The Valentine roses are just beginning to wilt, the chocolate has all been eaten and the cute little cards have moved from the kitchen table to the bedroom floor, as the children examine and re-examine them.
While the consumer is cleaning up after Valentine’s Day and putting it on the mental backburner until next February, restaurants and retail stores are taking a closer look at the impact of mobile marketing on Valentine’s Day, particularly on those who procrastinated their Valentine shopping. Continue reading
As a business owner, there are many factors that one must take into account in order to be successful. Keeping up with products, employees, services and competition are all challenging and demanding aspects of running a company. Too often marketing is pushed to the sidelines or deemphasized in the midst of other
Last night as I sent my three children to bed, my entire kitchen table was a red and white paper heart and chocolate mess. The last minute sorting of valentines and the painstaking process of addressing each note consumed a better part of the afternoon. Yet, as I picked up Sweetheart candies off of the floor and tried to organize the chaos, I began to think about the significance of this holiday in the American business world. 
I’ve spoken repeatedly here about the importance of a multi-tiered mobile advertising plan. However, it seems with each day the need for an integrated mobile approach including SMS advertising becomes more apparent. Americans are relying on their cell phones more than ever for a multitude of uses, from basic communication with friends and family, to obtaining information, shopping, banking, scheduling, entertainment and relaxation. 
This week as French travelers bemoan the latest series of airline workers strikes in airports throughout France, they are at the very least receiving updates on the delays and cancellations of their scheduled flights in a timely manner. NPR reported yesterday that SMS technology was playing a huge role in updating customers about their flight status and trying to keep customers from flooding the airports of France. Officials hope that information communicated through mobile phones will keep customers waiting in the comfort of their homes, rather than long and drawn out waiting times at the airport. This current crisis is the first test of Air France’s new reliance on SMS texts to communicate with customers. Last May Air France debuted this new SMS service in which customers would receive updates concerning their flights, baggage and check-ins directly to their phones. 
It’s Super Bowl Sunday! The culmination of an entire season of football – the blood, sweat, tears and months of training, wins and losses finally come together today for one final, epic battle to determine the best football team of 2011/2012. While the Giants and the Patriots battle it out on the field, advertisers will take part in their own epic battle of sorts on this same day, to reach, engage and win over new customers. 
Everyday 280 million people walk by a Redbox kiosk at some point during their day. Within every second, Redbox records up to 40 rentals. To date, over 1.5 billion people have rented a movie from Redbox. A staggering Sixty-eight percent of the U.S. population lives within 5 miles of a Redbox kiosk (Redbox.com). In the past ten years Redbox has gone from ten kiosks in the Washington Metropolitan Area to over 28,000 nationwide, from locations as diverse as the Empire State building to the McDonald’s down the street. This enormous success can be attributed to the company’s ability to embrace and accommodate the increasing pace of the American people. Redbox has also innovatively reimagined the video rental store and looked beyond conventional advertising to reach their customers on the go. 
Jeff Hasen, CMO of Hipcricket co-creator of the certification program for the Mobile Marketing Association and certified MMA trainer, wrote a piece in late December of last year published in the Adotas online newsletter detailing the benchmark year mobile marketing experienced in 2011 and his projections for the future of mobile marketing in the upcoming year. His insights focused on the return on investment for companies, user experience, social media and the influx of SMS text vendors in the market. 
In recent weeks it seems that everywhere one looks the Republican primary candidates are right there making a speech or shaking hands. The news is regularly punctuated with breaking news about their campaigns, sound bytes from their speeches and their comings and goings. As Gingrich, Paul, Romney and Santorum crisscross the nation on the traditional campaign trail, a new kind of political campaign is gaining traction in the world of elections. This new campaign is the mobile text campaign, in which constituents opt-in to receive SMS messages from their preferred candidate, or those about whom they are interested in learning more. 
As I write, a perfectly steamed latte sits beside me, perfuming the air with the rich tones of delicious coffee. The inviting ambiance of Starbucks embraces me with its free Wi-Fi, comfortable couches, and hip, unique, but relaxing music filling the background. As I look around the coffee shop, I am reminded of all of the reasons that Starbucks is more than a coffee company, but a cultural icon. 
I found myself today standing in a local home improvement shop scanning a QR Code on a piece of hardwood flooring. I came to be in this particular store doing reconnaissance due to a hard fought, and unexpectedly successful stance in a longstanding marital dispute. The source of this dispute was, “Our Next Home Improvement Project.”
“I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.” Martin Luther King, Jr.
Today at Qittle we have polished our spoons, and we are working up an appetite in preparation for Aspen, Colorado’s annual Soupskol competition. Not only will members of the Qittle staff be out and about tasting the delicious soups prepared by Aspen’s master and amateur chefs, we will also be tallying the votes through mobile texting. 
Mobile technology is becoming increasingly a part of every aspect of our society. So much so that even professional sports teams and organizations are looking at ways to use mobile devices to reach their fan bases. 
“If you want a love message to be heard, it has got to be sent out. To keep a lamp burning, we have to keep putting oil in it.” ~ Mother Teresa.
As 2011 comes to a close, here at Qittle we are taking a moment to reflect back on the historic events of the year and the role of mobile phones in those events. It is clear this year, more than any year previous, that mobile phones have played a critical role in the planning and execution of world events, the communication of news and in the aftermath of catastrophic world events reconnecting friends and family, communicating safety and asking for and giving assistance. 
