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Mobile Marketing

Ad Watchdog Tells AT&T To Stop Saying 5G Will Be Built On 'Best Network'

2/24/2021

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Ad Watchdog Tells AT&T To Stop Saying 5G Will Be Built On 'Best Network'

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AT&T should revise or discontinue boasts in TV ads that its upcoming 5G service will be built on “America's best network,” a self-regulatory watchdog recommended.

The ads, which were part of AT&T's “Just OK is not OK” campaign, included a voiceover at the end that said the company was building 5G on “America's best network.”

The BBB National Programs' National Advertising Review Board (which decides appeals of National Advertising Division opinions) found that claim problematic, writing that the boast could convey “an unsupported message concerning superior characteristics of AT&T’s 5G network.”

The National Advertising Review Board said AT&T should either “discontinue the claim that AT&T is 'Building 5G on America’s Best Network,' or state in the body of the claim that the 'Best Network' referred to is AT&T’s 4G network.”

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The appellate unit noted that the National Advertising Division decided in 2019 that AT&T could advertise its 4G network as America's “best wireless network” -- provided the company also said the boast was based on a test by Global Wireless Solutions, and disclosed a connection to the testing company. AT&T is a client of Global Wireless Solutions.

The appellate board reiterated those recommendations in its new decision.

The ruling stemmed from a challenge to AT&T ads by Verizon, which objected to several aspects of the ads, including AT&T's claim to offering the best network.

The National Advertising Division rejected some of Verizon's arguments last year, but recommended that AT&T stop saying it was “Building 5G on America's Best Network.”

Both companies then appealed to the National Advertising Review Board, which upheld the National Advertising Division's decision.

AT&T said it disagrees with the watchdog's recommendations regarding revisions to its ads, but will comply.





Mobile Marketing

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February 24, 2021 at 03:33PM
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Nonprofit Fundraisers Urged To Go Digital

2/24/2021

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Nonprofit Fundraisers Urged To Go Digital

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With in-person fundraising on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, digital seems a natural fit for nonprofit groups. 

But many are not buying it — only 49.4% of nonprofits have created digital experiences for donors since March 2020, according to a study by the Charities Aid Foundation of America. And that’s a problem, says Lasso Digital, a digital marketing agency. 

"While it's unquestionable that many donors have had to pull back their giving because of the pandemic, there are still donors who are ready and able to give," said Taylor Rosty, managing director for Lasso Digital, a marketing firm that specializes in serving the communication needs of non-profit organizations. 

Rosty adds: "It's just a matter of reaching them, and frankly, many nonprofits aren't prepared. They're fighting with outdated websites they don't know how to edit and trying to learn how to use social media on the fly to reach donors."

Organizations need updated, mobile-friendly web sites, a robust email communication strategy and active social media channels where donors can engage with the group, Rosty adds. 

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Teresa Devine, development director at Seniors' Resource Center, agrees.

"Before, social media was viewed as a nice-to-have," she said. "Now, we are learning quickly to harness social media as a critical tool in helping us reach donors and clients as well as grow our relationship with our community partners,” Devine states.

"The winners post-COVID will be the nonprofits who were able to maintain and grow relationships with donors and right now, by definition, that has to be online,” adds Lara Jakubowski, senior consultant at La Piana Consulting. “Audiences are shifting and after COVID they will be more reliant on digital communications." 

 





Mobile Marketing

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February 24, 2021 at 03:20PM
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An Amazon/Dish Network Wireless Service? Who's Worried?

2/24/2021

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An Amazon/Dish Network Wireless Service? Who's Worried?

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Hed:
By Wayne Friedman

New niche mobile phone services might be seemingly harmless to big industry players, especially in light of the history of small to mid-size providers launched over the last few years.

But now add Amazon to the picture. That one name might change everything.

A Seeking Alpha report noted: “Amazon is likely to start a test outside the U.S. for a potential mobile wireless phone service and may eventually partner with Dish in the U.S., according to Boost Mobile America founder Peter Adderton.”

All this is connected to Dish Network, which last year bought Boost Mobile as a consequence of  the T-Mobile deal to buy Sprint.

For years Dish Network slowly moved into this space, amassing wireless spectrum. Now, due to FCC deadlines (mid-2023) it needs to move quicker.

For a while now analysts haven’t give Dish much of a chance in competing with well-established companies, especially the highly desired, fast 5G space. Add this: Starting up a 5G service from scratch, Dish would need to spend anywhere from $10 bilion to a whopping $20 billion.

