It's Valentine's Day! Here are 5 Ways Your Mobile Phone Can Make You A Better Lover!

5 Ways Your Mobile Phone Can Make You A Better Lover

February 12, 2011 Posted By: Jeffrey Sass

With Valentine’s Day around the corner, surely love is in the air and we are all getting in touch with our inner cupid.  While we may not be wandering around equipped with a sling full of heart tipped arrows, we do have another tool in hand that can be used to spread the love – our mobile phones! You may already think your smartphone is smart, but did you know it can work wonders on your relationship with that significant other?

Here are 5 Ways Your Mobile Phone Can Make You A Better Lover:

5. Text Sweet Nothings in His/Her Ear – Text messages are a great way to let your love know you are thinking of them, anytime, and by definition, an SMS message has to be short and sweet.  There are few easier ways to bring a smile to that someone special’s face than to send them an unexpected “I <3 U!” or “U R Beautiful” or a simple “Thinking of you… right now…”

4. Send A  Wallpaper or Ringtone – We love to personalize our phones with images and sounds that mean something special to us, so why not share the love by sending your sweetheart a Romantic Ringtone or Whimsical Wallpaper that will make them think of you every time they look at their phone or get a call or message.  Myxer makes it easy to find just the right mobile content and use “Send to Friend” to share it with the one(s) you love.

3. Use “Vibrate” For A Neck Massage – We all enjoy a good neck massage from our partner.  Next time you are offering up a bit of manual stress relief, surprise them with some added good vibrations from your phone.

2. Send A Video Or Image Of Yourself – Sometimes we forget that we are almost always walking around with a camera and camcorder in our pockets.  It takes just a moment to snap a picture or record a video message and send it to the object of your affection.  Be creative.  Hold up a piece of paper with a handwritten sign saying “I Love You.”  Sing a few bars of his/her favorite song in a video.  Send a picture of flowers, or a place you pass that means something special to you both.  (FRIENDLY WARNING: Don’t abuse the ease of sending images and video by sharing something inappropriate or that you will likely one day regret…)

1. And, of course, the number one way your mobile phone can make you a better lover…. TURN IT OFF when you are with your boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse and make them, not your phone, the object of both your attention and your affection!

Do you have more tips on how you use your phone for romance?  Please share them in the comments!  And with or without your phone, have a Happy Valentine’s Day!

And you can start using your phone to be a better lover by sending this to someone special:

Myxer: Privacy Policy | Terms – More from Party 365

via blog.myxer.com

I wrote this for The Official Myxer Blog, but given today is Valentine's Day, I thought I would re-post it here... Has your phone made you a better lover?

Posted via email from Kiss My SASS!

Drew Carey, The Price Is Right (And The Price We Pay)

"Jeffrey Sass, from Myxer... come on down!" Yes! Drew Carey just picked my business card out of a bucket and called me onto the CNET Stage at CES for a round of Geek Trivia! I had just been admiring how down to earth and cool Drew was being with the gathered crowd, signing autographs and taking pictures and joking around warmly. Despite his celebrity he seemed like a regular guy, just as you would expect he would. Approachable, funny, someone you'd want to be friends with and who just might let you... I raised one hand in the air, half whooping, and half identifying myself as the person whose name Drew had just called.

Smile, We're All On Candid Camera...

As I "came on down" to the stage, I remembered that in my other hand I held a shiny new toy...a handheld HD video camera on loan from my friends at Sony. I had only had the camera in my possession for a few minutes and was wholly unfamiliar with it, but it had a familiar flip out LCD screen and a bunch of buttons that I assumed would turn it on and make it record. Perfect! They say the best camera is the camera you have with you, and here I was, about to go on stage with Drew Carey, camera in hand. I HAD to capture the moment on video...

As I pushed through the crowd I flipped open the LCD and heard a reassuring high pitched beep as the camera turned on. I fantasized about the tens of thousands of YouTube views I would get when I posted this uber cool video of me and the uber cool @DrewFromTV. I stepped up onto the stage and Drew shook my hand. I held up the camera and above the din of the crowd asked him if he minded if I recorded. He had barely said "sure, knock yourself out" and I had the camera up in front of my face and pointed at him.

