The document discusses predictions for the future of the web, including that by 2014 we will create more unique information than in the past 5,000 years combined. It also discusses the evolution of web technologies from Web 1.0 to 3.0, the rise of user generated content and social media, new forms of ephemeral messaging, and the growing role of mobile internet access. The document also makes predictions about payment technologies, 3D printing, and how people consume information online.
12. It’s not the strongest
of the species that
survive, nor the most
intelligent, but the
one most responsive
to change
- Charles Darwin
13. Web 1,2 and 3
• The Semantic Web
• Google love/hate
• The Splinternet (Forrester Research)
14. Definitions of Web 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0
Web 1.0 – The static
web (html files – no
interaction)
15. Definitions of Web 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0
Web 2.0 – Examples of
Web 2.0 include web-based
communities, hosted
services, web applications,
social-networking sites,
video-sharing sites, wikis,
blogs, mashups etc. Web
2.0 sites allow their users to
interact with other users or
to change website content.
16. Definitions of Web 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0
Web 3.0 – The Semantic
Web, making it possible for the
web to “understand” and
satisfy the requests of
people.
17. The right information at the right time !
• Time to wake up
• Traffic this morning on the way to work
• Here is your Boarding Pass
• Where is your meeting?
• You have a date tonight
• DHL have delivered to your home
18.
19. In the last 2 years...
–
– 350 million users to 1.4 billion active users
– 75 million user accounts to 500+ million active
users
– 50 million users worldwide to 300+ million users
– 1 billion active users (... since July 2011 launch)
– 70 million users.
23. Temporary Social Media!
“Messages that quickly self-destruct could
enhance the privacy of online
communication and make people feel
freer to be spontaneous.”
37. Online Disinhibition
“Online disinhibition is mainly
due to the illusion of
anonymity and invisibility
given by the possibility to hide
behind the monitor and newly
created online identities.”
55. So… if you work in marketing, you better start upping your game!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=P81bb0Tzwbo
56. State of the internet
- Asia: 1,016,799,076 (44.8% of internet users worldwide)
- Europe: 500,723,686 (22.1%)
- North America: 273,067,546 (12.0%)
- Latin America / Caribbean: 235,819,740 (10.4%)
- Africa: 139,875,242 (6.2%)
- Middle East: 77,020,995 (3.4%)
- Oceania / Australia: 23,927,457 (1.1%)
Internet users worldwide by regions, year-end 2011 (December 2011) –
www.newmediatrendwatch.com
64. e-commerce
Worth £121 billion in 2010, it contributes to 8.3% of the UK economy,
growing at a faster rate than many other countries. (UK Office of National
Statistics)
China aims to have 18 trillion yuan ($2.8T USD) of e-commerce by 2015 !
The main barriers to entry are supply
chain & order fulfilment.
113. Asset-Light generation …
A new asset-light generation is emerging,
living from hand to cloud and back again.
Welcome to the rise of the Sharing
Economy
Welcome to “The Makers”
114.
115.
116.
117.
118.
119. Arab-looking man of Syrian descent found in
garage building what looks like a bomb
183. Google
“Google’s mission is to organise the
world’s information and make it
universally accessible and useful.”
Larry Page, Google co-founder and CEO, once described the “perfect search engine” as
something that “understands exactly what you mean and gives you back exactly what you
want.”
191. December 2013
• December 2, 2013 SCHAFT, Inc, .Robotics, humanoid robots JPN
• December 3, 2013 Industrial Perception Robotic arms, computer vision USA
• December 4, 2013 Redwood Robotics Robotic arms USA
• December 5, 2013 Meka Robotics Robots USA
• December 6, 2013 Holomni Robotic wheels USA
• December 7, 2013 Bot & Dolly Robotic cameras SA
• December 8, 2013 AutofussAds and Design USA
• December 10, 2013 Boston Dynamics Robotics, USA
204. What is the Knowledge Graph?
It shows up in many
forms. The one we see
most often is this side
box or panel, which we
also often refer to as the
“Knowledge Graph.”
227. Google announced (in their updated terms and conditions) on
Oct 11th
2013 that they would be
monetising your reviews, comments, +1’s !
You’re Not Just The Product,
You’re The Ads !!!
236. 3D Printing/Fabricators
• Print?: a spare part for your car, a lampshade, or
a violin!
• Today: Only plastics, resins, metals
• Cost: Currently same as a laser printer was in
1985. (£10,000+)
• Advantage: No waste (1/10th
) used, No factories
• Possibilities: Endless, even RepRap.
