WOW
Folks this is unbelievable! The average user has download 35 applications. The iPhone and the iPod Touch are redefining platforms and mobile use in a way not recently seen.
Just 75 days ago they annouced they hit 500m downloads. That is 500,000,000 downloads in 75 days!!! WOW For you little math junkies - that is 6.66m downloads a day. Assuming that no more iPhones or iPod Touches are sold (right!!) and that run rate stays consistent (of course it will grow!!) That will lead to 2.43b (that's right the "B" billion) downloads of apps.
Did someone say BUY APPLE STOCK or can't I hear anything with the hum of cash registers ringing from activity at the iPhone app store.
Monday, April 13, 2009
audio based mobile ads
This is a great concept and has a great deal of upside. Imagine being able to deliver an offer that can be regularly updated with new voices and service options. The response rate to a trusted and respect voice should really change the impact and the value proposition for the ad and the ad space.
A key question is the integration so that the interaction and audio is not see and intrusive. While hearing options highly relevant ads can be very effective, hearing ones that are irrelvant to me, to long or intrusive will immediately tune me out. User/consumer knowledge and preference will be the key driver here to make the user experience positive. A failure by early adopters to understandthis will tune out the target audience before things really get off the ground.
Full article
The Science & Art Of Audio-Based Mobile Ads
by Randy Haldeman, 4 hours ago
Ask 100 mobile marketers why a particular mobile ad works and another doesn't and you're likely to get a 100 different opinions. Unfortunately, there's no right answer. But with voice ads, we've discovered there are some things you can do, with both the art and the science, which can make the difference between good response and great.
The Art of Crafting Voice Ads
Just because audio ads can sound like radio spots doesn't mean they necessarily should. In-call voice ads aren't broadcasts...they're effectively uni-casts, delivered right into the ear of a listener. Most of us don't talk like radio announcers when we call our friends, so it makes sense that the most successful ads use voices and vocal deliveries that sound personal...dare I say, intimate. Our best-performing ads have been those that sound and feel like a personal conversation, rather than a pre-packaged monologue.
Also, the gender of the voice matters a lot, depending on what the promotion is. Campaign opt-in rates almost double from 1.5% to 2.8% when switching from a male voice to a female voice. Why? Because the ad was targeting parents, and the motherly voice was more reassuring to our callers. In other campaigns, though, the male voice got the better response, usually those that were targeting teens and young adults. We've seen responses in the 6-8% range for some of our more "manly" promotions.
The Art of The Offer
Sure, hearing a targeted brand message on the phone is worth something, but with mobile, you can do so much more, such offering things like promo codes, coupons, directions, or links to free stuff. In fact, one recent A/B test we did had response rates shoot up nearly 4X by offering a free mobile ringtone.
How about a little reminder? One option is SMS messages that can be scheduled for delivery at a specific time in the future. We are currently running a TV tune-in campaign that will send out an alert with details of that week's show (special guests, clues, teasers, etc). This way, we are mobilizing thousands of viewers to watch each week. It's key to keep the messages targeted and relevant and even a little quirky to keep the audience wanting more.
The Science of Crafting Voice Ads
Voice User Interface (VUI) Designers can talk for hours on the science of how to structure effective voice ads. For example, there's a big difference between, "Press 1 now to get your coupon," and "To get your coupon, press 1 now." The reason comes down to our faulty memories. By putting the offer BEFORE the action, people are better able to remember what they're supposed to do and are consistently more likely to do it.
It is also important to align the call-to-action with how the brain would think about it. Here's a typical marketing versus VUI discussion I had last week. I wanted to have the call-to-action of a particular campaign be the brand name of our customer (assume it was Gatorade), so it would say "To get your dollar-off coupon, say Gatorade." I figured it would further impress the brand in the customer's mind and on their lips. But I lost out to the argument that the time-tested most effective way to get someone to act is to align the action word with the requested behavior, so our call-to-action now says "To get your coupon, say 'Send it!'" And, by golly, it is working well.
The Next Frontier
Voice advertising is new to many marketers, but has been gaining wider and following. It works on all 5 billion phones in the world, including 3.5 billion mobile phones, and usually gets 5 to 10X the opt-in rates of online ads. As with every emerging advertising medium, we learn new and interesting things on a daily basis, on both the science and art of creating effective ads
A key question is the integration so that the interaction and audio is not see and intrusive. While hearing options highly relevant ads can be very effective, hearing ones that are irrelvant to me, to long or intrusive will immediately tune me out. User/consumer knowledge and preference will be the key driver here to make the user experience positive. A failure by early adopters to understandthis will tune out the target audience before things really get off the ground.