But partnering with cash-rich Amazon? That’s a different story. Here’s the major problem for U.S. carriers. What happens if Amazon decided to package a wireless service into its -seemingly all-encompassing Prime membership (stuff that already includes Prime Video, among other benefits)?

Peter Adderton, founder and former Boost Mobile chief executive officer, puts it plainly, in a recent report: “You will see massive destruction of wireless carrier revenue.” Well, now. I’m sitting up and taking notice.

A recent tweet Adderton added: “Imagine if Amazon offered the first 5GB free with every Amazon prime subscription. [It] could disrupt the market... [a] double threat to existing MNOs [mobile network operator] and hardware manufacturers.”

And for Dish, which continues to see more troubles ahead when it come to its legacy pay TV satellite service as well as some softening of its virtual pay TV service, Sling TV, all this would be a happy phone conversation to have with the ecommerce giant. Hello!





Mobile Marketing

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February 24, 2021 at 02:50PM
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2020 Gaming Benchmark Report Shows How COVID-19 Pandemic Changed Behaviors

2/24/2021

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2020 Gaming Benchmark Report Shows How COVID-19 Pandemic Changed Behaviors

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COVID-19 lockdowns did not create a downturn in mobile platform games. In fact, mobile players continued to drive more revenue for game developers compared with previous years, according to data released Wednesday.

Overall mobile game ad revenue in 2020 grew by more than 8%, and first-day in-app purchases rose by more than 50% compared with 2019.

Unity, a platform for creating and operating real-time 3D content, released its 2021 Gaming Report, which provides insight into how gaming changed for players and developers one year into the pandemic.

With more than 2.8 billion monthly active consumers of content created or operated with Unity solutions, this report represents the largest dataset on the impact of COVID-19 on gaming. 

When asked to cite ad providers that creators and developers use, Google AdMob came in first with 41%, followed by Unity with 34%, and Facebook Audience Network with 23%. AdColony followed with 14%, Appnext with 12%, and AppBrian with 11%. The remainder -- comprised of companies like MoPub, Charboost, Appodeal, Vungle, AppLovin, InMobi and others -- came in with single-digit percentages.  

Valid ad-revenue data, sufficient reporting tools, user-level ad eCPMs, CPI data, and speed of access to intro-day data are some of the missing elements when it comes to in-app ads, according to the research.

Data and reporting tools were top concerns for game developers in 2020. While developers were not as concerned about increased player churn with ad frequency in 2020 as in previous years, they are showing more interest in holistic measurements like lower player enjoyment and store ratings.

In the majority of game genres, best practices in ad strategy and placement continue to drive engagement and extend player lifecycles year-over-year.

Overall, first-day retention rates dropped for mobile titles in 2020 compared with 2019. The drop was steeper for games without ads.

Day seven and day 30 retention rates rose year-over-year. The day-seven and day-30 retention rate numbers show that games with ads have higher long-term retention. Intelligent and thoughtful advertising is just as important this year as it was last year. according to the data.

Unity also examined the retention rates for games in similar categories with and without ads.

Overall, games with ads had stronger retention across all categories except role-playing games and simulation.

Even within each of these categories, games had intelligently implemented ads into their core game-play loops so as to not impact retention metrics, usually in the form of rewarded videos.

The data also found that for mid-range and hardcore genres, forced interstitial videos can lower long-term retention, so it is important to look for rewarded video opportunities to capture the non-payer part of mobile audiences.





Mobile Marketing

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February 24, 2021 at 08:31AM
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Microsofts Miri Rodriguez on How B2B Marketers Are Embracing Empathy For Better Customer Storytelling #B2BMX

2/24/2021

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Microsoft’s Miri Rodriguez on How B2B Marketers Are Embracing Empathy For Better Customer Storytelling #B2BMX

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Happy woman embracing herself image

Happy woman embracing herself image How do B2B marketers who fully embrace empathy build stronger relationships? Miri Rodriguez, storyteller and internship program head at Microsoft, recently presented the opening keynote at the 2021 B2B Marketing Exchange Experience virtual conference, and asked this important question. Although this pandemic year at #B2BMX won’t see B2B marketers gathered in the event’s usual sunny Scottsdale, Arizona location, plenty of new attendee opportunities were on tap virtually. Refresh, renew, remix has been the conference’s theme this year, and to help ease the lack of physical networking #B2BMX included a Spotify music playlist, live music performances, and even various charitable elements. Miri began by looking back at the history of empathy in B2B marketing, to when empathy was new to the B2B space, especially the practice of considering it a leading component of the digital experience.