• www.fabathome.org
[www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMhG4fWQnlE]
265. Reading on the Web
• Users are impatient and hurried
– Have a goal they want to achieve
– Typically reading for research rather than entertainment
– Content must provide value quickly or users will move on
• Users read 25% slower from computer screens than
from paper
– Reading from a screen is uncomfortable and tiring
– Emitted rather than reflected light
– So you should use less content than you would on paper
• 79% of users scan rather than read word for word
– Typically only read ~ 28% of words on the page
– Pick out highlighted words, headings, bullets
– Looking for information bearing content
266. WRITING TEXT IN UPPER CASE
SLOWS THE READER DOWN. THIS MAY
BE BECAUSE PEOPLE READ WHOLE
WORDS AT A TIME AND ALL-CAPITAL
TYPE BREAKS THE WORD PATTERNS
THAT WE EXPECT TO SEE.
ALTERNATIVELY WE MAY JUST LACK
PRACTICE IN READING BLOCK
CAPITALS TEXT.
267. Aoccdrnig to rseerach at Cmabrigde
Uinvetrisy, the oredr of ltteers in a wrod
deosn’t mttaer. The olny iprmoatnt tihng is
taht the frist and lsat lteter be at the rghit
pcale. The rset can be a toatl mses and
you can sitll raed it wtihuot any porbmels.
Tihs is bcusaea the hmuan mnid deos not
raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as
a wlohe.
268. “1 minute of video is worth 1.8 million words” – Forrester (April 2010)
279. Who do you trust?
• Only 14% of people trust advertisements
• 78% of people trust the recommendations
of other consumers Nielsen “Trust in Advertising” report – October 2007
“Why” are review so powerful?
•Increase conversion rates
•Brand Trust
•Fresh content about you
280. Three Simple Questions
• Who are your customers?
• Where do they hang out online?
• How can we best engage with and energise them?
282. Customer Personas?
The key to successful marketing is making marketing
people love. And the first step to making marketing
people love is understanding *what* your best
customer loves.
http://blog.hubspot.com
Match.com your customers…
•Retired couples have different requirements to young
parents
•Do young couples want to hang out in the same places as
retired couples?
•Brides to be don’t necessarily care about high tea offers.
•High earning management executives want challenging
team building activities citizenM is a hotel chain in Europe that offers
affordable luxury for the mobile citizens of
the world.
292. Social Media Policy ..
Social Media Guidance
Internet Postings Policy
Blogging Policy
Social Media Policy
Social Media Handboook
Social Media Policy Template
Online Communications Guidelines
Facebook Comments Policy
Online Database of 217 policies - http://socialmediagovernance.com/policies.php
308. WikitudeWikitude
Augmented Reality connects reality with computer-generated data.
Information is shown on the current camera display of the smartphone.
The exact positioning of data in a live photo is possible thanks to the
equipment of modern smartphones: using the data of GPS, the compass
and the movement sensor, the exact geographical coordinates are
calculated. In the case of the Wikitude World Browser, the data comes
from cooperation partners like the online yellow pages qype, Wikipedia
or the user community.
Package includes:
The Wikitude Java API;
javadocs;
documentation and
a sample application,
335. Comply with Standards – even more
• Captcha – “Completely Automated Public
Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart”
DDA compliant Captcha - http://doepud.co.uk/work-with-us
362. Google Remarketing …
Some facts: 70% of visitors abandon their shopping carts
96% of visitors to a site leave without completing the
action you want.
Remarketing allows you to re-engage with them as the surf other sites on the web (GDN) i.e. you
have an opportunity to win back lost potential customers.
In order to use remarketing you must link Google Adwords with Google Analytics
You need to make 1 small (1 time) change to your Google Analytics code.
Google Analytics then allows you to create lists of users to use get back in front of and you are able
to remove them from the list once they have been converted.
366. Quora is a question-and-answer website created, edited
and organized by its community of users. The company
was founded in June 2009, and the website was made
available to the public on June 21, 2010.
www.quora.com
Available as a mobile app on iphone & Android
369. • Klout (based in San Francisco) is a company that provides social media
analytics to measure your influence across your social network.
• Networks used are:
Twitter, Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, FourSquare, YouTube,
Instagram, Tumblr, Blogger, Wordpress, Last.fm, Flickr.
Network coming soon are:
• Quora, Yelp, Posterous, bit.ly, BranchOut, DisQus, LiveFyre.
Benefits: Upgrades on hotels & flights, more job interviews, more
speaker engagement?
379. The Long Tail
What Happens When the Economics of Scarcity Meets the
Economics of Abundance?
380. Do you know your social networks?
• I like Donuts
• I’m eating a Donut now
• This is the location where I eat Donuts
• Why am I eating donuts?
• Look at my Donut video
• I’m good at eating Donuts
• Here’s a vintage photo of my Donut
• Here’s a Donut Recipe
• Now listening to “Donuts”
Stephen Whitelaw – The Future of the Web for – Ayrshire Business Week.
