The Electric Waffle

Last Wednesday, Google announced that it was making Google Wave public. Prior to this, it was an invite-only service, but this announcement opens it up to anyone with a Google account, without any restrictions. Additionally, Google has enabled Wave for Google App users. So, what does this announcement do for Wave?

Back in October, I received an invite for Wave and immediately began testing it out. You can read my review here. As you can see from my initial review, despite a lot of bugs with Wave, I saw a lot of promise and potential. Google claims to have worked the bugs out and Wave is more stable, however, it still lacks the features that I feel would make it an ideal tool. Most notable is the absence of importing Google Docs. As it stands, you can add an attachment, but you can’t import directly into a Wave for collaboration.

Despite lacking this key feature, I still feel that Wave is a powerful collaboration tool - both internally and externally. There have been a number of examples of companies utilizing Wave: Mashable used Wave to interview journalists; Chris Brogan used it to write a book; and it’s been used at conferences. Clearly, there is use for Wave if you think beyond the basic “IM-ish” functions.

Journalists and social nerds aren’t the only ones jumping on the Wave wagon, as large corporations are beginning to see value in Wave as well - SAP StreamWork announced its integration.

One of the coolest and more promising uses of Wave, and one I’m currently testing, is Unawave. What Unawave delivers is a simple and effective work management application that allows for true collaboration. You can share, assign and track tasks, as well as manage documents. Essentially, Unawave brings the ability for collaboration within a collaboration platform. It’s applications like this that hits squarely on the value Wave provides.

Wave is powerful as a stand alone platform, but once you begin to integrate applications and developers begin to take advantage of Wave’s API, it allows for a great tool within a workplace. While there are still some improvements needed for Wave’s core features, it’s nice to see Google sticking with Wave and realizing its potential.

I love technology. I love innovation. I love reading and talking about merging technology and innovation into everyday business. Usually I don’t buy into the hype; however, there are certain technologies and innovations that suck me in. The iPad wasn’t one of them, augmented reality is. My newest interest - stickybits.

Stickybits allows users to attach digital content (video, photos, text, audio) to real-world products that have a barcode. Essentially, you scan a barcode with your phone, upload content and send it out through your social stream. Your content is geo-tagged and is now in that product’s cloud. If your product doesn’t have a barcode, you can buy stickybit stickers or print them out and tag products using those methods. The process is the same, regardless of method.

Additionally, brands can attach content themselves, and all consumers have to do is scan the barcode to unlock or view. The uses are endless

While mass adoption is ways out, the potential with stickybits is huge. This changes the way consumers can interact with their brand, it changes the way brands can market their products. Brands can now partially control content, but at the same time, they are also allowing their brands to be associated in any fashion consumers choose. It’s an intriguing blend, that if integrated properly, can be an additional mix in the marketing, advertising and/or communications bucket.

A few ideas:

1. Lets say you’re a musician or an actor/actress. How about attaching an a short “behind the scenes” video of the filming or recording. What if you’re a musician and you attach a hidden code for a free iTunes download? Maybe a movie studio attaches a hidden URL for deleted scenes.


2. Giveaways - This is huge. Think “under the bottle cap” promotions. Instead of printing codes or ‘you are not a winner’ underneath bottle caps, you simply attach the game piece to bardcodes.


3. Crowdsourcing - Want to get consumers involved with creating the newest flavor of ice cream? M&M always asks its community to share their favorite M&M color…now, simply have consumers attach a video or audio and upload away.


4. Measurable - The service is geo-tagged. You can figure out where your products are being sold, who’s buying them, what their feedback is, etc. Perfect way of determining how mobile your customers are. If they are, do you put more investment in mobile marketing? ROI, baby!


5. Integration with augmented reality & 3D - Lets say you’re a clothing manufacturer. How about allowing me to scan the barcode, have the product show up in AR and give me recommended outfits? Let’s say you’re a video game manufacturer, I scan the bardcode and a 3D promo video plays on my mobile.


6. Inventory list - Manufacturers could apply a sticker on a box that lists what’s inside. This concept could also translate to moving companies/services. Instead of labeling each box, simply attach a stickybit and upload the contents.


7. Reviews - Bars and restaurants could attach a stickybit and have patrons leave reviews. Other patrons could then scan the stickybit and read said reviews.


8. Personal business uses - Attach a stickybit to a business card and upload your resume, upload portfolio examples, etc.

With good, comes the bad. The issue of control is definitely a concern. Will people upload inappropriate content and attach it to your product? If I scan a can of Coke, does that mean I’ll always upload content that’s relevant to Coke? Will the service turn into a platform of criticism and dissatisfaction?

Like augmented reality and 3D, adoption is the biggest hurdle. From the brand standpoint, there needs to be value. What is going to cause me to scan the barcode and participate? Why should I promote your product?

From a consumer standpoint, what would cause you to use this service?

One of the most valuable benefits of Twitter is the ability to connect with intelligent and talented folks. Whether you’re attending conferences or traveling for business or personal pleasure, Twitter - and social media in general - make it easy to connect with folks.

*Note: it’s great to meet folks outside your zip code, don’t lose focus of building strong local communities. See previous post here.

A few months ago - back when there was still snow on the ground and the temperature was hovering around single digits - I had the opportunity to meet Ryan Moede, director of client strategy at 14Four, during one of his visits to the Land of 10,000 (Frozen) Lakes. So when wanting to write a post about applications from a pure PR standpoint, Ryan was the first person that came to mind.