The next few minutes were a blur, mostly because I spent them staring at a 3-inch LCD screen, living life at 720p and 30 frames per second, filtered through the lens of a borrowed video camera. As Drew slipped into his comfortable role as game show host and focused on emceeing the round of "Geek Trivia" I was focused on keeping Carey in focus in the LCD of the Sony. When he called on me to answer a ridiculously easy multiple choice question (something about Linus Torvalds and Linux) I was so caught up in being a citizen cinematographer that I lost all synaptic connections to my brain and though fully cognizant of the correct answer, from behind the camera my brain failed me. As I pointed the camera at Drew to capture his reaction I blurted out the wrong answer, knowing it was wrong the moment the words left my mouth. As the knowing crowd of geeks in the audience chuckled at my apparent ignorance, Drew too looked at me as the dunce I was.

Fleeting Fame...

My fifteen minutes of fame had lasted about fifteen seconds. Drew handed me a consolation tee shirt and whisked me off the stage. I pointed the video camera at him as I left the limelight, but he had already forgotten my poor performance and was on to the next contestant...

As embarrassed as I was at my geek trivia gaffe, I was still quite excited.  After all, I had this awesome video of "me and Drew Carey" ready to blast my YouTube cred to a new level. It was worth the shame of getting knocked out of the competition by the first softball question. Perhaps that would actually make my video funnier and thus more appealing and an even better magnet for views. As soon as I was a reasonable distance away from the stage I stopped in my tracks to examine the camera and replay my handiwork. I figured out which button set the camera into playback mode and eagerly pressed it.

Nothing. Panicked, I closed the LCD to shut the camera off, then opened it again to resurrect the recorder.  I put it into playback mode again. Again, nothing. No Drew. No me. No!!!  Sure, the camera had been on, and I watched my magical moments with Drew Carey through the lifelike images on the LCD, but alas, in my haste (and my unfamilarity with this particular camera model) I had not actually ever pressed "record." There was no video of "me and Drew." Worse, I had barely participated in the experience as I was focused the whole time on making the video and not at all on "living the moment." Not only had I lost the chance to capture it on "tape" I had lost the chance to capture it in my memory, as my only memory would be of the 3-inch LCD screen, and my desperate attempt to make a great video.

To add insult to injury, I looked in my hand and saw the "The Price Is Right" tee shirt Drew had given me. It was pink. It was a woman's size. I would have no video, and no tee shirt to wear to prove I had even been there with Drew...

A Digital Dilemma...

It is wonderful that we are all media producers, with cameras in our phones and literal recording studios in our pockets. The digital age of sharing has changed the way we approach our everyday experiences, viewing everything as an opportunity to tweet, and post, and capture and blog. These can all be great things and fun to do. But sometimes life is better left lived. A picture may be worth a thousand words, but good memories and real experiences can be worth a thousand pictures.

Drew, if we ever have the chance to meet again, I promise.. no pictures!!!

iMedia Connection: Location ROI: The relevance of interruption

Location, location, location... 

William Shakespeare once said, "All the world's a stage, and we are merely players." That was then and this is now. Now all the world's a location waiting to be "checked in" at! Our modern lives are nothing more than a growing trail of digital breadcrumbs as we actively, and passively, broadcast our every move to friends and strangers alike. Despite the perceived perils of privacy (or the lack thereof), the liberation of our location is not necessarily the epitome of all evil. There can be benefits to location awareness, if we are just aware of them. 

You are here 

There is no question that we live in a mobile world. Numerous studies predict that there will soon be more mobile phones than there are people on the planet, and just as many studies state that in a matter of years more people will be accessing the internet from their mobile phones than from desktop and laptop PCs. Thanks to the proliferation of these mobile devices, and especially the growing popularity of high-end smart phones, complete with always-on connectivity and internal GPS functions, your very specific location can be made readily available if you so desire. To find someone today, you needn't hire a spy or P.I., or secretly stash a tracking chip in their pocket. More than likely you can find them through one of the many mobile apps, social networks, and location-based services that they have opted into that share their location from their mobile phone, actively or passively. 

Location changes everything 

For many of us, our mobile phone is the center of our daily universe. It is the focal point for our information, entertainment, and communications, and it has changed the way we look at advertising and commerce. As much as mobile changes everything, location changes mobile.
We have all heard that "content is king" but in an always-on, interactive, digital world, really it is "context" that is king. Context is especially important for advertisers and marketers who are reaching out to hyper-targeted consumers, leveraging the power of digital to narrowcast their offers and messaging to the audience they believe is most likely to respond. The person on a boat ride is not likely to be responsive to notice of an afternoon sale from a midtown retailer; however, the person across the street from the store is. If context is king, location creates context. 

