Social Media and Mobile

How to Export from Flash to HTML5

Tue, 01 May 2012 20:26:00 GMT

Since the release of HTML5 and other similar technologies like AJAX, jQuery, etc., Flash has been in trouble. These technologies can achieve almost the same outcome as Flash, in a much more stable environment.

Though Flash is often argued for its ability to “be vectorial” and easily making light animations and applications, it has its fair share of issues. Issues range from from problems indexing in search engines to freezing computers and excluding visitors who don’t have a Flash player installed.

One of the biggest reasons to convert Flash to HTML5 is because of the absence of a Flash Player on a mobile platform that has become very popular today: Apple's iOS, which is supported on devices like iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, etc.

Converting Flash FLA and SWF files to HTML5 is possible if you use the right tool. Here are two examples you can use:

Wallaby

Wallaby is the codename for an experimental technology that converts the artwork and animation contained in Adobe Flash Professional (FLA) files to HTML.

Wallaby exports SVG vector files, creates a CSS, HTML and JavaScript files and jQuery plugin. All this makes it work like it was made in HTML5.

We can convert any FLA to HTML5, but Wallaby only exports the animation in one timeline, similar to when we export Flash videos. The output works only in WebKit browsers(like Safari and Chrome) as it includes some SVG features that are not supported by other browsers.

Wallaby can convert simple banners and animations that run on Flash to HTML5, but there are some limitations:

There is a known Webkit issue with complex timeline animations that crashes all Webkit browsers. This seems to increase in frequency with complex animations and on slower devices. It is rare for simple animations. Webkit fixed this bug on 1/26/2011 (http://trac.webkit.org/changelist/76708) but is not clear when this fix will show in Chrome and Safari browsers.
We have logged and are tracking several Webkit bugs. Most of these issues are not visible because of changes to the HTML/CSS/SVG content but this often results in non-intuitive conversion of the original content.

The features and support:

Feature	Implementation	Status	Notes
Button - visuals (normal, hover, active)	SVG, CSS	Complete	Buttons inside of a button are not supported
Fills - gradients or images	SVG	Complete
Fills - solid colors	SVG	Complete
FrameSets	HTML and Javascript	Complete
Gradients	SVG	Complete
Images	HTML or SVG	Complete	A few formats have issues with alpha
Layers - Art/Normal	SVG	Complete
Layers - Folder		Complete
Layers - Guide		Complete
Paths - Cubic & Quadratic	SVG	Complete
Scenes	SVG	Complete
Text - Classic Static	SVG	Partial	Text Limitations
Text - Classic Dynamic, Input	SVG	Partial	Text Limitations
Text - Font Embedding	SVG	Complete	Text Limitations
Text - TLF	SVG	Partial	Text Limitations
Tweening - Shape		Complete	One SVG file is created for each frame of a Shape Tween. This can cause a large number of SVG files for complex animations using Shape Tween leading to playback performance issues on iOS devices. Some of the complex cases may not convert correctly.

Swiffy

Google introduced Swiffy, an application that allows converting flash (SWF) into HTML5, with some limitations in certain types of animations.

Swiffy converts a SWF file to an HTML page that contains a representation of the file as a JSON object. The HTML page uses the Swiffy runtime (a JavaScript library) to render the animation using mainly SVG. Compiled ActionScript code is also contained in the JSON file and executed as JavaScript in the browser.

This tool allows us to convert an SWF 8 and ActionScript 2.0 file, to HTML5 to work better in browsers like Google Chrome, Firefox or Safari Mobile.

This extension is compatible with Adobe Flash Professional CS4 or later, and can be downloaded here where there is also an online version of the tool that allows you to upload an SWF file up to 1MB.

The features and support:

Feature	Notes
Action Script 2	Partially supported
Buttons
Filters	Partially supported
Embedded fonts
Images
Masks
Shapes
Sounds	Partially supported
Static text
Dynamic text	Partially supported
Tweening	Shape, classic, motion

Conclusions

Both applications are still in an experiment phase, but in the testing I did, both worked fine for small, simple Flash programs. There are no 100% compatible but both are worth to look due to the importance of optimizing for mobile and tablet.

5 Best Practices for Developing Your Mobile Site

Tue, 01 May 2012 20:11:00 GMT

Smartphone adoption and using your mobile device for on-the-go search are both increasing at alarming rates. This means that your audience is now engaging with your brand in a whole new platform: Mobile web. This new platform cannot be ignored, or you’ll risk losing customers and sales.

When we say “Mobile Web” We’re referring a web where the user can access information from anywhere, regardless of the type of device.

The Mobile Web presents a challenge for both users and developers, since users tend to encounter problems when trying to access web sites from mobile devices that have not been optimized, and developers need to figure out how to create Web sites that work well in all types of devices and configurations.

The most efficient way to make sure a website is visible on different mobile devices is making a window that can be easily loaded into a screen reader and offer a clean, smaller version of your website.

