Starbucks Stores in New York Now Accepting Mobile Payments

Original post by http://mashable.com/2010/10/24/starbucks-card-mobile-new-york/

Starbucks has seen sufficient success with its Starbucks Card Mobile payment pilot program in select San Francisco, Seattle and Target stores that its ready to extend the program to nearly 300 company-operated stores in New York City and Long Island.

Starbucks Card Mobile for iPhone and BlackBerry lets users pay for their coffee by holding up the 2-D barcode on their smartphone to the scanner at the counter. The application allows customers to manage and reload their Starbucks Cards as well.

Customers have responded positively to the mobile payment option, Starbucks reports.

“We’re seeing more and more customers using their smartphones as their mobile wallets,” says Brady Brewer, vice president Starbucks Card and Loyalty. “We’ve heard from our customers on My Starbucks Idea that they want a faster, more convenient way to pay.”

The ultimate goal of the program is to get customers to trade in their physical Starbucks Cards for the digital variety — it’s a time saving exchange for the customer and a cost saving exchange for the company. Already, one in five of all in-store transactions are paid for via Starbucks Card (mobile or physical), and more than $1 billion will have been loaded on to cards by year’s end.

The extension of the mobile payment pilot comes on the heels of the reveal of Starbucks Digital Network. Mobile is an increasingly important avenue for Starbucks. The company reports that more than 50% of all logons to its free in-store WiFi are made via mobile phone, and that of its smartphone-carrying customer base, 71% have an iPhone or BlackBerry device.

Facebook Fan Page Strategy- Free Social Media Marketing Plan: The Top 3 Ways to Have a Facebook Fan Page that Will Actually Attract Fans!

If you have your own business, then you probably know by now that, even if your business is a physical bricks-and-mortar establishment such as a Real Estate business or a Flower shop, establishing a well-known and well-branded Online Presence is one of the most important things for you to do.

And setting up a Facebook FanPage to communicate with your customers, advertise upcoming sales or promotions and attract new business or clientele is one of the most fun and effective ways to do so!

So…what are some of the top and most important Social Media Strategies for setting up a truly effective Facebook FanPage for your business?

Here are the Top 3 Facebook Fan Page Strategies that You should be Using Now to Build Your Brand and Attract More Fans!

1-  Be “Like-able”: First of all you need to understand that when it comes to Social Media one of the top rules is to actually connect and be Likeable!!  And if your Facebook Fan page doesn’t reflect the kind of atmosphere that your target audience is looking for then they probably won’t stick around for long!

2-  Stay Current and Update Your Facebook Fan Page Frequently: Another important Facebook Fan page strategy is to be sure to keep your page fresh and current with relevant and helpful tips and advice or news about your particular business or store.  Do you have any giveaways that you’re hosting? Let your fans know!  Did you recently write an amazing and helpful article full of amazing tips that your fans would want to hear about??  Post it on your fan page!!  If you let your page get old and stagnant and don’t update it regularly, your fans will get bored and stop following you, so be sure to stick with it and keep it fresh and exciting!

3-  Keep Your Facebook Fan Page Social & Make it Interactive: Now this is one of the Facebook Fan Page strategies that seems to be the most tricky for people, but remember, the key to being interactive is to remember that Facebook is a SOCIAL Media!  It is all about connecting, being social and cultivating relationships.  Ultimately, it really doesn’t matter how flashy or impressive your fan page is if you aren’t using it to truly connect with your friends and fans!

Join the Conversations!! Now, taking it just a step further…. if you really want to take your Facebook Fan Page Strategy to the next level, then something you CANNOT afford to overlook is the importance of YOU actually participating in the conversations and comments going on on your Fan page!
Stay in Control! Don’t just set up your page and then leave it for your fans to take over and create a bulletin board full of spam and links that do nothing to support your business or the purpose of your fan page.  Monitor your Facebook FanPage daily to be sure there is no spam or links that you don’t want to be a part of your page.
Talk and Listen! Don’t just use your page as a means for advertising for your business.  Your Facebook Fan Page can also be an excellent way to listen to your audience and find out their needs and wants.   Social Media, and Facebook specifically, provides a unique opportunity for businesses to really engage your customers and potential customers and then improve their services and products by getting to know even better what they want!  So be sure to have true, 2-way conversations on your fan page.  When your fans make a comment or ask questions, be sure to respond.  The more you can add value and connect with your fans, the more effective your fan page will be!