Be relevant 

Location creates context and context creates relevance. In a mobile, location-aware world, everything should be relevant to your interests. The challenge for marketers is that most advertising is still an interruption. Worse, because the mobile phone is such a deeply personal device, and one we carry with us nearly 24/7, the potential of an ad being an interruption is amplified. The person relaxing on that boat does not want to be bothered by an ad on their phone for a sale occurring back on shore. For the person near the store, an ad about the afternoon sale is relevant, and thus to that person the ad is much less of an interruption. Hence, the Relevance of Interruption. Popular location services such as Foursquare and Gowalla are learning to leverage where someone "checks in" to deliver increasingly relevant offers. A check in at your office may present an offer for a discount at the Ben & Jerry's next door (which happened to me). If you believe that at some level all mobile ads are interruptions, the more relevant the ad is, the less of an interruption it will be. Successful mobile advertising can be gauged by this new ROI -- the relevance of interruption. And location can be a meaningful way to increase relevance and improve your standard ROI (return on investment). 

Content can be relevant too 

Location-created relevance is not limited to advertising. Mobile content can also be more relevant based on a person's location. We are just beginning to scratch the surface of what may be able to be done with "mobile aware" content that leverages a person's place as well as their interests. For example, my company has launched an Android app called GeoPix that lets you set different wallpaper images for an unlimited number of locations, based on your phone's GPS information. You can set a location zone of any size and then assign a unique wallpaper image to that zone. Then as you go about your daily routines, your phone's wallpaper image changes automatically as you enter one of your pre-set zones.  As another example, music video site Vevo has announced that its upcoming iPhone App will be location aware and will recommend local artists that might interest you based on your location. It is likely you will soon see many more examples of ways mobile content can be influenced by a person's location. Geo-based ringtones, music, and playlists are inevitable and will create more ways to make mobile a highly personal, highly relevant experience. 

In a mobile world, location creates context, relevance and opportunity.
What do you think? Should mobile marketers be considering location and the relevance of interruption? 

(This article is based on a presentation given at the 2010 SFIMA Summit. You can view the presentation slides here and the video here.)
Jeffrey W. Sass is VP of marketing and business development and chief evangelist at Myxer. 

On Twitter? Follow iMedia Connection at @iMediaTweet.

via imediaconnection.com

Thanks to iMedia Connection for publishing this article I wrote, based on a presentation I gave at the 2010 SFIMA Summit...

Posted via email from Kiss My SASS!

Location ROI: The Relevance of Interruption

Location, Location, Location...  

William Shakespeare once said that "all the world's a stage" and we are merely players... That 
was then and this is now.  Now all the world's a location waiting to be "checked in" to...  Our modern lives are nothing more than a growing trail of digital breadcrumbs as we actively and passively record and broadcast our every move to friends and strangers alike.  Despite the fallout over Facebook and the perils of privacy (or the lack thereof) our liberation of our location is not necessarily the epitome of evil.  There can be benefits to location awareness, if we are just aware of them.

Bring On The Marketers

Last month Jay Berkowitz invited me to speak on a "Location Super Panel" at the 2010 SFIMA Summit held at Nova University, headlined by a great Keynote by blogger, podcaster and all around mensch, Mitch Joel, of the highly regarded Agency TwistImage and author of the bestselling "Six Pixels Of Separation."  An engaging speaker, Mitch set the tone for a day of sharing and learning, and it was my pleasure to contribute a few pixels of my own.  I was asked to prepare a short presentation on location and given the influence of my own experiences and employment in the mobile content industry I gave some thought to the influence of location on mobile content and marketing.  Key points of my talk include:

• We live in a mobile world. 
• In a mobile world, location creates context.
• Context, not content, is King!
• Context creates relevance.
• Relevance determines the impact and success of marketing and advertising.
• Mobile advertising is an interruption.
• Successful Mobile advertising is gauged by the ROI: the Relevance Of Interruption.
• Location Aware Content personalizes your experience.

My slides, and a video of the presentation (courtesy of @iamjeffcohen) are embedded below.


Myxer's Jeff Sass Talks Mobile, Location & Content at the 2010 SFIMA SUMMIT from Jeffrey Sass on Vimeo.

YOU ARE HERE! Myxer's Jeff Sass at SFIMA Summit 2010
 

Do you agree with where we location is taking us?  I'd love to hear your thoughts and views in the comments.

Posted via email from Kiss My SASS!