When we are designing for mobile devices we must consider:

Screen size.
Memory limitations.
Touch and swipe vs. mouse and keyboard
Use of a wireless network and cost.
Use of native features on mobile devices.

Screen Size

This is the most visible element to consider when we are designing for mobile. The resolution is varied from 96 × 65 pixels to 800 × 480 depending on the device.

The design should be fluid to fit any resolution, therefore, it is recommended to use percentages instead of fixed dimensions.

Memory limitations

The memory of a mobile device is considerably lower than those they have in a normal computer. If our site is heavy it is likely that we overload the device and it is not going to work. This is why it’s critical to monitor the memory your use will use, because if a page takes too long to load or crashes, it is highly unlikely the user will visit the site again.

Touch and swipe vs. mouse and keyboard

On a mobile device, users interact with your site in a completely new way. Most users touch vs. clicking with a mouse. They also swipe from left to right or up and down, so your site needs to be equipped to handle these new browsing motions.

Note that one thing users don’t like to do is scroll left or right to see the whole page (this goes back to screen size), make sure your page fits on their device and that they’re not scrolling to read the end of your sentence.

Use of a wireless network and cost

Mobile devices navigate using a wireless network, which offers mobility, but it is still unstable, insecure and expensive.

Operators usually offer Internet service with plans based on the amount of data transferred rather than the used time. So we must try to reduce the number of pages and steps to reach the information users want.

Use of the native features on mobile devices

We must take into account that there are great advantages of using mobile devices, that is why we must not only adapt the layout of our page we must use the virtues of the mobile devices such as geolocation, orientation sensitivity, availability of camera, anywhere access, etc.

Here are a few more mobile site development best practices:

URL. As short as possible.
Navigation bar. Offer at the top of the page, and only the necessary navigation.
The most important thing first. Give the user what they want. If you know that the user wants a lot of news media, that should be the first link of the website.
Do not automatically reload the page, unless clearly informs the user and provides a way to stop such action. The user may find a considerable bill by this oversight.
Weight limited. I would recommend no more than 10 KB
Scroll. Limiting the displacement of the page
Test. Experiment on emulators and real devices wherever possible.
Links.
- Try to be minimal to external resources.
- Provide access keys. It is prudent to label the links with number from 0 to 9 to take advantage of the phone keypad. We must minimize the time that the user has to type.
- Try to balance the links on the web and what a user takes to get where he wants.
- Identify clearly the link destination. If we are not sure if the device supports the destination format should be specified. For example, for a pdf or a non-mobile web.

What to avoid on your mobile site:

Pop-Up’s. No one likes them, especially on mobile
Do not offer more content than the requested by the user, on a small screen they don’t want to have to shift through mass amounts of content.
Minimize the code. A blank space must be loaded, and that can add to the user’s phone bill
Do not use tables unless you know the device supports them.
Use cache and not rely on Cookies.
Try to make the style sheets lightweight

You can check compliance of these rules on your page with the tool that provides W3C Mobile Web Best Practices Checker

The W3C, in order to make access to the web from a mobile device as simple and comfortable as it is from the desktop, has launched the "Mobile Web Best Practices" which seeks to resolve interoperability issues and usability that currently hinder access to the Web from mobile devices and make possible one of the main objectives of the organization is to achieve a unique Web.

The recommendations refer to delivered content and not the processes by which it is created, or the devices or user agents to which it is delivered.

For more information follow the link W3C Mobile Web Best Practices

Conclusions

Having a mobile-friendly website is more important than ever. Also note that if you have a website visible in any type of phone, you have to create a new marketing channel to connect with current customers and potential customers. The more ways you have to connect with your target market the better.

Many people today prefer to receive updates and information via their mobile phones than to get them through email or on their computers. Many people also enjoy last minute contests via SMS or social media on their phones. A great opportunity has opened to establish a closer connection than ever with the use of technology today.

What Google's Social Search Means to You

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 22:37:00 GMT

Last week, Google rolled out the controversial “Search plus Your World”. In a nutshell, this new search now includes your social graph in your search results. Here’s the kicker: Google considers your social graph to be made up of Google+, not Facebook, Twitter, or any of the other major players in the social network arena.

This new feature means that when you do a search in Google, you’ll now be shown results from within your circles on G+ and other G+ members who have made posts about your topic. This feature can be turned off by logging out of your account. But does that really mean that Google won’t give G+ profiles priority over other sites? Danny Sullivan of Search Engine Land does an excellent breakdown of what exactly Google’s Search plus Your World will do to your search results (logged into Google or not).

After reading Sullivan’s post, two questions came to mind: What does this mean for SEO of your brand and did Google just bite the hand that feeds it?

What this means for SEO
Personally, I think it’s too soon to tell what exactly this will mean for the SEO of your brand; however, after seeing the various screenshots of Sullivan’s posts, it’s easy to see that brands with G+ pages get priority over those that don’t. Hopefully Google quickly fixes this error and produces relevant pages, rather than G+ pages, otherwise it may be time to bite the bullet and create a G+ page for your business (even though, as many have pointed out, there is no ‘hard data’ on G+’s user base – i.e. how many people have accounts and actually use them).