Date: Monday 5th October 2015
Email: stephenwhitelaw@hotmail.com
Skype: sirstevie6
Predicting the future is never easy !
The Honeywell Kitchen Computer or H316
Released on 1969 for storing recipes! Sold by Neiman Marcus for $10,000
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honeywell_316
http://www.google.co.uk/landing/now/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evan_Spiegel - 23 years old – turned down $3,000,000 for Snapchat in Nov 2013
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xb1baFt1grQ
http://www.commercialfreechildhood.org/ - ccfc against it !
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P81bb0Tzwbo
http://www.google.com/loon/
GDP of Scotland about £124 Billion
Turnover of Alibaba Group overtook this in Dec 2012 (They did 3 Billion USD on one days online trading)
www.shutl.com
Shutl is effectively crowd sourcing delivery.
Anything on the web can be delivered in under 90 mins !
Unemployed folks can earn money
Shutl will oil the wheels of e-commerce in the UK and beyond
Amazon Lockers help oil the wheels of e-commerce – less friction thus more sales.
Launched in UK in August 2012.
Launched 31st March 2015 – not an April fools joke!
Amazon Dash Button
13th Feb 2013 Republic chain enters administration.
Woolworths stores went into administration in December 2008.
www.woolworths.co.uk
No customers
Jan 22nd Tesco opens its 5th internet ‘dark store’ in Enfield, North London.
Staff pick for customers.
ROPO is also a real trend – research online / shop offline..
Frasers morphs in Argos !
Most US homes now have no landline
Internet provided through cable, TV, satellite, mobile etc …
21% of Americans
Motorola employee Marty Cooper – made first mobile call 40 years ago – 3rd April 1973 !
http://mashable.com/2012/11/09/charge-cycle-bikes/
Plan to have 30 of them by May 2013.
Research from Microsoft (Bing)
www.hoteltonight.com/
Unsold rooms – discounted up to 70%
This market is on fire …
Apple Passport
Bu.mp
Works with Android and iphone.
Square url is https://squareup.com/
Founded by Jack Dorsey – also founder of Twitter.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-21536535
Apple Passport – new with ios6 – August 2012
Mcommerce … mpayments …. Mwallet is coming – will replace your entire wallet e.g. cash, credit cards, debit cards, loyalty cards, store cards etc..
Most common forms of mobile payment are:
NFC, Smart card readers, sms based payments, software based payments, location based app software.
http://visual.ly/ - allows you to create infographics
Reduce friction
Capture the moment – Netflix / Amazon star rating, Yelp useful yes / no buttons
Lower the barrier to entry.
Facebook Plugins – see https://developers.facebook.com/docs/plugins/
e.g. Like Button, Comment Button, Login Button – the 3 most common
Easy to implement using html5 etc..
Earlier this month, I wrote about how the promise of Facebook traffic has enticed millions of sites to use Facebook Like buttons and other Facebook social plugins. But does following Facebook’s socialist agenda really pay off? How about some numbers, courtesy of Facebook?
Facebook provided me with the figures below from when I was working on my earlier article, Has Facebook Become The Master Key To Unlocking The Web?
Since the figures are from Facebook, you do have to take them with a grain of salt. However, there are plenty of third party sources that also report how making use of Facebook’s social features can be a traffic booster.
On with the stats!
Media Stats
Here’s what Facebook says about media sites using Like buttons and other social plugins:
The average media site integrated with Facebook has seen a 300% increase in referral traffic.
People who sign in with Facebook at The Huffington Post view 22% more pages and spend 8 minutes longer than the average reader .
Users coming to the NHL.com from Facebook spend 85% more time, read 90% more articles and watch 85% more videos than a non-connected user.
ABCNews.com, Washington Post and The Huffington Post are said to have more than doubled their referral traffic from Facebook since adding social plugins.
Commerce Stats
About commerce sites and Facebook social plugins, the Facebook reports:
Levi’s saw a 40 times increase in referral traffic from Facebook after implementing the Like button in April 2010 and has maintained those levels since.
Outdoor sporting goods retailer Giantnerd.com saw a 100% increase revenue from Facebook within two weeks of adding the Like button.
American Eagle added the Like button next to every product on their site and found Facebook referred visitors spent an average of 57% more money than non-Facebook referred visitors
Children’s clothing retailer Tea Collection added the Like button to sale merchandise and saw daily revenues increase 10 times.
ShoeDazzle added the Like button to all of the products on its site and within the first month had thousands of likes for its top products.
ShoeDazzle also lets people login to its site using Facebook, and Facebook-connected users were 50% more likely to make repeat purchases every month than average shoppers.