Women, Curves and Pearls: Myxer's Latest BoomBox Report Picks Blackberries

Women, curves and pearls?  Despite the teasing headline, this post is not about female shapes and jewelry preferences.  It is, however, about female smartphone preferences when it comes to the Blackberry phones they use.  The latest BoomBox Report issued by my employer, Myxer, takes note that despite the hype and attention surrounding the Android and iPhone platform, Blackberry handsets are still the dominant smartphones among Myxer's users. According to the report:

RIM continues to far outpace Windows, Palm, webOS, Android, iPhone and Symbian based on mobile visits, growing from a 58% market share in March2009 to a 63% share in March 2010. Of the other operating systems, Android comes in second, more than doubling over the same time period from 7% to 17%, while iPhone makes a modest jump to 4%, up from 2% from the previous year. Symbian and webOS occupy the smallest percentage of market share with less than 2% combined, while Windows Mobile was the biggest loser moving from 21% in 2009 down to 10% in 2010.Interestingly, the same holds true when comparing total downloads for the month of March 2010, where BlackBerry accounted for a whopping 72% of the 22 million smartphone content downloads, followed by Android at 14% and Windows Mobile at 7%. The others did not fare as well, with iPhone only grabbing a 2% share, Symbian a 3% share and webOS and Palm only representing 1% of smartphone downloads.

Women Like Their Curves and Pearls

While it is clear that RIM dominates the smartphone visitors and downloads at Myxer, it is also interesting to note that the majority of our Blackberry users are women.  While they are Bold enough to Storm the Tour, as the chart above shows, they much prefer the Curve and Pearl.  According to BoomBox:

As broken down by gender, women were surprisingly dominant across all BlackBerry devices, with the BlackBerry Pearl 8130 having the largest concentration of female users at 70%, and the BlackBerry Storm 9530 having the highest concentration of male users at 46%.

What do you think?  Do any of these findings surprise you?  You can download the PDF of the full Myxer BoomBox Report here.

Disclosure:
cmp.ly/4/s52k6q

Posted via email from Kiss My SASS!

Manolo Blahniks And The Palm Pre

As a guy who must not have been paying close enough attention to the footwear of the females in my life, I had never heard of the "Manolo Blahnik" brand of high heeled (and high priced) shoe until I saw Carrie coo over them in the HBO series "Sex and the City." As the fictional footwear aficionado and love lorn columnist Carrie Bradshaw, actress Sarah Jessica Parker would reach near orgasmic levels of delight when she was able to feed her near obsession level passion for acquiring yet another pair of shoes. That is exactly how I behave when it comes to gadgets. I am the Carrie Bradshaw of the cool device, and since it was announced with gusto at the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show I have lusted after the Palm Pre smartphone with the same blind, temperature rising, pulse pumping emotion that compels Carrie (and women like her) to turn around and rush into the store with MasterCard drawn and ready when they see the latest style of sleek Stilettos in the window display. She HAS to have those shoes. It doesn't matter that her closet is overflowing with perfectly fine heels. I HAD to have the Pre. It did not matter that I had a perfectly fine high-end phone, an HTC Touch Pro that was less than a year old. Logic and practicality need not apply when it comes to a woman's shoes or a geek's new gadget!

TO PRE OR NOT TO PRE? WHAT A QUESTION!

When D-Day (or should I say "Pre Day") arrived I awoke in a cold sweat. In a few hours stores would open with limited supplies of the near deified device, the highly anticipated new darling of die-hard Palm fans and those who want to finally see a smartphone with the smarts to take a healthy bite out of the Apple iPhone pie! Over breakfast I debated with myself. I REALLY wanted the Pre. I REALLY don't need a new phone. I REALLY didn't know what to do. I felt a tinge of nervous anxiety mixed with excitement and anticipation. What's a geek to do? Then it happened. I received a sign from above (the Geek Gods I presume). A perfectly and presciently timed email arrived from Sprint telling me that the Pre was available and that I was qualified for an upgrade (meaning I could extend my contract and get the Pre for $199 - less than a pair of Manolo Blahniks!) Decision made!

THE SHACK ATTACK!

Pulse now racing I jumped in the car trying to decide if my odds of successfully beating any lines and buying the Pre would be better at a Best Buy or a Sprint Store. It was 8:45 am. Then I remembered reading that Radio Shack would also be carrying the Pre at launch. There is a Radio Shack less than a mile from my home, far closer than the nearest Sprint or Best Buy store. I sprinted over to the Shack... I was first to arrive and they were not yet open. I pulled on the locked door, failing to get the attention of the lone clerk inside, prepping the register for the day ahead. Should I stay or should I go now? What if they didn't have it and I was wasting valuable time I could be spending to get my place in line at the Sprint or Best Buy store? I was encouraged by the HUGE Palm Pre sign in the window and display in the store, so I took my chances and waited... When the store opened I was first in the door. They had a working demo unit and ONLY 2 Pre phones in stock. If there was any shred of doubt in my mind, it was flicked away the moment I held and played with the demo unit. Like a new pair of Blahniks on Carrie, or Dorothy's Red Slippers in Oz, the Palm Pre in my hand was a perfect fit - pure ergonomic ecstacy! I bought the first of the two units they had, and haven't looked back since.