Storytelling Uses Empathy to Move Past Numbers and Facts

Storytelling is not just the telling of stories, Miri explained, it’s also a design approach to stories that work on the human-to-human level of business marketing. Telling stories in such compelling and connected ways that your messages are then also easily and willingly transmitted to your audience’s customers is a goal of B2B marketing that infuses genuine empathy, Miri said, and then began exploring empathy’s important role in brand storytelling. Miri explained how in her role at Microsoft she began an examination of empathy by looking at what storytelling is not, asking industry brand professionals at many different levels for their insight. Storytelling isn’t so much information, data, facts, or numbers, but the emotional transfer of that information using memorable characters, plots, and conclusions which all foster empathy, she noted. Miri Rodriguez image. The emotional transaction is the glue that binds customers to a brand’s message, making them feel connected at the most human level, Miri explained, and mentioned LinkedIn’s January 2020 report which found that empathy was the platform's top 2019 theme — one that offers strength to both brands and customers. “Brands want to transact with people who are showing high levels of empathy,” Miri noted. [bctt tweet="“Brands want to transact with people who are showing high levels of empathy.” — Miri Rodriguez @MiriRod #B2BMX" username="toprank"] Since the pandemic began, empathy has only increased in its importance for B2B brands, and increasingly employees want to work for brands that include high levels of empathy, she noted. How can you begin leading with empathy? Miri mentioned the oft-used Bill Gates “content is king” adage as a jumping off point for all that exists beyond content for today’s B2B marketers seeking to infuse greater empathy in their brand storytelling efforts. One key is finding a universal truth, especially when it’s an actionable emotion that your brand lives by, and Miri suggested that these types of truths often derive from a brand’s mission statement.

What Feeling Is Your Brand Story Sparking?

During her #B2BMX opening keynote Miri also put out the question, “What feeling is my brand story seeking to spark?” Sometimes examining or even rethinking a brand’s mission can help B2B marketers find these key feelings, she suggested. In her example from Microsoft, Miri shared how the firm came up with empowerment as its new mission several years back — a feeling that CEO Satya Nadella and the organization have embraced in many ways since. Miri then asked, “Is your brand leading with a feeling that they can share with their customers?” She urged B2B marketers to make brand stories easy to consume, which in turn will make them convenient for customers to pass on to their own associates and customers. Miri also explored cognitive empathy, and the importance of seeing your customer first and foremost as a human. She urged B2B marketers to always keep in mind that there is a human on the other side of the screen, the other side of every email, in a physical room, or wherever you communicate with a customer. It’s important for B2B marketers to allow themselves to recognize the type of emotional empathy that reaches out and makes connections on a more human level, and Miri shared how marketers can benefit when they retrain their brain to think about your humans instead of your customers. Having conversations that go beyond the mere facts about a product or service and its features, to instead form deeper and more empathetic connections, will build the kind of trust that makes business transaction elements more meaningful, Miri observed. She also looked at the type of compassionate empathy that can begin when B2B marketers take the time to assess themselves introspectively, examining personal vulnerabilities. Empathize by being cognizant of the experiences your customers are going through, and recognize that especially those in the GenZ and millennial demographics frequently make connections that are more on the emotional side with the brands they do business with, Miri noted, and explained that these younger customers also aren’t necessarily buying a product merely for the product alone. Often they are looking at a brand’s mission before deciding to do business with them, and some will even refuse to work with a brand that defaults to having no public mission or stance on social and other important issues, she said.

Seeing The Humans Behind The Brand

Miri spoke about the importance of allowing B2B customers to see the humans behind the brand, and urged marketers to pay attention to who they’re delivering a B2B brand’s story to, being mindful of the fact that an audience isn’t just your customer in B2B, but also the audiences of those customers. Miri then asked several key questions:
  • Why should your end-user care about your story?
  • What insight does your content include?
  • Does it educate and otherwise help your customers, beyond simply helping with a particular feature of a product or service?
For every B2B marketing story you set out to tell, Miri recommends first asking yourself who the story is dedicated to, how it can help them, and how it will hopefully make them feel, especially when the story is tied in to one of your brand’s universal truths. Showing the origin of your brand’s story is important, Miri said, as is reminding your customer why your brand is important to them. An ideation phase includes finding the solutions your customers want in the formats they prefer, and Miri shared an example from Microsoft in which customers pointed out that they preferred blog content written not so much by marketers but by people directly involved a particular area of expertise. Low-cost and low-effort story prototyping can also be a great way to test a variety of creative concepts, Miri noted, before moving on to the testing and implementation stages.

