What's in a Name?

The iPad. Unless you were in a coma, you probably heard about the launch of Apple's new tablet. A larger version of the iPhone, at 0.5 inches thick, 1.5 pounds, $499 (base model) + a $29.99 unlimited data plan, it's pretty impressive. You can read all about the reveal and product specs over on Engadget, who covered it live.

There's an interesting subplot going on here, though. The hype around the event was palpable - even the Wall Street Journal noted "Last time there was this much excitement about a tablet, it had some commandments written on it." Indeed, everyone was speculating about the name of the new netbook from Apple - from the iTablet to iSlate. When it was revealed, it looked like nothing more than an oversize iPhone, but as the presentation went on, the functionality became more apparent.

Without a doubt, the tech community - which always gets in a tizzy whenever Apple releases a new product (or if Steve Jobs sneezes) - was so prolific in its buzz that it locked up Twitter for a bit. There's really something to be said about the power of the geeky masses, as words related to the presentation (including Amazon's Kindle, which was mentioned in Job's announcement) accounted for 8 of the 10 trending topics on Twitter at one point.

You've got to wonder about the naming decision on this product. It's certainly in line with the "iP" naming convention of the other two wildly successful product lines, the iPod and iPhone. So from a brand extension, it makes sense. But my first inclination was that "iPad" was too close to "iPod." Surely iTablet or iSlate would have worked from a descriptive standpoint. It led me to wonder if there was something more going on here...

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose / By any other name would smell as sweet."

Romeo and Juliet (II, ii, 1-2)


UPDATE: @brennanMKE sent me this video - an old iPad commercial:

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2010 Digital Marketing Outlook

The Society of Digital Agencies - a group that serves as a worldwide voice of digital marketing professionals with a mission to advance the industry through best practices, education, and advocacy - recently sent me the results of a large survey they conducted. SoDA solicited feedback from over 1,000 digital marketing executives from agency and client-side worldwide and captured some solid insights worth sharing here.

There is no question that digital marketing continues its upward trend. Certainly, when a company like Ford - from the historically lethargic automotive industry - spends 25% of our marketing budget on digital and social media, you know there's a significant movement afoot. And across all industries in 2009, budgets were impacted by the economy, forcing marketers to be more ruthless about seeking efficient results. It should be no surprise to anyone that the rise of digital is a sure thing.

The 2010 Digital Marketing Outlook contains some 70 pages of particularly poignant facts for the U.S. and abroad (Russia, South America and Mexico), emerging trends, changing platforms, social media and more. Here are some key takeaways worth calling out:

• In 2010, two-thirds expect to spend the same or more than in 2009.
• Approximately 70% plan to increase (1-30%) or significantly increase (30%+) their unpaid/earned/proprietary media.
• The top priorities in 2010 will be social networks/applications and digital infrastructure.

Emerging Trends

• Customer experience will be more important than ever.
• Storytelling will evolve - location will become a key component; the speed at which stories are developed is crucial; and above all, emotional connections matter.
• The beginning of the end of the banner ad.
• Branded content syndication will replace some paid media.
• 40% of opportunity is mobile

Social Media

• Social is becoming increasingly mobile.
• Measurement will be more important than ever.
• Real-time search is inextricably linked to the "statusphere."
• Forms of content consumption will continue to be fractured; the nimble marketer will need to be in as many places as possible.

If you're a regular reader of this blog, I think you'll recognize a number of the themes mentioned in the report. But there's also much more - not to mention really smart - stuff in the entire report. Take a look for yourself.







Two Thousand and Ten Digital Marketing Outlook



Photo credit: Will Lion

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Have You Got an App for That?

It seems that app development is where it's at in social. According to a recent eMarketer article, mobile apps for social networks - in addition to phones - are under consideration by more marketers than ever before. As you can see in the graphic below, the leading platform for an app (unsurprisingly) was Facebook, followed by the iPhone.

Fewer than half invested in mobile or social apps last year, but most plan to create one this year. Lest you think that this is simply marketers chasing the latest shiny object, or the boss claiming G.M.O.O.T. ("get me one of those!"), there's some solid reasoning behind the choice to move more resources to mobile.

The strategy: create more opportunity for engagement with customers. On social networks, we'll see a greater opportunity for reach, targeting and sharing, but with mobile there's more creative control and the ability to have a message stick with the recipient longer.

And let's face it: we are increasingly moving to a mobile society. As smartphones - the iPhone, Android, Nexus One and others - become more affordable and widely available, we'll see an explosion in mobile access of the web. And with that, customers will require more custom interaction with the sites and brands they're passionate about - in many cases having news and product information come to them directly.

Enter the app. Or, more appropriately, the hundreds of thousands of additional apps we're about to see.

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