold physically. Who would have thought? As the holiday season rolls around keep these gift cards in mind as they may just be the perfect holiday gift for any FarmVille/Mafia Wars/Texas Hold'em junky.

Location Based Social Networks... what's the deal?

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been hearing a lot of buzz lately about Location Based Social Networks (LBSNs) such as Foursquare, Gowalla, Brightkite and Loopt. With a growing user-base (Foursquare just passed the 2 million mark) we all want to know who’s using these services, how often they’re using them, what they’re using them for, how our clients can get involved, and if they should. Large chains such as Starbucks and Chili’s restaurant have already partnered with LBSNs to test promotions… so far, with mixed results. Check out this article from AdAge about some of the challenges and pitfalls these early adopters have faced.

A recent report by Forrester provides a little perspective on the subject of LBSNs, finding that less than 5% of U.S. online users have ever used a location-based application on a mobile device. Interesting to note that these users are typically young (~70% between the ages of 19 and 35), male (~80%), well-educated, and influential. Read more on Forrester’s own blog and on gigaom.com

Infographic: The Road to Wellness

Interesting take on the "Road to Wellness" by Hartman Group. Displayed on a LIFE-like board game are various dieting fads, advertising milestones, and other health and wellness trends from the last 200 years. Definitely worth checking out!

http://www.hartman-group.com/hartbeat/infographic-the-road-to-wellness

Interesting Social Media Article

Hi All~

As a follow-up to last week’s BPT, I thought this social media article was very relevant. It discusses that while 78% of companies report participating in social media, only 41% say they have a strategic plan in place to guide their efforts. Let’s not let our clients fall into the trap of participating in social media without a solid strategy in place!

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=130723&nid=115750

Okay, I will get off my soap box now :-)
Laura