True, it can take a little extra effort on your part to take the time to engage the fans and clients on your page but going that extra mile is the most important part of a successful Facebook Fan Page Strategy that will help to encourage your fans and customers to keep coming back!  And ultimately, that’s the whole goal of setting up an Online Presence with a Facebook Fan Page.  You want to promote an exceptional brand right?  Well, following these tips will ensure that you do just that.  Cultivate relationships, add value and connect with your fans!

Next,  continue learning more about developing an effective Facebook Fan Page Strategywith the Top Online Internet Marketing Techniques of a Free Social Media Marketing Plan.

Emily Stoik is an Online Marketing Coach, Mentor and Corporate Trainer for what is arguably the World’s Largest Internet Marketing School available today, The  Internet Marketing Mentoring and Coaching Center.  Emily and her husband are dynamic team leaders that train both Total Beginners and Seasoned Entrepreneurs around the world to achieve Financial Freedom through proven business tactics and On-Going Education to stay ahead of the trends and remain competitive in the marketplace today.

Source: Visit Make1KaDay.com for more information

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Facebook launches unified mobile site, announces 250 million mobile users

Facebook has announced that its two mobile sites — m.facebook.com and touch.facebook.com — have been unified, bringing a simpler mobile experience to Facebook users. And there are a lot of those — a quarter billion, according to Facebook.

Smartphone users won’t be losing any functionality because of the consolidation. If your phone supported the enhacned features offered by touch.facebook.com, the new site will automatically flip the switch when you visit.

Rolling the sites together helps simplify things for Facebook’s developer team. Now changes can be pushed to a single site instead of two separate sites, which makes it easier to ensure that all mobile users receive a nearly identical experience regardless of the device they’re using.

The new Facebook mobile can also check to see if your phone supports geolocation. If it doesn’t, you won’t be seeing much of Facebook Places — which obviously relies heavily on geolocation. Images can also be optimized on the fly to keep page performance from suffering on less powerful devices. You can see the three different versions of the share button below, courtesy our friends at TechCrunch.

Source: downloadsquad.switched.com

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Ten ways marketers can use QR Codes

Posted by Lee Carpenter-Johnson on 4/4/2011 to Everything

QR (Quick Response) codes are much talked about at the moment, but will the adoption of such a simple yet powerful code change the landscape of digital marketing in 2011?

Here are ten ways that QR codes could be implemented into businesses, whether B2B or B2C. You will have heard of some of these, but i’m sure there are a few you haven’t…

A QR code is one of the easiest codes to set up, as in essence in it is a barcode with a URL attached. The QR code can link to any page the owner specifies, saving the need for manual entry of a URL.

Some brands have already starting adopting QR codes in their editorial and used it in very engaging ways, but 99% of brands haven’t. The potential is there for QR codes though, and their uses are almost unlimited.

Here are ten ways that QR codes could be implemented into business:

Till receipts

Placing a QR code on the bottom of a till receipt has not as far as I have noticed been implemented fully across retail. This is such a simple and cost effective way of engaging with a consumer especially for brands with a mobile savvy demographic.

Product labels

Whether on swing tickets or on the printed product information the QR code could link to a dedicated landing page that brings up all of the product information.

Consumer mailing

Why not place a QR code on the bottom of all printed and digital communication directing to the landing page showing further content or indeed encouraging readers to opt in to electronic mailing rather than postal.

In shop windows

Direct consumers to your store page for the location allowing them to bookmark the details including opening hours etc.

Public transport

How often do you look at the seat in front of you when on the train?  Why not put a QR code on the back of every seat and sell the advertising space, the great thing is the URL can be changed without the need to re-label the seats. Advertising opportunity also exists on the label.

At conferences

We all have badges scanned but using QR codes on stands allows potential clients to bookmark your chosen contact details, saving business cards and helping to engage the client.

