Top 12 And A Bit UK Apps For Android

So – we’re decided that the only thing that makes a gadget worthwhile is the access to great content right? Hopefully – developed by new, young, fresh and funky – rather than a grey monolith from California? Here is my list of best apps for Android. I use HTC Hero - but I think most droid apps will work fine on most droids. 

Why Great Content Beats Cool Gadgets.

Last week saw yet another fantastic piece of Apple PR as Steve Jobs launched the rather groovey looking iPad. It joins a long line of uber cool gadgets, gizmos, devices and hardware that inspires drooling and convulsions. But what about the content? Would do people love the cinema seats more than the movie? When did we start to love the newsprint rather than the story? Why is a plastic and a screen seen as cooler than the material it can show?

Spotify: Not So Lucky, Lucky, Lucky For Pete Waterman?

I took out my Spotify subscription for my birthday and I adore it. £10 a month and I can build fabulous playlists, listen to any number of interesting artists I may read about, anywhere, anytime. So is all well? Well, it is certainly a great product.

The Art And Science Of Selfish Cooperation

In his illuminating book ‘The Social Atom’ physicist Mark Buchanan explores the idea that  human behaviour is akin to the workings of the atomic world – and that certain social ‘patterns’ inevitably dominate our interactions. Buchanan touches on ideas such as the rise of selfish genes and selfish cooperation and also on the building of trends, similar to the The Tipping Point by Gladwell.  Do marketing partnerships and alliances share similar ’social atom’ characterisitcs? Why is it some people (and organisations) see smart cooperation as a way forward, whereas others remain isolated, suspicious and fearful of building alliances?

Is Twitter Like Robbie Savage And Marmite?

Why is it that some people are passionate about certain media services and some people hate them? Any Englishman’s selective use of a  few well chosen Anglo-Saxon words to describe Robbie Savage; an extravagantly paid but limited and rather aggressive footballer will tell you the popular opinion of the crowd. Marmite has made an advertising theme about the fact that people either love or hate their beefy paste.  And Robbie has built a great career and is now moving into being a controversial football pundit too. He does not have to be a Torres or a Ronaldo – he needs to do enough to be more successful than 99.9% of anyone who has kicked a ball. The latest Nielsen data on Twitter (http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007388) shows that there has been a 27% decline in visitors to Twitter between September and October. Part of the decline in site visits is said to be due to people using apps and alternative channels but the fact remains that despite their growth – not everyone Tweets or likes or stays with Twitter. And that’s OK. Some writers or marketers like things to be simple and it seems they want to find the killer app and big idea that will change everything and everyone. But media is like any other consumer good and instead of being one size fits all it is about diversity, speciality and change. Not everyone likes Marmite. And not every web innovation will become a Google. The decline of entry barriers suggests that whilst there may be a few gigantic players in any market, there will be many smaller, specialist competitors and challengers who will be more agile and able to carve a story for themselves. I actually like Twitter and LinkedIn and I find it interesting  that my friends are divided equally between those that think I waste my time on them and those that find it odd I do not engage with social networking more. Social Networks are not going to be the silver bullet for marketers and nor are they going to be to everyone’s taste – but like Robbie Savage and Marmite, used in the right way and managed well, they can be loved by many.

Making Friends & Influencing People

Love Or Hate?

Love It Or Hate It?

Wouldn’t It Be Great To Be Like Barry…

OK. Some days are better than others. Some jobs turn into chores.  But today I met a 75 year old who loved his work so much he was still doing it 10 years after he retired. He didn’t do it for the money any more he did it because he just loved it. How many can say they would keep doing what they do from 9.00-5.00 if they didn’t have to? How often do you miss your work? It was the chap who delivered my car today. 75 years old – he had worked in the motor trade since the early 1960’s, from second hard cars to working for big brands and national dealers. Barry turned up dead on time and loved showing me the car. He showed me all the dials, made sure I properly set up my seat and warned me not to touch the traction control. Like a great sales person, he was genuinely interested in me and happy to answer my rather basic questions. He loved my car. He loved cars. He worked with cars. Barry was 75 going on 23. He was bright eyed, funny, energetic, keen as mustard. So when he retired he arranged to keep his hand in, delivering cars a few days a week – and he still knows all about the latest new models and trends. “And there is where you put your iPod and it has a charger too” – said Barry. After helping me get used to the clutch and steering I managed to drop him off at the station and off he went, with a chipper wave and “nice to meet you” – to pick up and deliver another car. He was looking forward to it, another car to drive and people to meet. 75 years of age. Ten years after he retired. Loving what he did. Wouldn’t it be great to be like Barry.

More On Free And Freedom

Since my last post on things freemium and premium it was announced that The Evening Standard will now be a free newspaper.  The ES will rely on ad revenues – with the expected increase in circulation enabling them to maintain their position as an advertising channel. And like other print media presumably keep searching for greater online revenues too.

Is The Future Freemium & Times+?

I took part in two media debates this week: as a user and a consumer. Firstly would I pay for a Freemium online computer game? And secondly would I pay to be part of Times+, the latest business model from News International? Is Freemium the real answer for media organisations who spend a fortune on creating great content? And will News International’s search for new subscriber and user pays models succeed? I don’t see many IT and telephony hardware manufacturers in the line for picking up music, tv, film, book, news and publishing awards so I really want new models to work. And this week, as a pure consumer and lover of all things online and in print, I had some choices to make.

Focused Content Matters

Perhaps all content is the same? Maybe everything is relative? Why can’t all media space be the same price? Why can’t a cheap package holiday be the same as a villa in the south of France? Having been off for a few days with family and catching up on magazines, newspapers and websites has made me realize that not all media and not all content is equal. In cold, hard reality there is a great difference between great content and great media – and the mediocre rest. And  unfortunately there is a lot of the mediocre rest to get through.  

My Twitter Conundrum.

Conundrum. ‘A paradoxical, insoluble, or difficult problem; a dilemma’. It was announced last week that Twitter had attracted a further $100m of investment seeing its valuation rise to more than $1B – and all whilst employing 75 people and with hardly any revenue generation (apart from a brilliant plan of selling more equity and JV funding). Having spent 20 years working in media and agencies, selling and buying ideas, campaigns and future plans – this poses me a conundrum. Every media and marketing professional I know understands value, profitability, ROI – as well as brand, innovation and first mover advantage. An ad campaign is not great because it gets fans and plaudits – its great when it achieves marketing results that the advertiser wanted. A media platform is not fabulous when it gets free readers and users – its fabulous when it attracts advertisers or subscribers to help pay for the media platform. As Picasso said ‘ the greatest compliment anyone can make me is to pay me for my work’.