Did Google just bite the hand that feeds it?
Google is a search powerhouse. People like that Google shows the most relevant search results. It’s simple, easy-to-use and you can usually trust that the results are the best you can find on any search engine. However, with this new integration, Google is forcing people and brands to join Google+ or risk not showing up in results. Will this make people flee for search engines that are more ‘fair’ when it comes to providing results? Only time will tell.

Making your Content Consumable on Mobile Devices

Sat, 19 Nov 2011 00:20:00 GMT

How many times have you walked into a waiting room and whipped out your smartphone to kill the time until your name is called? Or maybe you’ve gotten into a crowded elevator and your fellow travelers are all engrossed in their mobile devices – emailing, texting, checking sports scores, playing games, etc. While smartphones have all but changed the way we kill time, these situations are just the scenarios users will find themselves in when they find your mobile content.

In January of 2011, users spent an average of 422 minutes browsing the web on their mobile devices each month¹. Most people who spend time browsing the web on a mobile device do so because they’re on a break from something else or they need something right now. Either way, they’re likely to have a limited amount of time to find and consume your content. Keeping that in mind, there are things you can do to ensure your content is easily consumable by mobile users.

What do you have to offer that people need “right now”? Mobile users are more likely to have content in mind when they pick up their mobile device; they want to check their account balance, they want to purchase something, they want to research something quickly, or they want something to entertain them. Now think about everything you have on your site – how much of it is relevant to a mobile user? If you’ve got a lot of content that is better served on a full-size screen or can’t be viewed on a non-flash supported device, that content is probably better off being left out of the mobile site. Content that isn’t essential should be reconsidered when filtering content to your mobile site. Sift through your analytics to see what content is most viewed by visitors to your full site to determine what would be ideal to include in your mobile version.

Keep it simple.

Along with sorting through your content to filter what a mobile user is likely to need, try to keep the mobile content brief. Not only are most mobile users usually in between other tasks, but they’re trying to read your content on a small screen. If the content is long, they’re not going to stick around to scroll through long pages of text.

Surface your content.

Websites are filled with functionality that isn’t necessarily mobile friendly (think, hover states and deep layers of categorization). People looking for content on your mobile site can’t hover and they don’t want to sort through layer upon layer of categorization to find the information they’re looking for. Keep your categories simple and make sure that content is organized clearly to keep clicks to a minimum.

Only include essential images.

Many users will be accessing your content in places where they don’t have access to a wireless connection, which makes loading images a longer process than some users may be willing to wait through. You don’t want to serve the same images on your mobile site as you do on your full site, they’re probably going to be far bigger than you really need on a mobile device. However, if images are critical to the user experience, include them, but make sure they’re optimized for mobile devices and they’re used only where necessary.

Finally, have a way out.

There will always be someone out there who wants access to your full site, even if they know that they’re going to have to pinch, zoom, scroll, etc. Chances are, these users know what they want to gain from your site and, if they can’t get to it on their mobile device, they may leave and go somewhere else to find the content they’re looking for.

REFERENCES

https://www.wirelessintelligence.com/analysis/2011/03/smartphone-users-spending-more-face-time-on-apps-than-voice-calls-or-web-browsing/

The Mobile Decision - Native App vs Mobile Optimized Website

Wed, 26 Oct 2011 19:38:00 GMT

Nearly everyone with a smartphone has at least a handful of apps and sites they love and use or visit every day. With over 82.2 million smartphone owners in the US alone¹, many businesses are planning their mobile strategy and trying to determine whether that strategy should include a native app or a mobile website.

There are many things to consider when deciding between a native app and a mobile website. Each offers benefits and disadvantages, so it's important to incorporate the following considerations into your decision:

Who are you targeting?
Is your goal to keep your brand top-of-mind with existing consumers or do you want to reach a broader audience? If you already have a fanbase or large foundation of existing customers, a native app would keep you at the forefront of their minds when they're ready to purchase or consume content. However, if your goal is to broaden your audience, a mobile website with a strong SEO strategy may be more beneficial.

Your Content
What are you offering to your potential mobile customers? The most popular downloaded apps are typically games, weather, social networking, maps/navigation, and music - apps that have content users crave on a regular basis.

Additionally, people are becoming increasingly hesitant to take up precious space on their mobile devices unless they're certain the app will be something they'll use on a regular basis. If you update your content regularly (hourly, daily), an app would provide your potential users with easy access to your information above the competitors. However, if your content is updated less frequently (monthly, bi-monthly, or less), a native app would have a much higher likelihood of getting erased from the user's phone and forgotten.

The Smartphone Market and Cost
While Apple dominates the app market with over 500,000 apps in their store² (as opposed to Android's 200,000³), they don't dominate the smartphone market.