On business cards

The humble business card could do with a face lift, why not QR the card and allow a landing page of detail about the business or individual.

Newspapers

On every offline ad, put the QR code to divert to a digital experience or Facebook page.

Prescriptions

Every drug sold comes with guidelines, place a QR code on the packaging allowing the patient to quickly view the instructions online.

Swimwear

This one is a little different and tongue in cheek but that’s no bad thing. Print a QR on the back of trunks or bikinis very similar to the year that Aussie Bum print on their swimwear linking to the wearers Facebook profile.

There are a few ideas that I have not put on here because they are probably beyond 2011, like projecting QR codes on buildings as well as placing them on billboards, or councils putting them on penalty notice charges, council tax bills etc, allowing us to go straight to the payment portal.

The above list contains practical uses in digital and offline marketing for QR codes, we’ll see if any come to fruition when I review this post in 2012.

Lee Carpenter-Johnson is Head of E-Commerce at Jane Norman and a guest blogger on Econsultancy.

Source: econsultancy.com

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Social Media Lessons Businesses Can Learn from Jimmy Fallon

If you live in Richmond, Va., – or know someone from here – it’s evident that the place has been caught up this week in a haze of excitement about Virginia Commonwealth University’s improbable berth in the NCAA Final Four.

Tuesday night, as I was watching Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, he did a “Pros and Cons” bit about “playing basketball for VCU.” I immediately went to Facebook and posted a comment about the fact that Richmond has arrived because our team was mentioned on Late Night.

The clip also was posted on Late Night’s website, which has been passed around the Internet. That reminded me just how social media savvy Jimmy Fallon’s show is. Mashable proclaims Fallon as one of the first talk show hosts to take social media seriously.

Are there lessons that businesses can learn from Late Night with Jimmy Fallon? Consider the following.

Engage stakeholders in online conversations.

Fallon is a master at starting a bit on his show, then involving the show’s audience via social media. Probably the best example of this is his weekly use of Twitter hashtags. He gives a topic on Tuesday night then asks the viewing audience to Tweet responses the following day. He then reads the best ones on the air Wednesday night. In honor of April Fool’s Day, this week’s hashtag was #bestprankever. Regularly, Fallon’s Twitter topics trend worldwide.

For businesses, the application is simple – use social media for what it was created for – to engage people in dialogue and build relationships. Too often, businesses merely throw out factoids on Twitter with links to news releases instead of using Twitter to really get to know their followers and engage with them.

Don’t stick all your eggs in one social media basket.

Businesses shouldn’t be afraid to try multiple social media outlets in concert. Fallon has mastered the art of using just about every social media avenue at his disposal.

“From Late Night hashtags to viral video mashups, to LNJF, a mobile app featuring clips and joke-apps, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon has staked its ground as a tech-friendly kind of show,” according to Mashable.

Another great regular bit is “Remix-the-Clips,” a segment where Late Night band leader, Questlove from The Roots, mashes together viral videos to form a song.

Using Social Media for Social Good.

Smart businesses know that social media has become an important competent of cause-related marketing and corporate social responsibility. Late Night gets that too. Also this week, fellow late-night host Stephen Colbert, Jimmy’s BFFSM (best friend for six months), donated $26,000 to the DonorsChoose charity and also pledged that Fallon would do the same – supposedly without Fallon’s knowledge. So Fallon – claiming not to have the money to pay – once again enlisted the help of his audience to go online and help raise funds. Fans raised more than $50,000 and tonight, Colbert has to perform Rebecca Black’s “Friday” on Late Night with The Roots. It’s all good fun for a good cause.

So, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon may be in the business of comedy, but they take their social media seriously. The business world can learn a thing or two from them.