Full article
The Science & Art Of Audio-Based Mobile Ads
by Randy Haldeman, 4 hours ago
Ask 100 mobile marketers why a particular mobile ad works and another doesn't and you're likely to get a 100 different opinions. Unfortunately, there's no right answer. But with voice ads, we've discovered there are some things you can do, with both the art and the science, which can make the difference between good response and great.
The Art of Crafting Voice Ads
Just because audio ads can sound like radio spots doesn't mean they necessarily should. In-call voice ads aren't broadcasts...they're effectively uni-casts, delivered right into the ear of a listener. Most of us don't talk like radio announcers when we call our friends, so it makes sense that the most successful ads use voices and vocal deliveries that sound personal...dare I say, intimate. Our best-performing ads have been those that sound and feel like a personal conversation, rather than a pre-packaged monologue.
Also, the gender of the voice matters a lot, depending on what the promotion is. Campaign opt-in rates almost double from 1.5% to 2.8% when switching from a male voice to a female voice. Why? Because the ad was targeting parents, and the motherly voice was more reassuring to our callers. In other campaigns, though, the male voice got the better response, usually those that were targeting teens and young adults. We've seen responses in the 6-8% range for some of our more "manly" promotions.
The Art of The Offer
Sure, hearing a targeted brand message on the phone is worth something, but with mobile, you can do so much more, such offering things like promo codes, coupons, directions, or links to free stuff. In fact, one recent A/B test we did had response rates shoot up nearly 4X by offering a free mobile ringtone.
How about a little reminder? One option is SMS messages that can be scheduled for delivery at a specific time in the future. We are currently running a TV tune-in campaign that will send out an alert with details of that week's show (special guests, clues, teasers, etc). This way, we are mobilizing thousands of viewers to watch each week. It's key to keep the messages targeted and relevant and even a little quirky to keep the audience wanting more.
The Science of Crafting Voice Ads
Voice User Interface (VUI) Designers can talk for hours on the science of how to structure effective voice ads. For example, there's a big difference between, "Press 1 now to get your coupon," and "To get your coupon, press 1 now." The reason comes down to our faulty memories. By putting the offer BEFORE the action, people are better able to remember what they're supposed to do and are consistently more likely to do it.
It is also important to align the call-to-action with how the brain would think about it. Here's a typical marketing versus VUI discussion I had last week. I wanted to have the call-to-action of a particular campaign be the brand name of our customer (assume it was Gatorade), so it would say "To get your dollar-off coupon, say Gatorade." I figured it would further impress the brand in the customer's mind and on their lips. But I lost out to the argument that the time-tested most effective way to get someone to act is to align the action word with the requested behavior, so our call-to-action now says "To get your coupon, say 'Send it!'" And, by golly, it is working well.
The Next Frontier
Voice advertising is new to many marketers, but has been gaining wider and following. It works on all 5 billion phones in the world, including 3.5 billion mobile phones, and usually gets 5 to 10X the opt-in rates of online ads. As with every emerging advertising medium, we learn new and interesting things on a daily basis, on both the science and art of creating effective ads
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Mini Rant
Do people still go for/fall for these crazy - Get a free ringtone scams and enter their mobile number just to get billed $9.99 or even $19.99 a month. These things are crazy and I would have thought post Jamster most mobile users would have moved on. With the totally free services out there (Mobizaar is just one) you would think that these services would have gone the way of the Dodo bird. But not yet!!
The best example is that there are endless (and I really mean endless) numbers of these groups that advertise on every ad server network from Google Adsense on down. Believe me, they wouldn't be paying those rates unless the return didn't justify it. What is the bottom line - there are still plenty of dupes who don't scroll down the page to see the real terms and just enter their number for the "FREE RINGTONE"!
When will these people learn!
Do people still go for/fall for these crazy - Get a free ringtone scams and enter their mobile number just to get billed $9.99 or even $19.99 a month. These things are crazy and I would have thought post Jamster most mobile users would have moved on. With the totally free services out there (Mobizaar is just one) you would think that these services would have gone the way of the Dodo bird. But not yet!!