Smartphone Marketshare by Operating System as of 2011 - Q1⁴
Android - 36.0%
Nokia/Symbian - 27.4%
Apple/iOs - 16.8%
Blackberry - 12.9%
Microsoft - 3.6%
Other - 3.3%

This means that, though Apple has the largest app store, if you want to target more users, your mobile app will have to be developed for multiple devices. Since native app development is so unique from platform to platform, each app needs to be built from the ground up for their respective operating system. On the flipside, developing a mobile website can be significantly less expensive in development costs because it can be optimized to work across multiple platforms.

User Experience
While there are ways to simulate the native app experience with a mobile website (check out Oshyn's Work page on your mobile device), HTML5 doesn’t quite offer the same UX that smartphone users have come to expect. However, there are ways to optimize the mobile experience using HTML5 and mobile browser detection to serve a high-end mobile site to more modern smartphones and a more simplified version to older smartphones.

With the mobile web projected to surpass desktop usage by 2015⁵, it's hard to ignore the need for your business to have a mobile presence. Incorporating a native app or mobile website into your overall digital strategy will become increasingly important over the next few years as the market continues to develop.

*****
REFERENCES

¹http://www.comscore.com

² http://www.apple.com

³https://market.android.com

⁴http://www.gartner.com

⁵ http://mashable.com

Mobile Strategy For Enterprises

Fri, 14 Oct 2011 20:11:00 GMT

Is your enterprise site optimized for mobile devices? Mobile is not a trend and saying you don’t need a mobile site is the same as businesses that used to say they didn't need a website. There are currently 5.3 billion mobile subscribers¹and the number only continues to grow. The good news is that it’s not too late to get started with mobile.

Some things to consider when you develop your mobile strategy:

Though there are billions of subscribers, feature phones still outnumber smartphones 4:1¹, so make sure that your site is optimized for both feature phones and smartphones
89% of smartphone owners use their phone throughout the entire day². Many even sleep with their phones right next to them!
77% of smartphone owners visit search engine sites on their phones²
9 out of 10 searchers have taken action as a result of a smartphone search²
95% of smartphone users have looked for local information on their phone²

How can you use this data?

First, remember that your mobile site is not just a smaller version of your website. It should be optimized specifically for mobile. This means you need to think “touch screen navigation vs. keyboard and mouse”, “Flash vs. HTML5”, “portrait vs. landscape”, etc. Next time you’re browsing on your phone, pay attention to how you use your phone, what you like and what you don’t like, and apply these attributes to your own site. The biggest thing to remember is that all mobile, even tablets, are more often than not, smaller than desktops and people may not have the patience to read through long paragraphs of copy on a mobile device.

Next, take a look at the keywords you’re using to see how they work with mobile SEO. Though many say that there is no real difference between desktop and mobile SEO, there may be a difference in how people search. People on mobile devices generally have small keyboards and do not like to type in lengthy searches. To check your sites keywords for mobile optimization, try google.com/webmasters. It is also important to note that though mobile apps can be designed to be visually appealing, interactive and fun, they do not contribute to SEO.

Last, mobile and location go hand-and-hand. As stated above, 95% of users have looked up local information on their mobile devices. That means it’s important to have your location information as a main part of your mobile site. Don’t hide it in a “Contact Us” form, make it easy for people to find you, get directions to you, call you, and, of course, check in.

The Takeaway

Mobile is nothing to be afraid of. It’s fine to start small and build upon your mobile presence. Just remember, people are using their mobile devices to browse and if your site isn’t optimized for their device, there is a good chance they will leave just as fast as they came. Something to think about if you’re still not sure about optimizing for mobile: 61% of users are unlikely to return to a website that they had trouble accessing from their phone³.

¹mobiThinking Global mobile statistics 2011: all quality mobile marketing research, mobile Web stats, subscribers, ad revenue, usage, trends… http://mobithinking.com/mobile-marketing-tools/latest-mobile-stats (July 2011)

² The Mobile Movement Study, Google/IpsosOTX MediaCT, (Apr 2011)

³ Tech Crunch, Google Says Mobile Optimized Sites Will Factor Into Landing Page Quality And Perform Better In AdWords http://techcrunch.com/2011/09/21/goolge-says-mobile-optimized-sites-will-factor-into-landing-page-quality-and-perform-better-in-adwords/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Techcrunch+%28TechCrunch%29 (September 2011)

Google+: Why this might just stick

Fri, 14 Oct 2011 20:11:00 GMT

Google caused quite a commotion last week with the release of its own social network, Google+. This is Google’s most recent attempt at a social network and from the looks of the launch so far, this one may actually stick. Google integrated several features, like Circles, Hangouts and Sparks, to make their social network a fierce competitor for Facebook.