Source: livingstonbuzz.com

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The Benefits of QR Codes

QR codes are a kind of two dimensional matrix barcode that need special QR barcode readers, though the latest camera phones are also able to decode them. Though they were created some time ago, it is only very recently that they have started being more commonly used and are likely to become even more popular in the near future. This is because QR codes offer more advantages than linear barcodes and their capacity to store more data makes them more sought after. Some of the advantages include:

1. QR codes can be read anytime, anywhere with mobile phones – This makes them so easy to decode and convenient since special scanners are not required and the camera of mobile phones can scan and present the information contained in the codes.
2. Quick response through QR codes – Though developed a decade ago in Japan to meet the needs of businesses for inventory control, they are now making inroads into multiple other uses in Europe and are gradually catching on in the US as well.
3. Multiple uses of these codes – Simplify access and without having to type anything, it is now possible to

• Visit websites
• See text and images
• Send emails and messages
• Dial telephone numbers

The present technology requires the downloading of an app to make this possible, but with new research these will come preloaded in mobile phones.

1. Numerous apps available to read QR codes – There are tens of apps that help to read QR codes on mobile phones, with some specific ones available exclusively for the Blackberry, iPhone and other smart phones. Most of these apps can be downloaded free of cost.
2. QR Codes on Social media sites – QR codes can be generated and linked to profiles on social networks like Facebook and this eases the sharing of identities. QR codes can be printed onbusiness cards as well.
3. Advertising prospects with QR codes – It is possible to use the potential offered by QR codes to advertise in the fashion world, jewelry and other products. QR codes stored on customers’ phones will serve as a future reference and prove beneficial to both parties.
4. QR codes used in the hospitality segment – Yields excellent results due to ease of accessibility. The codes are seen on many locations next to the name and these coded locations become easier to identify. Customer ratings become easier by just clicking on the QR code next to it. Even restaurants can place these codes on their menus and give details about ingredients etc to customers.
5. QR codes prove most beneficial in retail – They facilitate purchases. Movie theatres allow phone bookings and the ticket is sent as a QR code which when scanned at the gate allows entry. Codes on product labels gives details of ingredients and other information.
6. Real estate deals – These can also use QR codes on sale signs and get all the required details about the property.

QR codes hold promise of facilitating numerous services and make things easier for users.

About The Author

Neil JonesNeil Jones is head of marketing for eMobileScan, one of Europes leading providers to the data capture industry. Specializing in handheld computers like the Motorola LS2208 and Motorola MC70.

Source: slodive.com

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Google adds button to back search results, ads

Posted by vindy.com on 4/3/2011 SAN FRANCISCO Google Inc. likes how Facebook gets people to share their recommendations so much that it’s adding its own option for endorsing search results and online ads. The “+1” button announced last week represents the Internet search leader’s latest attempt to make it easier for its users to share their insights with their online contacts. Someone who wants to endorse a particular search term or an ad simply hits the +1 button. When people in that person’s Internet circle uses the same search term or sees the same ad, they’ll see the person’s endorsement next to it. The +1 button initially will begin appearing next to search results and ads for a relatively small number of Google users. Anyone who wants the +1 feature sooner can sign up at http://www.google.com/experimental. IDC sees smartphone market growing SAN FRANCISCO With more and more consumers and business users clamoring for smartphones, the global market for these handsets is slated to grow nearly 50 percent this year, research firm IDC said. IDC expects the market to grow 49.2 percent in 2011, with smartphone makers shipping more than 450 million smartphones, up from 303.4 million shipped in 2010. Growth last year was “exceptional,” helped by many people buying smart phones that they’d held off on buying in 2009 due to the shaky economy, IDC senior research analyst Kevin Restivo said in a statement. This year, growth will still be notable, but will taper off somewhat from last year, he said. As for which smartphone operating system will reign, Framingham, Mass.-based IDC thinks Google Inc.’s Android software will wrestle the lead from Nokia Corp.’s Symbian software. For 2011, IDC expects Android smartphones to make up 39.5 percent of the market, while smartphones running Symbian will account for 20.9 percent. Apple Inc.’s iPhone is expected to make up 15.7 percent of the market and Research In Motion Ltd.’s BlackBerry software are expected to make up 14.9 percent. Officials target apps for checkpoints DOVER, Del. The attorneys general for Delaware and Maryland have joined the call for companies to stop providing smartphone applications that let users know where drunken-driving checkpoints are. Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden and Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler said Monday they have sent letters to Google Inc. and Apple Inc., asking them to ban applications that can be downloaded onto the iPhone and Android phones. The request is similar to one made by four U.S. senators in March. That letter prompted Research In Motion, maker of Blackberry phones, to pull a similar application from its online store. Source: vindy.com Lets Hook Up

7 Reasons to Add QR Codes to Content Marketing

QR codes (or Quick Response codes) condense information into two dimensional op-art squares that connect offline media to online content via a smartphone. Also known as mobile tagging, QR codes act like URL references on offline media and other flat surfaces.