When a Ticketmaster user posts a specific event they are attending, or may want to attend, to Facebook, it generates $5.30 of direct ticket sales
Eventbrite reports that a link shared on Facebook is worth $2.52 in ticket sales (see alsohere and here)
Making “Like” More Likeable
Facebook says Like buttons get 3 to 5 times more clicks if:
Versions that show thumbnails of friends are used.
They allow people to add comments.
If they appear at both the top and bottom of articles.
If they appear near visual content like videos or graphics.
Facebook is the number one choice for social logins. Google was previously the top social login service, but it’s a fairly distant second place now with 30% market share.
Social login is increasingly being seen as one way to reduce friction — especially on retail sites — because it means web users don’t need to create (and remember) new accounts at multiple websites.
The stats are similar on mobile applications, with Facebook having 49 percent overall share of social logins, compared to 25 percent for Google and 14 percent for Twitter.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/
There is a new Firefox addin called Firesheep which its author claims ‘demonstrates http session hijacking’ – in short it is one of the most highly dangerous security products to be unleashed on the general public and allows anyone to see and take control of anything on other users pc – unless of course they have https switched on.
In the past the main reasons against switching on SSL 100% of the time were cpu usage, latency and memory requirements – however
bandwidth and server technology has moved on so much recently that this is no longer true – see www.paypal.com –SSL on all the time.
www.Roomsyoulove.com a good example of EV SSL + security memberships
www.schuh.co.uk
Imagine a world in which every single person on the planet is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge – that what Jimmy and his team are doing.
If wikipedia were a book it would be 2.23 million pages long and take 123 years to read.
Currently 15 million articles, 20% in English
Estimated in excess of 20 million unique monthly visitors
In excess of 75,000 active contributors
Criticized for systemic bias and inconsistencies - favours consensus over credentials
The dish that anyone can edit
www.feefo.com
Trusted reviews.
www.ekomi.co.uk – The Feedback Company.
www.trustpilot.com and .co.uk
http://www.reviewcentre.com/
www.howsourgame.com
Even do store lockin and pre-release nights (midnight)
http://www.costafeedback.co.uk/
https://www.tescoviews.com
Added as a verb in 2006 to OED and Merriam Websters
Smart contact lens that could monitor blood glucose levels through tear fluid. Great for diabetes.
Adaptive equipment for hand tremor
www.liftlabsdesign.com
Useful for Parkinsons suferers.
ITA Software
http://www.itasoftware.com/
Used by Orbitz, Bing Travel, Kayak.com, CheapTickets, andairlines such as American, United Airlines, US Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Alitalia, and ANA. !!
US DOJ approved the purchase as long as Google agrees to licence it for 5 more years!
Our automated cars, manned by trained operators, just drove from our Mountain View campus to our Santa Monica office and on to Hollywood Boulevard. They’ve driven down Lombard Street, crossed the Golden Gate bridge, navigated the Pacific Coast Highway, and even made it all the way around Lake Tahoe. All in all, our self-driving cars have logged over 140,000 miles.
Drivers will not need a driving license by 2040.
At least that is what the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers believes. It thinks autonomous cars capable of driving to any destination are set to become the norm.
For trains: Full scale trials of semi-automated transport on the London Underground system began in the early 1960s
With an estimated 90% of current car accidents thought to be caused by human error, taking people out of the equation is seen by many car companies as a massive boost to safety.
The issue are NOT technical – the issues are: Legal, liability & perception.
Vehicles could be fully autonomous NOW.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/click_online/9755210.stm
If you live in a world of personalisation, you will only ever see what other want you to see,
Eli Pariser engages in world-class hand-wringing at the prospect of people exposed only to things they already agree with or are familiar with.
These are Product List Ads – Started in October 2012.
Currently have 2x 3x higher CTR (Click Through Rate) that text ads
Currently cheaper than text ads
Currently outperforming text Ads
You run a PLA campaign through your Adwords interface or your Google Merchant Centre/
Selected merchants in USA are operating a CPA relationship with Google
Everyone else is ppc as with normal adwords.
Search for tents, handbags, ipads.
Can opt out here - https://plus.google.com/settings/endorsements?hl=en
In the 18th century the Industrial Revolution took manufacturing out of the hands of the common man and into the factories.
3D will reverse this.
Artificial blood vessels made on a 3D printer may soon be used for transplants of lab-created organs.
Until now, the stumbling block in tissue engineering has been supplying artificial tissue with nutrients that have to arrive via capillary vessels.
A team at the Fraunhofer Institute in Germany has solved that problem using 3D printing and a technique called multiphoton polymerisation.
The findings will be shown at the Biotechnica Fair in Germany in October.
Out of thousands of patients in desperate need of an organ transplant there are inevitably some who do not get it in time.
In Germany, for instance, more than 11,000 people have been put on an organ transplant waiting list in 2011 alone.
