Digital Marketing. AKA "What I learned today"

Just sat down from a morning of learning at Paramore University. It's hosted by the lovely folks at Paramore -a digital marketing agency here in Nashville. (There will be another session in the fall so mark your calendars.)

Our first speaker was Josh Clark (@globalmoxie) author of Tapworthy and incredible Power Point designer. Hands down best use of Legos in a business setting.

In short, here are my takeaways on his presentation of "7 Deadly Myths of Mobile." (Yes, deadly. So it's in your best interest to read...)

1. Mobile users are rushed and distracted

Think about all the times you've used your phone during a 3 hour airport layover or when you're too lazy to get to a computer. Personally, I lay in bed in the morning on my phone checking twitter and Facebook, etc.

Customers expect the experience on a mobile device to match the experience of their desktop/laptop.

2. Mobile = Less

Don't confuse context with intent! It's a smaller screen, not a smaller website we want to look at. Because honestly, can you define "a mobile use case" that is different from a "laptop use case" easily?  With the amount of people admitting they checking their phones while in the bathroom, I think not.


3. Complexity is a dirty word.

Complexity is different from complicated. Complexity is also different from dumbed-down. So, don't be afraid to have a lot of content. Think about it as a conversation. People will click more to find out more information. It better be there.

4. Extra taps and clicks are evil.

Unlike the days of yore, there is little waiting time for additional data when you open a new page. With pre-fetched data, this is even less of a concern.

Practice "progressive disclosure." Where a little content at a time is provided to the user.

5. Gotta have a mobile website.

You need to have a website that is mobile compatible, but it doesn't need to be a separate platform from your website. Instead, think about building for the web and not building for different devices.

Content and API run the show. You should build a common back end to serve all the options - mobile, desktop, xbox 360, etc. This is especially true since you don't want to have different content for each device.

6. Mobile is about apps.

An app is not a strategy. Your content is your strategy. So, find content that can fit any platform.

Ex. NFL Network - "Get the NFL. Anytime. Anywhere"

7. CMS and API are for database nerds.

Don't re-purpose the design, instead re-purpose the content.

Ex. The Guardian


And some examples of websites like that have excellent content driven websites:
Boston Globe
Facebook
The Guardian
Amazon

Finally, you can view a PDF version of this presentation at http://globalmoxie.com/blog/josh-clark-talks.shtml. 
Be sure to also check in with Paramore for a run-down on today's event as well.

Ciao!

Apple is joining Facebook in Info Sharing

A recent Wall Street Journal article reveals that Apple apps are also selling users information to ad networks including Pandora, The Weather Channel, Dictionary.com, and Paper Toss. According to Bloomberg reports, "some apps are also selling additional information to ad networks, including users' location, age, gender, income, ethnicity, sexual orientation and political views."

The worst offender was found to be TextPlus4. The WSJ reports that it "sent the phone's unique ID number to eight ad companies and the phone's zip code, along with the user's age and gender, to two of them"

Ouch. We'll see if Android users catch wind of the lawsuit and file on of their own. Interestingly enough, most apps require that you agree to the terms and conditions, including information sharing. The problem is that 45 of 101 apps studied in the article, WSJ found that they did not have privacy policy.

The question is: how do marketers and advertisers get the information they want without violating user's privacy? And why weren't these companies following the integral rule of marketing to respect the user's privacy?