POST PRE PURCHASE

That was Saturday. Sunday I left for the iMedia Brand Summit in Colorado Springs where I was the only person with a Pre. It turned out to be a great icebreaker and as word spread through the conference that "the guy from Myxer has a Pre" people were literally tracking me down to have a look see. I ended up giving almost as many Pre demos as Myxer pitches, and proudly showed off our current campaign for the 2010 Ford Mustang on the Pre's gorgeous screen. It has only been a few days, but the Pre has already far exceeded my expectations as a mobile device and is without question the best phone, best PDA, and best portable Internet device I have ever owned (and I have owned A LOT of devices!) There are so many small, yet spectacular details that are just right, that just make you smile and say "yes, of course that's how it should be." The Pre has successfully re-thought and re-presented the way handheld hardware and software can and should seamlessly interact. I can't help but be reminded of feeling a similar thrill when I used my first Palm Pilot. Despite their very visible challenges in recent years, it should come as no surprise that this fantastic, fun, functional phone would come from a company that has always had "handheld" in their DNA and a singular focus on devices meant to live in your PALM. For me, getting the Pre was a "shoe"-in!

(This post was written on my Palm Pre!)

It's Good To Be CONTAGIOUS!

Time flies. It is hard to believe it has been more than three years since Scott Sigler ripped open and gutted the newly emerging world of Podcast fiction with his mesmerizing tale of subterranean terror, EARTHCORE. It is not hard to believe that on December 30th 2008 Scott will have his 4th book published (and his second from major imprint, Crown Publishing). The guy reeks of talent and is every bit as good a marketer as he is a wordsmith -- and he's a damn good wordsmith! Scott's writing is, well, CONTAGIOUS!

AN ARMY OF JUNKIES

Leveraging podcasting and social media to the max, in his own inimitable way, Scott has amassed a massive following of loyal fans, affectionately called his "Junkies." As a treat for his fans, Scott has released 12 collectible CONTAGIOUS Posters and spread them across the interwebs on a variety of uber cool websites and blogs, including my own employer, Myxer. You can get the first poster at www.scottsigler.com and to get them all you will have to visit each of these sites (they are all awesome, so you won't be sorry...)

• Blog of all things cool: BoingBoing
• Science-fiction news blog: io9.com
• World's deadliest vidcast: Ask a Ninja
• Ring tone and cell-phone entertainment site: Myxer
• Indie rock showcase podcast: Accident Hash
• Science fiction/fantasy publisher: Tor.com
• Astronomy/science blog and podcast: Bad Astronomy
• Web marketing guru: Chris Brogan
• Killer comedy podcast: Keith and the Girl
• Online culture vidcast: EPIC-FU
• Home of the 7th Son podcast novel trilogy: J.C. Hutchins.net

As for CONTAGIOUS itself, it is the kick-ass sequel to Scott's popular podcast and novel, INFECTED. Here is he official synopsis:

Across America, a mysterious pathogen transforms ordinary people into raging killers, psychopaths driven by a terrifying, alien agenda. The human race fights back, yet after every battle the disease responds, adapts, using sophisticated strategies and brilliant ruses to fool its pursuers. The only possible explanation: the epidemic is driven not by evolution but by some malevolent intelligence.

Standing against this unimaginable threat is a small group, assembled under the strictest secrecy. Their best weapon is hulking former football star Perry Dawsey, left psychologically shattered by his own struggles with this terrible enemy, who possesses an unexplainable ability to locate the disease’s hosts. Violent and unpredictable, Perry is both the nation’s best hope and a terrifying liability. Hardened CIA veteran Dew Phillips must somehow forge a connection with him if they’re going to stand a chance against this maddeningly adaptable opponent. Alongside them is Margaret Montoya, a brilliant epidemiologist who fights for a cure even as she reels under the weight of endless horrors.

These three and their team have kept humanity in the game, but that’s not good enough anymore, not when the disease turns contagious, triggering a fast countdown to Armageddon. Meanwhile, other enemies join the battle, and a new threat — one that comes from a most unexpected source — may ultimately prove the most dangerous of all.