To make sure more patients receive these life-saving surgeries, researchers in tissue engineering all over the globe have been working on creating artificial tissue and even entire organs in the lab.
But for a lab-made organ to function, it needs to be equipped with artificial blood vessels - tiny and extremely complex tubes that our organs naturally possess, used to carry nutrients.
Continue reading the main story“Start Quote
The individual techniques are already functioning and they are presently working in the test phase”
Dr Gunter TovarFraunhofer Institute, Germany
Numerous attempts have been made to create synthetic capillaries, and the latest one by the German team seems to be especially promising.
"The individual techniques are already functioning and they are presently working in the test phase; the prototype for the combined system is being built," said Dr Gunter Tovar, who heads the BioRap project at Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology IGB in Stuttgart.
Elastic biomaterials3D printing technology has been increasingly used in numerous industries, ranging from creating clothes, architectural models and even chocolate treats.
But this time, Dr Tovar's team had a much more challenging printing mission.
To print something as small and complex as a blood vessel, the scientists combined the 3D printing technology with two-photon polymerisation - shining intense laser beams onto the material to stimulate the molecules in a very small focus point.
The material then becomes an elastic solid, allowing the researchers to create highly precise and elastic structures that would be able to interact with a human body's natural tissue.
So that the synthetic tubes do not get rejected by the living organism, their walls are coated with modified biomolecules.
Such biomolecules are also present in the composition of the "inks" used for the blood vessel printer, combined with synthetic polymers.
"We are establishing a basis for applying rapid prototyping to elastic and organic biomaterials," said Dr Tovar.
"The vascular systems illustrate very dramatically what opportunities this technology has to offer, but that's definitely not the only thing possible."
22nd Nov 2012 – BBC website – 3D Printers print cartilage.
http://custom.argos.co.uk/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-lHzELy0ao
http://mashable.com/2012/09/15/eagle-3d-printed/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-21754915
www.defcad.org – 3d open source search engine for weapons. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rO54gzfite4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=xY16r6EkUNY#!
http://defcad.org/
MakeBot were censoring files that were uploaded and they have ended up here!
http://store.makerbot.com/digitizer.html
Related youtube video is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=9GfnKKczec0
http://www.thingiverse.com/
https://localmotors.com/ - based in Pheonix Arizona.
Because of these habits, the majority of users will skip over whole chunks of written copy on your site. Therefore you need to structure your copy well to make sure that you get your message through to all – or most – of your users.
Some things make that unconscious interpretation more difficult – for example block capital text
This is to illustrate that we don’t actually “read” the way we think we do. Rather we look at words and sentences, and extract meaning from them – we interpret.
For instance, meet Old Spice, the men’s body wash and deodorant manufacturer. About now, everyone has likely heard of the Old Spice campaign, The Man Your Man Can Smell Like. This one commercial, originally aimed for television, generated 5.9 million views on YouTube in the first 24 hours of its launch. It got 20 million views three days, 1.4 billion impressions over six months. The ROI? Sales increased by 107% over six months.
www.crazyegg.com
Gazeplots – are eyetracking – to see where customers look and in what order and for how long.
Crazyegg is a simple clever heat mapping tool.
There are various ways people might deliberately or accidently find your business in the digital world – how they browse and progress thereafter is different for many businesses.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Breaks_Guitars
United shares fell 10% - cost them $180m – all for the sake of a $3,500 Taylor guitar with a broken neck.
8.8 Million views on YouTube
Also on bbc, wikipedia, daiy mail, the times, rolling stone magazine etc..
David Carroll of ‘Sons of Maxwell’
http://www.davecarrollmusic.com/book/
There are several key differences in these code formats.
-ScanLife EZcode and Microsoft Tag are proprietary formats only decodable by their tools,
-while QR and DataMatrix formats are open standard.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGaVFRzTTP4
McCains wall is in Arkansas – other images are from a Tesco company in South Korea called Home Plus
Top 14 things to know about QR Code:
1. A QR Code is a 2D Barcode
QR codes are an encoded barcode image resembling a square-like maze. Unlike a 1-dimensional UPC code, a 2-dimensional barcode stores data in both directions and can be scanned vertically or horizontally to be decoded.
2. 2D Barcodes Can Store a Variety of Data
A traditional 1D barcode (UPC/EAN) stores up to 30 numbers, while a 2D barcode (QR) can store up to 7,089 numbers. The additional storage capacity accommodates a variety of data beyond numbers:
Text
Hyperlink
Telephone number (Phone call)
SMS/MMS message
Email (Send message)
Contact entry (vCard or meCard)
Calendar entry (vCalendar)
Storing a hyperlink presents a myriad of possibilities beyond just loading a web page -- play a video, download a mobile app, check-in on Foursquare, update a Twitter status, "Like" a Facebook page, display map directions, and more.