Circles
Google+ Circles are probably one of the biggest aspects of the new social network that make it so attractive. Circles allow you to put people into groups (i.e. ‘college friends’, ‘family’, ‘coworkers’, etc.) where you can decide which group you share your updates, photos, and videos with. When you add someone to your circle, they can see that you’re connected, but not which circle you put them in. This feature allows you to easily interact with your different sets of friends without setting individual privacy settings for each person.

Hangouts
Hangouts allow you to do just that, hang out with friends. Hangouts are a video chat that can hold up to 10 people. Google+ allows you to start Hangouts with friends and then when people see that you’re hanging out, they can join the Hangout. Google compares it to “bumping into friends at a café”. This feature is quite unique and could potentially turn into an extremely useful tool businesses to more easily communicate with their remote workers.

Sparks
Sparks is how Google+ helps you categorize and keep track of your interests. Simply search for whatever you’re interested in (i.e. cooking, golf, fashion) and add it to your interests. Google+ will then pull news articles, blog posts and any other links regarding your interest and put them into your Sparks feed. Sparks also allows you to keep your interests separate so if you only want to view information on one interest, you don’t have to weed through articles about your other interests to find it.

Google+ has many other features besides these three including full integration with your Google account. This feature makes it easy to login and keep track of your network, email, documents and more. Google has tried social networks in the past (remember Wave and Buzz?) but it seems like this time they’ve created something that has definite potential to be something great.

10 Social Media and Mobile Blog Posts From Around the Web - Feb 10th

Sat, 12 Feb 2011 20:49:00 GMT

Here are some of my favourite social media and mobile blog posts from the last week. If you have any blog posts you'd like to share Tweet them to me @kimberlymccabe and note that you'd like me to post them on the Oshyn Social Media and Mobile Blog.

10 Social Media and Mobile Blog Posts From Around the Web

Fri, 28 Jan 2011 19:19:00 GMT

6 Critically Undervalued Social Media Success Metrics
Google ‘not happy’ with Android Market purchase rates, many changes coming
One Year Later: Revisiting FINRA’s Social Media Usage Guidelines
(oh how I don’t miss being a FINRA “Registered Representative” I can say whatever I want! LOL)
Mobile in the enterprise changes everything
3 Ways to Tell a Social Media Problem From a Crisis
2-D Codes: The 10 Commandments for Marketers
Google Launches Algorithm to Fight Content Spam
Compelling Facebook Fan Pages
Groupon Rejects Google: What Local Businesses Need to Know
News Corp and Apple holding “The Daily” iPad newspaper launch on Feb. 2nd

Google Offers Goes After Groupon and Group Coupon Category

Sat, 12 Feb 2011 20:51:00 GMT

You’ve likely heard about the concept of Daily Deals through Group Coupon Websites. While Groupon and LivingSocial seem to be the most popular, there are over a hundred such websites listed on tomuse.com.

Groupon has been generating a lot of awareness for this category with news of massive deals (though LivingSocial recently created substantial buzz through an offer on Amazon.com which happens to be an investor) along with the much talked about attempt by Google to buy Groupon. Groupon declined Google’s bid, but this weekend Google “leaked” news that they were planning on launching their own Group Coupon business called “Google Offers”. Mashable broke the news on Saturday (January 22, 2011) with a blog post that noted:

“Google is preparing to launch Google Offers, the search giant’s Groupon competitor, Mashable has learned. One of our sources has sent us a confidential fact sheet straight from the Googleplex about the company’s new group buying service. “Google Offers is a new product to help potential customers and clientele find great deals in their area through a daily email,” the fact sheet says.

Google Offers Fact Sheet

Does this Make Sense for Google?

While it may appear that Google is attempting to be a Jack-of-all-Trades at first sight – maybe it really is a strategic move. After all, when Google announced Google Places it released statistics including that 20% of searches on Google are related to location. We’ve become more reliant on search engines to help us find business by geographic location. Making it easier for local businesses to be found by searches in Google makes sense. So perhaps offering deals via Google Offers makes sense. But does Group Coupon buying in its current state make sense to businesses?

Why Group Coupons Make Sense

Groupon and Living Social send daily deal emails to the subscribers in their database based on geographic location. This is great, especially for smaller businesses that do not have websites or websites that rank high on search engines. Group Coupons are clearly good at reaching a local audience that has an interest in buying offers (since they’ve subscribed) from companies or for services they may not have considered – versus consumers who search websites like Yelp.com for reviews left by other consumers.

Are the Group Coupon Buyers the Right Target Market?

Group coupon websites like Groupon claim that they target demographics that have money to spend – but I’m kind of hesitant about the claims because when I’ve signed up to receive deals I didn’t have to provide much in terms of disposable income. A quick search on Google reveals many businesses have found a notable volume of offer buyers who do not provide repeat business and while using their offer, do not shop beyond the offer amount or pay gratuities based on the normal price (which is suggested to buyers on Groupon and Living Social).

Are Group Coupon Websites (in their current state) Like the DotCom’s of the Early 2000s?