Please visit all 12 of these sites to get your CONTAGIOUS posters, and more importantly, order your copy of CONTAGIOUS now and help make Scott the first podcast novelist to hit the NY TIMES Best-seller list!

You can hear a ringtone version of the promo for CONTAGIOUS in the widget below and send it to your phone!

More from CONTAGIOUS at Myxer

Learn Baby Learn: Turn Your Social Media Addiction Into An Asset

They say it is a jungle out there, but this past week the jungle was in Melville, NY. Specifically, Jeff Pulver's first ever Social Media Jungle was held on November 13th, and I was fortunate to be one of the 50 or so participants and one of the 15 discussion leaders. I am careful to say "participants" rather than "attendees" as this event was unlike a typical conference. Everyone in the room actively contributed to the discussions inspired by each presentation. The day was thick with rich content and thought provoking questions and answers. I am honored to have shared the floor with the other presenters including Jeff Pulver, Chris Brogan, Jeremy Epstein, Leslie Poston, Howard Greenstein & Dean Landsman, Nelly Yusupova, Brett Petersel & Oz Sultan, Steve Lubetkin, Jonathan Yarmis, Ben Grossman, Jamie Thompson, and Justin Oberman. Kudos to Jeff for organizing a very special event, and congrats to Jeff for already landing a commitment to hold a second Social Media Jungle event at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January 2009!

LEARN BABY LEARN

As someone who is arguably addicted to Social Media, in my presentation I tried to give a real world example of how I use my Social Media addiction (specifically to Twitter) as an asset to the benefit of the company where I work, Myxer. I break the essence of using Social Media for Business into 5 key actions represented by the word L E A R N.

L: Listen. Social Media provides you with the tools to be the ultimate eavesdropper and be a fly on the wall to virtually thousands of conversations. What should you listen for? Your name, your company, your product, your industry.

E: Engage. Social Media provides you with the tools not just to listen, but to easily step into a conversation and engage with strangers. With that in mind, you must be REAL and be OPEN.

A: Accept. Now that you have listened and engaged, you need to accept what is being said about you, your brand, your company, your product. Take the feedback to heart because to the world at large, their perception is their reality, whether you agree with it or not.

R: React. What you do next is important. Are you going to be defensive or helpful? Remember, just as you started your Social Media exchange as a fly on the wall, there are others now listening to you, and seeing how you engage with your "followers."

N: Nurture. Social Media is all about relationship building. That first random encounter can, over time, become a valuable and rewarding relationship. Nurture your Social Media connections and you will build an army of evangelists for you, your brand, your product, your company, etc.

Thanks to Sanford Dickert, you can see a video of the entire presentation below. I have also posted the slides on Slideshare.

How have you turned your Social Media Addiction into an asset? Please share your view in the comments.



Blocks Photo Credit: Heath Doman - Fotolia.com

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• Reflections from Social Media Jungle - Nov 13th in Melville NY
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I Do Like Mondays! (Mobile Monday)

I used to agree with the Boomtown Rats and didn't like Mondays. In truth, I don't really particularly care for Mondays now, although on some level I do think I like them better than Wednesdays. Is there a song for that? But I digress...

I do like Mobile Mondays, and and have been working with Alex DeCarvalho to try and grow an active Mobile Monday chapter in Miami and South Florida. Our first meeting had 4 people in attendance... the second meeting, hosted at the offices of my employer, Myxer, had 15, so we are excited to see the organization growing. The next meeting is being hosted by Nokia at their Miami offices on Monday, June 9th. If you are in South Florida and work in the Mobile industry, or have an interest in Mobile, or just want to hang out with a bunch of cool folks who like to geek out about their mobile phones, feel free to join us.

With more than 250 million mobile phones in the US alone, and the rapidly expanding capabilities of handsets and data networks, there are few, if any, devices that have had such an impact on our daily lives, and there are few markets as vibrant and exciting as Mobile. Share some of this excitement by getting involved in Mobile Monday Miami, or in a chapter near you.

Here is taste of our last meeting: Myk Willis, founder and CEO of Myxer, shared some of his vision and views on Myxer.



If you have any suggestions as to how we can grow Mobile Monday in Miami and South Florida, please share them in the comments.

Twitter Intelligence (is NOT an Oxymoron)

The phrase "Military Intelligence" is often jokingly referred to as an oxymoron. (I used to think "oxymoron" was some sort of bleach product I should be using to get the stains out of my laundry -- now, with "oxymoron!") Regardless of your position on Military Intelligence, I would like to take a moment to examine what I will call "Twitter Intelligence," and how I use Twitter to be less of a Moron.