Why Bother With QR Codes Now?

The growing use of smartphones  is driving the increased use of QR codes. While smartphone penetration is only about 30 percent of the U.S. market, this number is on the rise.  What’s more, since only 22 percent of Fortune 50 use QR codes, according to research from Burson Marsteller, the adoption of QR codes is just beginning. This opens the opportunity for your business to capitalize on this growing trend and impress your clients.

As a content marketer, why should you be interested in QR codes? Here are seven justifications you can provide to your management team.

Engage users

Not only can you use QR codes to attract new prospects, but they can also encourage users to spend more time with your content. Whether you’re representing a museum, a transit map or a company-run scavenger hunt, QR codes can provide additional information despite space limitations.

 

Connect offline and online content easily

With QR codes, readers don’t need to type in a complex URL. They can just snap a photo and are taken to the appropriate page. For example, QR codes are great in printed magazines where you want to direct a user to a specific page or a video without requiring users to enter a long URL.

 

Make mass media responsive

Attract prospects in locations that you might not consider marketing your products and services. You can place QR codes on a broad range of materials such as business cards, conference materials, store signage and windows, product packages and flyers.  Consumers who snap their smartphones over the QR code may become your new customers for your business.

 

Provide additional product information

This is particularly useful to supplement an ad, or give additional usage information via product packaging. Bear in mind that it can be difficult to use a QR code through plastic wrapping.

 

Convert shoppers

Give prospects more relevant information when and where they want it. Research shows consumers prefer to get product and sales information via their smartphone when they’re in retail establishments rather than consult store personnel. Retailers can benefit by placing QR codes on products, shelving, circulars and signs to provide information that helps close the sale.

Drive customer action

Get prospects to raise their hands for coupons and other forms of marketing materials via a QR code. To this end, incorporate a call-to-action in your advertising or offline content or surface.

 

Make media trackable

As with any marketing program, it’s important to track your QR code metrics. Since QR codes are still a relatively new technology requiring a smartphone and a QR code reader, results may be low. Compare QR code usage to the usage of URLs added to content marketing.

 

 

If you are new to using QR codes, here are some tips to get started:

• QR codes should link to a URL that is optimized for mobile viewing
• QR codes should be at least one inch square and placed in areas that have connectivity
• Depending on who you are targeting, you may want to provide instructions on how to use QR codes since they are relatively new
• An incentive may be needed to motivate prospects to scan since they may need to install a QR code reader.

 

Are you using QR codes? If so, how are you using them, where are you using them and what results are you achieving?

Source: contentmarketinginstitute.com

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Mobile Marketing for the Real Estate Professional

Advertising real estate used to be easy. You put up signs in front of the property, held a few open houses and showed up to let people in when they wanted to check out the property. Life was good. Things began to get a bit more complicated as technology progressed. Eventually prospective purchasers wanted to access information about the property from home. You needed a website with property and contact information. As technology progressed you eventually needed to understand social media and be active on sites like Facebook and Twitter. Now with the rise in popularity of mobile devices (“smart phones” and tablet computers like the iPad), Real Estate professionals are now expected to know and use that medium as well. Technology is progressing so quickly, where do you even start? Don’t worry, I work with (and build) mobile marketing tools everyday, and I’m here to provide you with a brief primer on the essentials of mobile marketing for Real Estate professionals.

QR Codes:

The biggest new trend in mobile marketing is Quick Response Codes, or QR Codes for short. These square barcodes can be scanned by a mobile device and display a website or video on the scanner’s device. QR Codes work best as a way to provide additional information to prospective buyers. They work well on property signs, sales literature you pass out as well as on your business cards. Let’s take a look at some of the dos and don’ts for QR Codes, as well as the steps necessary to get started using these.