There’s a lot of buzz around Group Coupon Websites. Of course there is, in the recent past, there’s been an economic crisis that has caused many purse strings to be tightened. Of course we like the idea of getting 50-90% off! Sure the explosion of social media makes it easy for us to share offers with our friends and followers – but is this a consumer-centric fad with little long term viability for businesses?

Group Coupon Vendors Offer Limited Resources to Convert Offer Buyers to Repeat Buyers

To me, Groupon Coupon Websites are missing the boat by not focusing on providing services to businesses to help them in the process of converting Offer Buyers to Repeat Buyers. Here were are in a world where companies are increasingly using drip-marketing through newsletters and personalized web experiences and all Groupon offers is a checklist and possibly an offer to sell more of your products or services for 50 to 90% off.

By the Way, Just How Good Are these Group Offers Anyway?

I just looked at Groupon offers today:

Med-Contour – Deal = £99 for £750 – there is absolutely NO pricing listed on their website. I searched in Google for pricing and cached pages and still could not find any pricing. (Though a little humor for #WCM readers – searching the URL indicates they use Joomla. Yikes!)

The Life Center (Yoga Studio) – Deal = £35 for £112. I simply went to the company’s website http://www.thelifecentre.com/prices-and-booking/classes/ searched £112 – there is nothing on the website for that amount. This business might be gaming Groupon though - much to my humor they are offering a deal for new clients, “£14 for 10 consecutive days of unlimited adult classes from date of purchase”

Groupon’s text says, “…with today's Groupon: Pay only £35 for eight classes of yoga or pilates, rather than the usual fee of £112 at The Life Centre in Notting Hill. ”

Wait….but when I look at The Life Center’s pricing chart there’s no pricing for an 8 class package. Okay, let’s look at the math: £112 /8 = £14. The Groupon offer is based on the Drop in class for a length of 1.25 hours.

In Los Angeles there’s a deal today for Aquatic classes – try to figure out how they came up with the pricing. The first class is free. The deal $35 for $165. I don’t see a deal that easily translates to $165. The deal includes “…for $35, you get one private and four group CrossFit Kraken classes (a $165 value)”. On the website it says everyone gets the first lesson free, a private lesson costs $85 and 2x group lessons costs $150.

Uh-oh, more false advertising: Three Groupon Ads Ruled Misleading in U.K.

The Buyer Experience

I purchased a deal at O Spa for 3 spa experiences in 90 minutes. The Terms on the voucher said the offer could be redeemed online or by phone. It was agonizing to book the appointment online because the dates would not show up in my Chrome browswer – though the website functioned better in Internet Explorer it was still a very long and annoying process. Who waits 5 days for someone to call them back unless they’re waiting for a job offer? When I went for my experience it was by far the worst spa experience! “Groupon” was noted next to my name on the reservation list and I can only guess that this is why the spa employees treated me as if I were imposing on them. I purchased a voucher for 50% off a sports band, redeemed it on the company’s website and received it within a week (though the sports band itself is a little gimmicky). I purchased a voucher for hypnotherapy and Neurolinguistic Programming. I ended up negotiating a different service than was on my voucher for an additional fee (still quite a savings) and though I won’t tell you what the therapy was for – I have to say I am absolutely astonished by the results! I have four other vouchers to redeem, I’ll have to report back on my experiences. Check out this website for Groupon Reviews from Offer Buyers and Business Owners.

Business Owners that use Groupon Can #FAIL

Here’s an excerpt from a blog detailing the harrowing experience of a small business owner:

“That’s $46,320 of merch at retail or roughly $23,160 at cost…of that I get around $10,000 because of course I only get 50% of the deal minus credit card fees (ugh!) Groupon gets their 50%.”

The Business Owner’s Experience at Posie’s Cafe

“After three months of Groupons coming through the door, I started to see the results really hurting us financially. There came a time when we literally couldn’t not make payroll because at that point in time we had lost nearly $8,000 with our Groupon campaign. We literally had to take $8,000 out of our personal savings to cover payroll and rent that month. It was sickening, especially after our sales had been rising.”

“The losses would have been worthwhile if the Groupon customers had become loyal, profitable patrons but many only cared about a discount, not about what made the cafe special…”

Read more about this business’s Groupon disaster on the owner’s blog post.

You got them in the door…and then...

On Groupon’s website they explain how their service works mostly through videos. In one such video the narrator says,

“…we make Groupon risk-free to make sure our featured businesses always come out ahead…”

“…that very same day we mail you a check…”

But according to many business owner reviews that have used Groupon, they get several checks over the course of their offer’s validity. It seems Google Offers is attempting to go head-to-head against this by paying businesses faster. The Google Offers Fact Sheet says, “After your offer goes live, we’ll simply deduct our fee from the deal revenue and you’ll get cash in your pocket from the offer approximately three business days after the offer runs.” The fact sheet does not say you’ll get all the revenue – so I’m not sure about that.