The Twitter stream contains an incredible wealth of information, seemingly random as countless Twittizens contribute their wit and wisdom in bursts of 140 characters or less. Flowing along with the current of the Twitter stream you will find intense conversations interspersed with random statements, announcements, quotes, links, exclamations, exasperations, arguments, ailments, jokes, jerks, shameless plugs, plugless shams -- in effect, the essence of human communications refined and redacted to fit in a "tweet."

THE TWITTER CONSCIOUSNESS

From high above, this living, breathing "Twitter Consciousness" may seem a bit messy, daunting and difficult to follow. Even a bona fide conversation seems fractured as both sides of the discussion are interrupted by numerous unrelated messages from folks who are wholly unaware there is even a dialogue going on. For the casual observer of Twitter this may provide for some oddly entertaining nonsequitors as you read through the flow of messages. But for the serious Twittizen, the scholarly Tweeter, there is gold in them thar hills!

TWITTINTELLIGENCE

When you look at Twitter from the point of view of your personal network of folks you follow and folks who follow you, there is a particular flavor to the flow of information that is cooked up by the specifically unique community you are a part of. Although they may seem diverse and random, the comments, conversations, themes and memes you will experience are dictated by a relatively controlled universe of minds. Your network is not random. You chose to follow certain people for a reason, and certain people chose to follow you for a reason. In some cases those reasons are obvious and blatant, in other cases the reasons for following may be subtle or even unconscious. In all cases, the reasons are there because an active choice to follow was made.

When you forget about the individual streams and look at Twitter as an ocean of messages -- the entirety of all tweets from all users -- things are very different. There is no particular flavor or position and the flow of information is truly random and all encompassing. Even peeking at the public timeline does not give a fair representation of the vastness of the Twitter Mind, as your view is limited to a linear look at a snapshot sequence of tweets.

SEARCH AND DESTROY! (YOUR COMPETITION)

There are a number of easy to use tools that allow you to cleverly and effectively tap into the power of the whole of Twitter and leverage the consciousness and intelligence of all of the information Tweeting through Twitter's (often stressed) pipelines. You can TRACK a keyword and have every message containing that keyword sent to you. You can SEARCH through the masses of Twitter messages and find all Tweets with a certain keyword. Many of us use these features and tools for vanity checks, and to ensure we don't miss replies and messages intended for us. This is certainly a valid and useful application of tracking and searching within Twitter, but I believe the potential is much, much greater.

Used thoughtfully, the ability to track a keyword across the entirety of the Twitter universe is an awe inspiring and powerful business intelligence tool. As a sampling of the minds and marketplace of a global community, Twitter has it all. Messages are flowing through Twitter that are representative of the real-time pulse of different ages, locales, professions, economics and tastes, covering politics, entertainment, technology, health, fashion, news, gossip and just about any imaginable topic. With proper tracking and searching Twitter can perhaps provide the most current and accurate look at interests and trends that has ever been so widely and easily available.

As a practical example, I have been using Twitter to stay on top of trends and potential competitors for Myxer. My tool of choice is TweetScan, a great site that lets me set a keyword search within Twitter and create an RSS feed for the search results. I set up a TweetScan search for "Ringtone" and now every Tweet containing the word shows up in my Google Reader. It has been a fascinating and useful experiment. Through these random "ringtone" tweets I have discovered three potential business competitors I had never encountered or heard of before. I have found opportunities to join relevant conversations where introducing Myxer to the mix was beneficial and appreciated. I get a continuous take on what is popular, liked and disliked from an amazing mix of people who innocently comment about ringtones. This is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. For businesses and marketers, Twitter may well provide the ultimate focus group and landscape for competitive analysis.

WE ARE NOT ALONE

There have been a lot of creative and clever uses of Twitter popping up and "Twitter Intelligence" is just one of many examples of how Twitter can provide valuable feedback. During time sensitive events such as political debates and even the Superbowl, Twitter has been a focal point for insightful, real-time feedback.

How are you using Twitter Intelligence to your advantage? What tools and services do you use to maximize how Twitter helps you?

Please add your thoughts and ideas to the comments. With your help and knowledge (and Twitter's) I will continue to be less of a moron!