The best example is that there are endless (and I really mean endless) numbers of these groups that advertise on every ad server network from Google Adsense on down. Believe me, they wouldn't be paying those rates unless the return didn't justify it. What is the bottom line - there are still plenty of dupes who don't scroll down the page to see the real terms and just enter their number for the "FREE RINGTONE"!
When will these people learn!
Another wireless app store - It is getting to the point where anyone remotely within earshot of the wireless industry is announcing an app store. No one really have said or indicated that they are anything other than a copycat service. What and how are these late entrants going do anything to attract sufficient users justify the costs.
What's more, there are now 1000s of apps but only about 25-50 get exposure and traction to get any market penetration. We will see how this shakes out but it is likely that many will have to start doing this out of love rather than commercial viability.
See article below about Cox Communications announcement of potential app store (they haven't even set up service or sold a phone!!!!).
Cox Communications mulls mobile app store
April 9, 2009 — 9:59am ET By Jason Ankeny
With U.S. cable giant Cox Communications poised to launch wireless voice and data services in the second half of this year, the Wall Street Journal reports the company is considering plans to launch its own mobile application storefront in the tradition of Apple's App Store. "We don't want to be at a comparative disadvantage with what's already out there," said Cox vice president of wireless Stephen Bye. Sources familiar with the matter report Cox is collaborating with mobile content and applications provider mPortal to develop the store. Cox is presently the third largest cable operator in the U.S., serving more than six million subscribers, most of them in the South and Southwest.
For more on the Cox app store:- read this Wall Street Journal article
Link to fiercewireless article
What's more, there are now 1000s of apps but only about 25-50 get exposure and traction to get any market penetration. We will see how this shakes out but it is likely that many will have to start doing this out of love rather than commercial viability.
See article below about Cox Communications announcement of potential app store (they haven't even set up service or sold a phone!!!!).
Cox Communications mulls mobile app store
April 9, 2009 — 9:59am ET By Jason Ankeny
With U.S. cable giant Cox Communications poised to launch wireless voice and data services in the second half of this year, the Wall Street Journal reports the company is considering plans to launch its own mobile application storefront in the tradition of Apple's App Store. "We don't want to be at a comparative disadvantage with what's already out there," said Cox vice president of wireless Stephen Bye. Sources familiar with the matter report Cox is collaborating with mobile content and applications provider mPortal to develop the store. Cox is presently the third largest cable operator in the U.S., serving more than six million subscribers, most of them in the South and Southwest.
For more on the Cox app store:- read this Wall Street Journal article
Link to fiercewireless article
Trio of 'thin touchscreen phones' inbound for Nokia later this year?
by Chris Ziegler Posted Apr 9th 2009 at 8:02AM
One look at the N97 will tell you that Nokia intends to take this whole touch thing pretty seriously, and considering that we're talking about the largest handset maker in the world here, it shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone that they've got new touch models in the pipe; the volume and style of those new models, though, might be a little shocking. TheStreet.com is reporting "people familiar with the plan" as saying that Espoo will launch up to three different thin touch-enabled models by this fall using the VibeTonz tech it licensed from Immersion back in the day, suggesting that the company's more traditional non-touch S60 devices might have to start to share the spotlight equally with touchier brethren. VibeTonz should give Nokia plenty of options for tailoring haptic feedback based on user interaction, but here's our question: what the hell ever happened to Haptikos?
http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2009/04/09/trio-of-thin-touchscreen-phones-inbound-for-nokia-later-this-y/
One look at the N97 will tell you that Nokia intends to take this whole touch thing pretty seriously, and considering that we're talking about the largest handset maker in the world here, it shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone that they've got new touch models in the pipe; the volume and style of those new models, though, might be a little shocking. TheStreet.com is reporting "people familiar with the plan" as saying that Espoo will launch up to three different thin touch-enabled models by this fall using the VibeTonz tech it licensed from Immersion back in the day, suggesting that the company's more traditional non-touch S60 devices might have to start to share the spotlight equally with touchier brethren. VibeTonz should give Nokia plenty of options for tailoring haptic feedback based on user interaction, but here's our question: what the hell ever happened to Haptikos?
http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2009/04/09/trio-of-thin-touchscreen-phones-inbound-for-nokia-later-this-y/
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