3. Read/Decode a 2D Barcode by Scanning it With a Smartphone
(A 2D barcode reader app is required to decode the encoded data.)
4. 2D Barcodes Can be Placed in and on Nearly Any Location
Once the barcode image is created, it can be printed on nearly any surface and location -- newspapers, TV ads, billboards, temporary tattoos, product packaging, clothing labels, cake frosting, and more. This enables you to drive traffic, interaction, and conversion from anywhere. 2D barcodes excel at bringing non-digital media to life.
Note: Use caution placing barcodes online. They should always enhance the user experience. If a user could click a hyperlink, don't make them scan a code to complete the same task.
Bear in mind the location must be easily scannable. Plastic frames and packaging can reflect light. Lighting can cast shadows, and hillsides and subways can kill Wi-Fi access. Consider all contextual factors that could impact the scanning experience.
5. Mobile Barcode Scanning is on the Rise
2D barcode scanning outnumbered 1D (UPC) scans in Q1 2011.- ScanLife's Q1 2011 Trend Report
Mobile barcode scanning grew 1,600 percent in the year 2010. - ScanLife's 2010 Trend Report (PDF)
QR barcode scanning was up 1,200 percent in the second half of 2010. - Mobio's Naked Facts Report
22 percent of the Fortune 50 have already used mobile barcodes. - Burson-Marsteller Report
QR codes can be used for nearly any function (logistics, advertising, customer service, etc.) for B2B and B2C across a variety of industries:
Best Buy uses QR codes on in-store price tags for quick access to online reviews.
Golf Digest uses Microsoft Tag in their magazine to accompany tips with interactive video.
Real estate agents use 2D barcodes on "for sale" signs providing prospective buyers access to virtual tours.
Libraries are using QR codes to facilitate learning via interactive scavenger hunts.
6. QR Isn't the Only Type of 2D Barcode
The most popular 2D barcode formats are QR code, DataMatrix, ScanLife EZcode, and Microsoft Tag (Tag).
There are several key differences in these code formats. ScanLife EZcode and Microsoft Tag are proprietary formats only decodable by their tools, while QR and DataMatrix formats are open standard. (Additional format differences can be addressed in another blog post.)
A Google Trends analysis of these 2D barcodes shows "QR code" dominates by far from a search popularity perspective. QR has become a common term used to reference a 2D barcode (2D code, mobile tag, mobile barcode, etc.) even when codes are technically a different format. Even@MicrosoftTag uses the #QRcode hashtag on Twitter.
7. Tools to Generate and Read 2D Barcodes are Free
Tools are available for all major mobile phone handsets. To run a 2D barcode campaign you'll need to following:
2D barcode generator (Website service)
2D barcode reader (Mobile app)
[Optional” 2D barcode management/tracking tool (Website service)
Generators:
Different generators have varying features. Choose a generator based on the options for:
Code Format (i.e. QR, EZcode, Tag, etc.)
Stored Data (i.e. hyperlink, meCard, SMS, etc.)
Output (i.e. color, size, download file type, etc.)
QRstuff.com is a comprehensive QR generator providing a variety of stored content, color, size, and output options. ScanLife's generator creates their proprietary EZcode as well as QR and DataMatrix formats. Microsoft Tag only generates Tag.
Note: To generate a code on the ScanLife or Microsoft Tag sites, you'll first need to create an account. (Tag requires providing personal info like birth date, gender, etc.)
Readers:
Microsoft Tag and ScanLife EZcode can only be decoded by their respective reader apps. Because of the open standard for QR codes, dozens of reader apps are available. (DataMatrix is usually supported on most QR readers.) Some mobile handsets come with a reader app pre-installed.
The following 2D barcode reader apps work on the majority of phones/handsets.
Reader AppCode FormatsDownload Link(from your mobile phone)RedLaserQR, UPC/EANredlaser.comBeeTagg ReaderQR, DataMatrix, BeeTaggget.beetagg.comAT&T Code ScannerQR, DataMatrix, UPC/EANscan.mobiScanLifeEZcode, QR, DataMatrix, UPC/EANgetscanlife.comMicrosoft TagTaggettag.mobiRedLaser and AT&T Code Scanner also have geolocation features for local price comparison shopping.
8. Management Tools are Available to Track Scanning Analytics
URL-shortener and web analytics for 2D barcodes storing URL hyperlinks are a great start. For comprehensive scan tracking, you'll need to use a barcode generator tool that includes tracking analytics. (These tools are not independent.) Some management tools will merely track the number of scans while others provide detailed metrics like demographics, repeat scans, geolocation, and more. Collected analytics depends on the reader app used for scanning, so data results may vary.