Photo Credit: Stephen VanHorn - Fotolia.com

Mobile Marketing Has Nothing To Do With Alabama

Just before the holidays I was invited to be a guest on Paul Dunay's Buzz Marketing For Technology podcast to talk about Mobile Marketing. At first I was confused because I have never been to the State of Alabama and I have no clue as to what they may do special to market things in the fine city of Mobile. Then I realized that Paul wanted to talk about Mobile Marketing as in Mobile phone! What a relief... I have a mobile phone! In truth, I have been involved in the mobile commerce and content arena for almost 10 years and I currently work for Myxer, a leader in ad-supported mobile content, so it was my pleasure to participate in a conversation with Paul, and marketing strategist Greg Verdino. Here is the podcast as it appeared in Paul's blog and on the Marketing Profs Daily Fix blog. Enjoy...and I welcome any comments you may have.

Social Media: I Can See Clearly How Blurry It Is!

It's all getting blurry... In the world of social media, our network(s) become our friends and our friends become our network(s). The business of social networking becomes the socializing of our business. It is increasingly difficult to separate who we are from what we do or whom we work for. After all, if you embrace the transparency that makes the web work so much better, it is nearly impossible to lead a double life online. We are who we are, and all of our Blog posts, Twitter Tweets, Facebook Updates, Utterz utters, Seesmic and YouTube Videos, Flickr photos and the entirety of our daily digital droppings shapes our persona in the eyes of "the community." The lines between personal and professional are dotted and not solid. This is not a bad thing. After all, we spend the majority of our adult lives working and our life's work experience invariably helps shape who we are and how we behave.

A SEPARATE PIECE?

It was not too long ago that I tried to keep my personal online presence separate from my professional online presence. While I did not hide the fact that I work at Myxer, when I did Myxer stuff online I felt I should keep it separate from this personal blog, and vice versa. Little by little, as I found my social network expanding I increasingly encountered people that, aside from being "social" with, I could actually be doing business with. I realized that there were potential partners in them thar social networking woods! So slowly but surely, I have eased a little more of my work life into my social networking and without question my social networking life has eased its way into my business. This has been encouraging, fun and productive on both sides of the fence as I continue to explore ways to appropriately use social media to expand my business, and at the same time leverage my business to expand my social network.

WORK'S A BEACH!

Most recently, I have been having a lot of fun creating short videos as part of my social networking. Whether posting them on Facebook, Utterz, Seesmic, YouTube, or my Social Networking Rehab parody blog, I have been finding video to be a great way to satisfy some of my creative urges. Along the same lines, the other day I took a short video on the beach with my Treo smartphone, and turned it into a silly "recruitment" video for Myxer, since we are actively hiring. On a whim, I posted the video on YouTube and sent the link out on my Twitter stream. Within minutes, in addition to some encouraging comments, I actually received resumes sent to the "HR" email address at the end of the video. A social media video, posted to the Twitter stream, proved to actually be an effective tool to attract potential employees. The lines may be blurred but the results are clear: Social Media and business can and do work together!

How have you incorporated your social media life into your business (or your business into your social media life)?

Send "Work's A Beach" To Your Phone. Click the button >

Video by Sass. Photo Credit: GJS - Fotolia.com

Twitter + MyxerTones = TwitTones!

I recently joined a new company, mVisible Technologies. We have built a very cool and powerful mobile content delivery platform called Myxer. The Myxer Platform can ingest any digital file, and spit it out in the proper format for any mobile phone, regardless of carrier. Through our MyxerTones website we are empowering thousands of content creators and independent artists to play in the mobile sandbox, enabling them to create, share and sell their own ringtones and other mobile content without having to worry about all the heavy lifting. We have radically simplified the process to the point where anyone can create mobile content and send it to any phone, right from their own website, blog, MySpace page, etc. But I digress... The real point of this post is to introduce my entry into our corporate mashup competition. Everyone in the company was challenged to dive head first into "Web 2.0" and "Social Networking" and create a mashup of Myxer and another platform or online community.

As you may know if you have stumbled upon this little blog before, I am a fan of Twitter, and Twitter even made a monkey of me... I also believe Twitter is a wonderful discovery channel - a great way to be exposed to new and cool products, services, and websites you might otherwise never have encountered. With that in mind, my entry into the Myxer Mashup Competition was a no-brainer: Twitter + MyxerTones = TwitTones. TwitTones uses Twitter to deliver FREE Indy Music Ringtones. Many people are already receiving their Twitter updates on their phones...so it is a perfect platform to use to deliver mobile content. I am not a developer (and I don't even play one on TV,) but I leveraged the ease of use of GoDaddy, Blogger, Twitter, and of course MyxerTones to set up TwitTones. If you are on Twitter and you like Indy Music and personalizing your phone with Ringtones, then TwitTones is for you. Follow or Friend MyxerTones and start getting your daily TwitTone today!