For those who don’t have a technical background, and for those who focus solely on strategy and communications, the app process may be somewhat unfamiliar. At least it was for me. While mobile is all the hype right now, a lot of brands and PR/digital professionals are being asked the question of whether having an app makes sense. So I reached out to Ryan and his team at 14Four to give me some of their thinking behind app development from a PR standpoint.

For those whose only experience with apps is downloading them from the app store, talk a little bit about a typical process. When are you brought in? Are you involved in the strategy? What role does a developer play?


At 14Four, we get brought in to work with agencies at every stage of the process. Sometimes we’re given a fully baked product plan and can jump right into development. Other times, we’re sketching out ideas with the client over drinks on the back of a cocktail napkin. We can deliver value at any point, but our preference is to be brought into the process as soon as possible. Digital is quickly moving to the core of brand experiences, and we try and make apps and services that provide a strong digital hub.

It’s clear that an agency or brand doesn’t wake up one day, decide on an app, and have one in two days. What are some big misconceptions you see – both from a brand standpoint and from an agency partner standpoint?


While it’s true that it does take time to properly plan and develop an app, some of the misconceptions are that the app needs to have every bell and whistle in place before launching. In fact, we’re big believers in launching an app with as few features as possible – focusing only on those at the very core of helping the user achieve their goals. Once the app is out in the market, then you can make real decisions based on how real people are actually using the app and build from there.

What makes a good app? What makes a bad app?


Essentially, we think a good app is anything that makes the user’s life a little better. Whether it’s a branded utility or game – a great app is one that simply brings delight to the user.  Good apps also take advantage of using services that only mobile can offer, like levering the location-based features of being with you at all times. A good app should fit naturally into a person’s life.

Is there a difference between mobile apps and online apps?


The lines between mobile apps and online apps is certainly blurring. And while we still see native apps that live and operate locally on the mobile device, more online apps are becoming accessible from smartphones. For brands considering a mobile play, determining whether it’s necessary to develop a mobile application or focus on a better mobile web experience for their customers is a critical decision.

For those in the PR industry and not at an interactive shop, what would your advice be when either we approach clients or clients approach us inquiring about creating an app (for whatever reason)?


As the number of iPhones and Droids and other smartphones grows exponentially, every brand needs to take a critical look at how their customers are looking to connect with them. A mobile app may not always be necessary, but understanding where and how your customers expect to engage with the brand is important. There are tremendous opportunities to leverage the unique features of a mobile device to help brands provide better customer service, provide timely discounts and equip the consumer with better tools for navigating life each day.

—

Like I mentioned above, as the mobile space continues to evolve and more brands continue to put more emphasis toward the mobile and online space, app development will continue to be an emerging topic of discussion for brands and clients. While I’m sure most of us never assumed that apps were built overnight, I don’t think a lot of us in the PR field have a lot of knowledge when it comes to app development. Hopefully, this post gives you a little background info from the mind of those who build.

If you’re an agency that needs some interactive work done, be sure to take a look at 14Four.

Bonus: Their site has a sweet photo you can color!

For weeks leading up to South by Southwest Interactive, we heard one common theme - the battle of location-based services. Articles upon articles were written claiming that this year’s “it” item will be the battle between Foursquare and Gowalla. Everyone from Mashable to Lisa Barone wrote posts asking the same question: “who will the location-based battle?” Unfortunately, the only thing about these location-based services that have come from SxSWi has been the annoyance of those attending checking in at every single location they possibly could.

So three days into SxSWi, it’s clear that there’s not a winner, yet all of us not at SxSWi are the losers in this battle. What it boils down to, is while Foursquare is slowly making some progress making it’s services useful to businesses, very few businesses have been able to utilize these services.

Well-respected web strategist Jeremiah Owyang sent a tweet early this morning mentioning location-based services which prompted the following response from myself, which was followed by a follow-up from Jeremiah



In the end, my biggest issue with all the hype before SxSWi is that despite Foursquare taking steps towards a clear model for businesses, it ultimately lies in the hands of businesses to monetize and utilize these location-based services. Until businesses can truly find a way to use these services to draw in customers, convert casual customers to loyalists and ultimately make money, it doesn’t matter what company “wins the battle.”

So who wins the battle at SxSWi? No one wins. Yes, we’re seeing a spike in usage, but that’s due to the geeks and techies who are down in Austin. This increase in usage is not a sign of anything to come. At the end of the day, at the end of the conference, we’ll get back to reality. Businesses still won’t have figured out a way to use these tools and we’ll continue to hype a trend that’s at least 6 months away from having any real success.

This is nothing new though…in the world of social media, it’s always something that’s going to be the next “hot item.” It’s always hype. Never lives up to its potential. In this extreme case, the only thing we got were losers - us, those who didn’t attend and had to put up with the onslaught of check-ins.

Last week I was fortunate enough to be able to guest post on two blogs. In case you missed them, here they are:

PR Breakfast Club - I spoke about how we’re preaching about using social media to listen to our customers, but ultimately, it comes down to sales and increasing profit. You may use listening to increase sales, but in the end, in business it’s always about making money.

One True Sentence - I had commented that I felt mobile was a lot of hype and Rebecca Denison reached out and asked if I’d be interested in elaborating. One of the benefits of mobile is that it’s incredibly easy to measure, and knowing that Rebecca is a huge measurement and analytics guru, what better platform to post on than her blog.

So take a look if you have already. I’d be interested in hearing your comments on either post.