Management tools are relatively inexpensive and sometimes free. Paid plans typically have a free trial with fees based on the number of scans.
2D Barcode Management & Tracking Tools:
Microsoft Tag (Tag)
ScanLife (EZcode, QR, DataMatrix, UPC)
Tappinn (QR, UPC)
Paperlinks (QR)
QReateBUZZ (QR)
BeQRious (QR)
SPARQCode (QR)
QReate and Track (QR)
9. 2D Barcode Content Should Provide Special Value for the Customer
It's work to scan a barcode, so users have higher expectations as to what content they will find. Reward the user with discounts, exclusive content, or useful tips relevant to the code's context. Consider scenarios that leverage smartphone features (email, SMS, phone call, video, map, apps, etc.) to save the user time.
For example, including a QR code on a business card that links to a meCard would be a lot easier than the user manually entering the contact record. In contrast, a QR code that links to a website homepage adds limited value.
Note: If you link to a web page, make sure that it's mobile-friendly.
10. Small or Complex QR Codes Can't be Scanned by Smartphones With Lesser Quality Cameras
Complex 2D barcodes (a lot going on, not very dense) are more challenging and time consuming to scan. In the case of QR codes, more stored content forces a larger code size. In general, it's best to minimize data stored in 2D barcodes. Always use a URL-shortener to shrink hyperlinks. (Add analytics tracking parameters before shortening the link.)
Warning: Small, complex QR codes are the biggest mistake currently being made by marketers. (Microsoft Tag and EZcode formats generally don't have this issue.) Smartphone cameras with resolution less than 4-megapixels can't scan a QR code smaller than about 1"x1". Moreover, without the auto-focus (AF) camera feature, a complex QR code will have the same scanning issue, even if the code is larger. The iPhone 3GS and Blackberry are popular handset examples that lack both of these camera features. Unscannable codes kill and delay the adoption rate for 2D barcode campaigns.
Tip: Always provide a back-up (i.e. hyperlink, SMS text message, etc.) option for users to retrieve info within the code. A back-up enables non-smartphone users to also participate.
11. Consumers Need Guidance to Scan 2D Barcodes
The variety of code types, readers, and different terminology is confusing to consumers. Nielsen Company estimates that only 40 percent of U.S. mobile devices are smartphones as of Q1 2011, growing to almost 50 percent by Q3 2011. That means there are a lot of smartphone rookies that barely know how to use their phone, much less distinguish differences in mobile barcode formats and reader apps. As long as 2D barcodes are a novelty concept, always include a brief step-by-step guide with the context of your code.
Logical steps:
Get the reader app
Scan the code with your mobile device
(Action that happens upon scanning)
Tip: For the reader app download, include a URL link or SMS shortcut to expedite the process. This step is imperative when using proprietary Microsoft Tag or ScanLife EZcode formats since only one reader is capable of scanning their codes.
Steps two and three can be combined as a call-to-action. Example: "Scan to ____." (... watch a video, download our app, call customer support, etc.)
12. 2D Barcodes can be Customized Artistically
QR codes include an Error Correction Level (ECL) that enables "damaged" codes to still be scanned. The error level tolerance (set by the code generator) can be as high as 30%. As a result, creative license can be used to create designer QR codes from a variety of colors or materials (i.e. jelly beans, sand castles, product packaging, etc.) as long as there is adequate contrast to read the code.
When it comes to advanced QR code graphic design, it's harder than it looks. If you want to get fancy, I recommend connecting with QR art experts at QRarts.com or Delivr.com.
Microsoft Tag also allows for artistic codes. Their custom tag tool allows users to generate art from codes or even overlay codes on top of photographs.
Tip: Some artistic design is fun and good to see; however, don't go overboard. As long as 2D barcodes are novelty, it's important that users easily recognize a scannable code from a distance.
13. Testing Scannability is Imperative.
Before you mass print or distribute barcodes be sure to test for scannability. Testing factors:
Smartphone cameras (resolution/auto-focus)
Reader apps
Scan context (i.e. lighting, shadows, surfaces)
Scan distance
Scan timing
14. Seek Expertise to Ensure Successful Campaigns
To ensure campaign success, consider consulting with a mobile barcode marketing expert, especially if it's your first time running a mobile barcode campaign. Technology, trends, and tools in this arena are rapidly changing. A few hours of expert consulting can bring your team up to speed, help optimize campaigns for success, and avoid unnecessary embarrassment for poor implementation.
Expertise goes beyond consultants: Talk to your web analytics guru and learn all you can about the mobile users currently accessing your website. Seek out mobile marketing industry statistics regarding popular devices and demographics to appropriately target your audience. (Compete,ScanLife, and eMarketer provide regular useful reports.) Follow the #QRcode Twitter hashtag or subscribe to "QR Code News & Mobile Trends" (Paper.li) for the latest news and case studies.