Groupon is potentially great for getting people in the door. It’s not necessarily great for getting people in the door or for getting them to convert to longer term customers. However, Groupon’s website has a ROI calculator. I tried it out using this info:

City: Los Angeles
Category: Food/Drink
Average bill: $25
Percent who become repeats: 5% (you’re supposed to estimate the percentage you want to convert)
Number of repeat visits: 1000 (you’re supposed to indicate the number of “regulars” you have annually)
Groupon Estimated Deal Value: $508,802.70

Curious, no?

Groupon offers what I will call “a little support” to help businesses convert Groupon customers to repeat customers. They offer help via a checklist that suggests ways of doing so through “Ongoing Consultation”. They now provide a “Capacity Planning Tool” and “Redemption Cycle Planning” to help businesses prepare for the influx of business. But as a marketer, I’m surprised they don’t provided integrated marketing services to help businesses convert these customers.

Excerpt From Groupon's Checklist:

Ways Businesses Can Fail at Converting Group Coupon Buyers Into Repeat Buyers:

Get them in the door and provide a sub-standard service level. (If a business owner does nothing to account for the potential loss in gratuities or commission for employees they might inevitably provide lower levels of service.)
Do nothing to bring them back (American Apparel tries to convert people to their email list for future marketing)
Make the Groupon customer feel bad for having visited you with a discount. (Hey you offered the deal! Don’t make me feel bad for buying it!)
Make an offer without the cash flow to handle it. You really need to assess how the redemption of vouchers will affect your costs staying the same (and growing unpredictably via redemption). It appears through a little research that many business owners haven’t assessed their profit margins and cash flow before they’ve made an offer – which has lead to a financial struggle.

Take Away

Caveat Emptor! (Buyer Beware!) Both business and consumers CAN benefit from group coupons and they can both stand to lose out. My current stance is that Group Coupon Websites are in their infancy. The social aspect of the business combined with more integrated services (and yes technology) and better education for businesses could make this concept much more viable.

13 Social Media and Mobile Blog Posts From Around the Web

Fri, 21 Jan 2011 00:34:00 GMT

When it comes to keeping up with all that is glittery and new in social media, those I follow on Twitter and Google Reader are awesome sources! Here are some of my favourite blog posts from the last week.

If you come across a blog post you'd like to recommend, Tweet me@kimberlymccabe.

Mobile and Social Media Blog Posts from around the Web

Sat, 12 Feb 2011 20:51:00 GMT

Every week I read what could probably be described as a plethora of blog posts about mobile and social media from around the web. I read a lot of blog posts shared on Twitter and via blogs I subscribe to in Google Reader. Starting today, each Friday, I’ll share some of my favorites. If you come across a blog post you'd like to recommend, Tweet me @kimberlymccabe.

Have you checked out our Web Content Management Blog?

Mobile and Social Media Blog Posts from around the Web

Sat, 05 Feb 2011 09:29:00 GMT

Have you checked out our Web Content Management Blog?

Social Media Doesn't Work

Sat, 12 Feb 2011 20:52:00 GMT

I keep hearing people say that Social Media is a waste of time, that it doesn't work. And you know what? The people that say that are absolutely right IF they don't have an effective strategy! I cringe when I hear marketers and other company people describe their social media in ways such as: We have a Facebook page and a Twitter account.

Yeah. Uh huh. What are you planning to DO with those accounts and WHY do you have them?

(Silence)

Having Social Media accounts...and even using those social media accounts...is not a strategy: its just executing a few blind tactics.

What can you do to START creating a social media strategy that works?

Step One: Read, Listen, Research...

What are your clients, partners, prospects and COMPETITION talking about on the web? What do they care about? What websites do they visit? Where do they look for information? How do they look for information? What do they comment about?

Step Two: Define what you want to accomplish

Why do you want to engage with people? Do you want to create brand awareness? Do you want to define your brand? Do you want to be seen as a thought leader? Do you want to introduce new products or services? What's your purpose? What do you really hope to achieve by engaging in Social Media? Before you define what you want to accomplish, I recommend you open up a Word .doc or pull out a piece of paper and start brainstorming.

Step Three: Understand the different Social Media Platforms

I think a great way to do this is to use a mind map software to graph out the different social media platforms you might use and then plug in your ideas from Step Two under each social media platform. You'll start to see how you can re-use content and think of new ideas.

Step Four: Consider Your Resources

Many perceive social media as being free: its not. If nothing else it comes with the cost of man hours. You need to consider how and who will be generating the content (information) you are going to share in social media. Depending on your company's size you might need to start off using limited resources to demonstrate how the social media plan is going to work.