Making Genuine Audience Connections That Evoke Emotion

Are your brand storytelling efforts evoking the type of emotion you want to foster with your content? Miri explained that reach and engagement are both helpful in determining which efforts are making genuine connections with your audience. Miri concluded her insightful and energetic #B2BMX keynote presentation by reinforcing the notion that genuine B2B brand stories always contain a character, plot, story, and conclusion, and that powerful storytelling only happens in the B2B space when marketers tell their stories for their audiences, and not to them — ideally with empathy, creativity, authenticity, and heart. Empathy in B2B marketing is a topic near and dear to our team at TopRank Marketing, and to learn more about bringing it to life in your own marketing efforts, contact us, and check out the following five recent resources we've published:
  • 5 Ways to Humanize Your B2B Content Marketing – And Why It Matters
  • 28 B2B Marketing Insights To Energize & Humanize Your 2021
  • Boosting and Deepening Engagement through Empathy in B2B Marketing
  • 5 Ways to Humanize B2B Content Marketing
  • Your Guide to Effective Storytelling in B2B Content Marketing

The post Microsoft’s Miri Rodriguez on How B2B Marketers Are Embracing Empathy For Better Customer Storytelling #B2BMX appeared first on B2B Marketing Blog - TopRank®.





Mobile Marketing,SEO

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February 24, 2021 at 05:30AM
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Q4 CTV Ad Impressions Drop Slightly Desktop Video Grows

2/23/2021

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Q4 CTV Ad Impressions Drop Slightly, Desktop Video Grows

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TV and video ad-tech company Extreme Reach says video on desktop is at a 23% share for Q4 2020, up from a 16% share in Q4 2019 -- a 37% hike.



Mobile Marketing

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February 23, 2021 at 10:06PM
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T-Mobile 5G Ads Could Mislead Consumers Watchdog Says -- Again

2/23/2021

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T-Mobile 5G Ads Could Mislead Consumers, Watchdog Says -- Again

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An industry watchdog has reiterated its opinion that T-Mobile ads boasting about 5G service could create the impression that the new mobile broadband network is imminent.

The decision, which stems from a challenge by AT&T, centers on a TV and a radio ad.

In the TV ad, which ran last year, T-Mobile boasted that its recent merger with Sprint will result in the “best 5G network” and that the company offers the “best prices.”

A radio ad for the company also bragged that T-Mobile and Sprint were “joining forces” and “building America’s largest, most reliable 5G network.”

The National Advertising Division of BBB National Programs says the ads convey the message that the merger's benefits “will be imminently realized by consumers,” even though T-Mobile and Sprint won't fully integrate for three-to-six years.

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“One of the messages that consumers could reasonably take away from the challenged television and radio commercials is that T-Mobile’s merger with Sprint will provide its customers with network performance and pricing benefits that are imminent,” the watchdog wrote.

The TV ad -- but not the radio spot -- was the subject of a similar challenge last year by Verizon. That matter also resulted in the National Advertising Division recommending revisions to the ad.

The watchdog largely reiterated that earlier decision in its new opinion, which concluded that some of T-Mobile's claims were only aspirational, but that consumers “could reasonably interpret T-Mobile’s 'best price' claim to mean that T-Mobile will guarantee that its prices will be lower than its competition in both the near and remote future.”

The organization recommended that T-Mobile “modify its aspirational message to avoid any implication that these promoted benefits resulting from the Sprint/T-Mobile merger will be imminently available to the vast number of T-Mobile customers.”

T-Mobile said it disagrees with the decision, but won't appeal because it stopped running the ads last July, according to the opinion.





Mobile Marketing

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February 23, 2021 at 07:07PM
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Keebler's First Interactive Campaign Supports Make-A-Wish Foundation

2/23/2021

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Keebler's First Interactive Campaign Supports Make-A-Wish Foundation

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An animated version of a 7-year-old girl with a nervous system disorder explains how her wish to become queen of Charlotte, N.C. came true.



Mobile Marketing

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February 23, 2021 at 05:19PM
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Visible's $5-A-Month Mobile Offer Shows Value Of Having Friends

2/23/2021

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Visible's $5-A-Month Mobile Offer Shows Value Of Having Friends

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It pays to know people -- and a new payment deal from the prepaid wireless provider called Visible depends on that home truth.