Finally, download my QR Code Best Practices Checklist & Campaign Worksheet to help plan and manage your campaigns:
Next Steps...
Are you ready to jump start a QR code campaign? What questions do you have about the technology, tools or tactics? Please let me know in the comments below. I'll be sure to address the most popular topics in upcoming articles.
Warns you of up and coming collisions!!!!!
Facebook buys OculusVR on March 2014 for $2billion
http://www.oculusvr.com/
Google invest $542m into Magic Leap – October 2014
Martha Payne from Lochgilphead in Argyllshire in Scotland
Started a food blog – took photos of her school diners.
Number of hairs today=0
Popular site – raised over £60k for kids in Africa (Malawi)
On June 14th she was banned from taking photos of her food – can you imagine what happened next?
What made them think they could get away with this (i.e. the council ban)
Answer: All of human history up until now.
She is now famous – has a wiki entry - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NeverSeconds
Kids from all over the world contribute now
The figures above are the total number of minutes per month spent on the website
It probably won’t surprise you that Facebook is the stickiest social website of them all, with the users spending an average of 405 minutes on the site in January. This is well ahead of Tumblr and rising star Pinterest, which tie at 89 minutes each, with Twitter, LinkedIn and MySpace rounding out the pack.
And the wooden spoon? That goes to Google+, which sees an average visit time of just 3 minutes per month from its users.
Compared to Facebook, Twitter registers a relatively slight 21 minutes per user per month, but remember that (as usual) these numbers only track visits to Twitter.com, and do not take into account mobile usage, as well as popular Twitter clients such as HootSuite, TweetDeck and others. With these factored in, Twitter’s monthly minutes would be a lot higher.
But the big story here is Google+, whose numbers are horrendous. Google CEO Larry Pagerecently claimed that 80 percent of Google+’s 90 million users log in weekly, so something here clearly does not add up. I wonder if Google is counting people who are logged into theirGoogle accounts as Google+ logins, because if that’s the case I’m always logged into Google+, although I never use it. Nor does anyone I personally know. If so, that’s quite a cheat, as there’s a very big difference between being logged in and being active. No doubt we’ll see an official reaction from Google to these numbers in the weeks to come.
www.vee24.com
Schuh offer a live fitting service for kids shoes
Vee24 lets you control the page
There are more uses for Twitter than I care to mention and hell, more blog space written on the subject than I care to list, however the best way to manage a brand and product is not through shouting, we're here, buy my stuff, aren't we brilliant... it is to listen and respond. For example Bank of America are gaining in popularity on the Twittersphere due to their help desk - they scan Twitter and offer advice, links to products when asked, conversations are taken offline to follow up in detail - essentially marketing the brand by offering help and advice.I teach my clients that unless you are operating a "Fire Sale" stop broadcasting - listen and take part in the conversations relevant to your business and product - the best use of Twitter for a business is Customer Care - managing their expectations and pointing them in the right direction - not shouting buy buy buy! Your business needs to set up search filters to monitor relevant conversations and join in.
www.twitter.com/ArenaFlowers
Utah Attorney General – Ronnie Lee Gardner – 17th June 2010
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twitter_Joke_Trial
Paul Chambers and the Twitter joke trial !
Online Behavioural Advertising ..
http://www.stolencamerafinder.com/
www.dietchef.co.uk
Stunning website
Calls to action, phone numbers, help, social media, offers, nice UI, feedback, buy now.
Ghostery tells me they are very serious about profiling and tracking customers.
They are attempting to measure your social capital – not financial capital!
http://techcrunch.com/2012/03/21/klout-kred-peerindex-radian6/
www.klout.com – uses a huge number of social networks to give you a score from 0-100
So what is Klout and why does it matter? Klout measures influence across the social web. We assign a Klout Score from 1 to 100 based on your ability to drive action. We also find your most influential topics, your influencers, who you influence, as well as other stats surrounding your influence. Think of it as a social credit score that will increasingly impact your life.
How do we Score? We believe influence is the ability to drive action. We are not focused on follower or friend count but instead look at social actions such as Retweets, @messages, likes, and comments. If you have a lot of highly influential people engaging with you on a regular basis you will have a high Score. We score based on Twitter and Facebook (more networks coming soon)
http://klout.com/s/business – launched in March 2013.
A Klout score simply shows whether you are somebody who can move content over social media channels that creates reactions
Bitcoins …. Is a decentralized digital currency.
http://bitcoin.org/en/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bitcoin
Started in 2008 by an anonymous Japanese developer!
It is p2p and not managed by an central authority i.e. transfers bitcoins between peers using encryption.