The hardest part of using QR Codes is deciding how to generate one. There are two main options, each has it’s tradeoffs that we’ll cover here. QR Codes can be generated for free (a google search for free qr code generator shows many fine choices, bit.ly offers QR Code generation along with URL shortening and is an ideal choice for free QR Codes). The process for free QR Codes is fairy easy, you enter the web address of a mobile friendly page containing the information you’d like to display, and the program generates a QR Code for your site. You save the image file and use it wherever you’d like. The downside is that the code is always linked to that specific page. This technique isn’t recommended for places where the linked information will need to be changed (like property signs). The free methods also require you to have your own mobile friendly page.

Paid QR Code alternatives generally offer more flexibility. You can reuse a QR Code, and change where it points to, or change the content of the mobile page. Some of these paid versions allow you to easily create a mobile friendly webpage (without requiring you to be a web developer). The paid versions generally also offer an easy way to track how many people are scanning your codes.

The choice comes down to free but limited or paid and flexible. You’ll ultimately need to weigh the pros and cons for each method and decide which works best for your needs. There isn’t one “right” solution. We’ll take a look at some of the potential use cases for QR Codes next, so you can make a better, more informed decision.

Property Signs:

This is a good first place to start with QR Codes. The code can point to a mobile website with additional information about the property. Adding options to share the information via email (this is included on several of the paid QR Code generators) and a contact form to collect prospective buyers contact information are great options to include. Including images of the house, or a property walk through video can be effective as well. Walk through videos don’t need to be fancy. Many Real Estate professionals find it easy enough to shoot video on their cell phone or an inexpensive Flip cam. These codes allow you to provide additional property information to anyone who happens to pass by.

Business Cards:

QR Codes can be effective on business cards. These can direct scanners to a list of all your properties, your Facebook or LinkedIn page or a short video of you explaining what you do. There are a lot of possibilities, and it pays to be creative with it. Make sure to keep your audience in mind. Who do you give your cards to? What additional information would you like to make easily available to them?

Sales Literature:

You’re likely already passing out property information to people who visit your properties. This is a great place to add QR Codes to provide even more information. The code can point to a photo tour of the house or give them an easy way to share property info. In general, the use case here is very similar to how you’d use QR Codes for property signs. The key is to figure out what additional information would be valuable to prospective buyers and give them that. Different information works best for different property types. It pays to think through what information a prospective buyer wants. Put yourself in their shoes and use that insight to create an informative mobile page linked to a QR Code on your sales literature.

Conclusion:

These are a few of the easiest and most effective ways to get started with mobile marketing. QR Codes and the free and paid generators, make getting started easy. If you already have a mobile friendly website, you’re ahead of the game, and getting started is really easy. If you don’t have a mobile friendly website, a paid QR Code generator that helps you create a mobile site can get you up and running quickly.

Have you used QR Codes? Do you plan to? Where do you think they’d be most effective? Let me know in the comments below.

Source: geekestateblog.com

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Google to introduce new NFC payment system, partners with Mastercard and Citigroup

Google has reportedly partnered with Mastercard and Citigroup to develop a new mobile payment system for its Android operating system that will allow handset owners make purchases using NFC technology embedded in modern phones, the WSJ reports this morning.

According to sources, Google intends to simplify the mobile payments market, boosting its advertising business by offering retailers targeted data on their customers, allowing them to tailor specificmarketing campaigns and offers to mobile phone owners in and around their stores.

The search giant’s plan is to turn each NFC-enabled Android phone into an electronic wallet, and will see the company allow Citigroup card holders to pay for products and services using a new mobile-payment app using a new Android smartphone like the Samsung Nexus S, one of the only smartphones currently to feature Near Field Communication (NFC) technology.

With location-based advertising on the rise, Google would offer small businesses the opportunity to place targeted adverts and discount offers to customers in their area, also providing the consumer with a way to track purchases and their credit card accounts using its new smartphone application.

Google is not expected to take a cut of transactions it helps facilitate, instead the company hopes it can reach new audiences via its mobile platform, expanding its advertising business.

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