A unit of Verizon, Visible just launched a new ad campaign that promotes its new referral plan that could lower a user’s bill to as little as $60 a year.

The pitch goes like this: If you’re a Visible user and get a friend to use a code you provide to sign up for Visible service too, your $25 monthly bill goes down to $5 for a month. Add 12 friends over the year -- and, well, you do the math.

There’s some fine print, but not much. That $25 monthly charge assumes you and at least three others have enrolled in Visible’s Party Pay, so that all four pay $25 each for an unlimited plan. Unlike Verizon’s old Friends and Family plan, Party Pay doesn’t care if the other members are family, or are not even that friendly.

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A customer knocks that cost down to $5 for a month by finding more people to sign up. It’s a little like a friendly pyramid scheme.

The ad shows a gamer explaining how the deal works, surrounded by a couple of friends working on computers as she speaks, and then several more we see remotely via other screens.

Pearl Servat, Visible’s head of brand marketing, says the campaign was meant to depict life in these pandemic times when meeting up with friends is a mix of real and remote.

And she noted, via email, that the ad came about because Visible noticed the odd way many people signed up to be members of a Party Pay foursome.

“People are finding each other on social media, and a big portion of people who are in parties together didn’t even know each other before joining the plan together,” she said. “There are even 13,000 members on aVisible subReddit  that exists for the sole reason of helping people join up for a party. So we already know that our audience is online and wanting to join up to share savings.”

Prepaid phone plans often attract users who can’t or won’t subscribe to fuller plans from Verizon, AT&T or T-Mobile, possibly because they don’t use their smartphones that much, or just can’t afford it.

Because Visible uses the Verizon infrastructure, the service is pretty much the same 4G LTE and 5G service. But as some consumer websites that follow the smartphone and wireless industries point out, Visible video only streams at 480p -- fine,  but not optimal.

Also there is no physical Visible store, or a human being at the end of the phone. Customer service happens via chat and you can even activate your phone that way.

That may be off-putting -- but Servat says Visible has been way ahead on the ecommerce front, even offering an “eSIM card” so customers don’t  have to physically go out to buy one.

“We’ve been all-digital from the start -- so in a world where everyone is turning to ecommerce out of necessity, it’s something we’ve been doing, and perfecting, for almost three years,” she said.

“It’s why our launch of eSIM was so important. While other carriers offer eSIM, we’re able to leverage this innovation which allows you to set up your phone from home, in as little as 15 minutes, without going into a store in a way no other carrier can. It’s more proof that we have a built-in audience that likes being online, and that’s something we want to speak to.”





Mobile Marketing

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February 23, 2021 at 04:39PM
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Pocket Outdoor Media Buys 'Outside' Properties Rebrands

2/23/2021

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Pocket Outdoor Media Buys 'Outside' Properties, Rebrands

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Pocket Outdoor Media, fueled by an infusion of Series B financing, has closed several acquisitions while rebranding itself as Outside, effective immediately.  

The company, which owns over 20 enthusiast publications, including Yoga Journal, Ski and Backpacker, has acquired:

  • Outside Integrated Media, owner of Outside magazine and Outside Studios. 
  • Outside TV, a provider of outdoor lifestyle TV and video programming via cable, satellite, and over-the-top networks.  
  • Gaia GPS, a mobile mapping and navigation application for backcountry hikers. 
  • Peloton, magazine title devoted to storytelling and photography about the sport of cycling. 
  • athleteReg, an event registration platform serving runners, triathletes, cyclists, and skiers.  

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The “reputation and relevance of the Outside brands across multiple lifestyle categories made our decision to change our company’s name a logical choice,” states Robin Thurston, CEO of Outside.

In addition, the Gaia GPS and athleteReg acquisitions “significantly boost the ways we facilitate participation,”  Thurston continues.  

The funding round, led by Sequoia Heritage, totaled $150 million and included participation from JAZZ Ventures, Zone 5 Ventures, and NEXT Ventures, according to Axios. 

The former Pocket Outdoor Media also includes titles such as VeloNews, Climbing, Rock & Ice, Gym Climber, Trail Runner, Women’s Running, Triathlete, Better Nutrition, Bicycle Retailer & Industry News and Clean Eating. It also includes Fly Fishing Film Tour, IDEA Health and Fitness Association, Muscle & Performance, NASTAR, National Park Trips and Warren Miller Entertainment.  

Thurston adds: “Everything we do is driven by a belief that a hike, run, ride or yoga practice can change your life."





Mobile Marketing

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February 23, 2021 at 03:41PM
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