Forget the Cookie-Cutter Strategy

There is no one-size-fits-all strategy to making social media work. What works for @BlendTec might not work for you. There's certainly no way that blending ipads into powder is going to help Oshyn get new business. However, for @BlendTec, posting videos on YouTube demonstrating how their blenders are powerful enough to blend objects like iPads is very effective. They've had nearly 10 million views of this video. I'm not sure how many more blenders they've sold but they've certainly raised brand awareness. The other day I was in a Caffe Nero in London and saw that they have BlendTec blenders...I asked them what they thought about their blenders. Caught off guard by the question they said they were pretty good. I told them about "Will It Blend?" and they said they were going to check it out later on YouTube. It could be a fun conversation piece for Caffe Nero employees and their customers.

To make social media work for you - you have to remember that its not about broadcasting or just being funny. It's about providing useful information or availability that your target audience will like.

X number of Followers should NOT be a goal

You might have some Twitter or Facebook envy when you start looking at examples of companies that have large followings on Twitter or Facebook fans. But keep in mind that the numbers don't equate success. There are many people and companies that have used all kinds of crazy tactics to grow their numbers as high as quickly as possible. I've personally heard many cases of agencies creating fake profiles to build large FAKE followings. That tactic might work in the short term but I promise you that in the long term its going to hurt. Don't target an absolute number...target growth of people in your target audience.

The Tablet Wars: Will the iPad really be challenged?

Mon, 27 Dec 2010 22:29:00 GMT

Apple established the Tablet market in 2010 showing us how tablets could replace netbooks and could create a more engaging “always-connected” web experience. With bountiful apps for the iPad, consumers have been lining up to buy their own. I’ve even read some stories about iPad owners breaking down and buying a 2nd iPad for other family members to use. But there have also been other Tablets breaking into the market.

I stopped by Vodaphone recently to talk to some employees about their tablet preferences. I figured they were a good audience since they get to play with new tablets as they hit the market. The consensus was that the Samsung Galaxy Tab is more portable but of course has a smaller viewing area. They also seemed to be pretty keen on the Android operating system and surprising are quite happy with the fact that it can be used to view Flash. There was a general consensus that although the iPad is cool and sexy – there’s a little Steve Jobs resentment over the closed-nature of the platform. Next we started debating the unreleased BlackBerry Playbook. Some comparisons have shown that it might also be a strong player against the iPad – but then the next get iPads are sure to be full of surprises. I was intrigued today when I heard about the Motorola tablet via @techbabe on Twitter today. HP planned on releasing its Slate 500 (powered by Windows 7) but reassessed plans after acquiring Palm – deciding to launch the HP Slate as a business/enterprise product and develop a separate tablet for the consumer market. Nokia has been trying to find its way in the tablet market for a couple of years and just can’t seem to find its footing.

I’m still surprised by the love people have for their Samsung Galaxy Tabs. Everyone I know who has one loves it. One friend in particular insists on demonstrating every new function and app he’s discovered. So much is his love for his tablet that I bought him a keyboard for Christmas (and I had to go to several stores as everyone was out of stock – maybe it’s a marketing gimmick?) But I have begun to see the tablet take on a new life. We were sitting in the living room celebrating Christmas and using the Galaxy tablet constantly: watching YouTube, playing songs, taking pictures, scanning items to look up items, taking more pictures, using the tablet to make phone calls and Skype (yes Skype is now used as a verb like Google). Sure you can do all these things with laptops and netbooks but tablets boot faster. We turned on a laptop, a netbook and Galaxy at the same time (Yes my friends love technology like I do.) and the Galaxy was ready to go almost instantly. I started looking at how the tablet market was affecting Kindle and was surprised that, according to Mashable, many Kindle buyers already have tablets! I guess that’s not really that surprising considering the Kindle can hold a single charge without wifi for a month!

Check out this video for a iPad v. Galaxy Prizefight from CNET:

But what will CES 2011 bring us? What new gadgets will be unveiled?

Social Media and Mobile

How to Export from Flash to HTML5

Wallaby

Swiffy

Conclusions

5 Best Practices for Developing Your Mobile Site

Screen Size

Memory limitations

Touch and swipe vs. mouse and keyboard

Use of a wireless network and cost

Use of the native features on mobile devices

Conclusions

What Google's Social Search Means to You

Making your Content Consumable on Mobile Devices

The Mobile Decision - Native App vs Mobile Optimized Website

Mobile Strategy For Enterprises

1 mobiThinking Global mobile statistics 2011: all quality mobile marketing research, mobile Web stats, subscribers, ad revenue, usage, trends… http://mobithinking.com/mobile-marketing-tools/latest-mobile-stats (July 2011)

2 The Mobile Movement Study, Google/IpsosOTX MediaCT, (Apr 2011)

Google+: Why this might just stick

10 Social Media and Mobile Blog Posts From Around the Web - Feb 10th

10 Social Media and Mobile Blog Posts From Around the Web

Google Offers Goes After Groupon and Group Coupon Category

13 Social Media and Mobile Blog Posts From Around the Web

Mobile and Social Media Blog Posts from around the Web

Mobile and Social Media Blog Posts from around the Web

Social Media Doesn't Work

The Tablet Wars: Will the iPad really be challenged?

¹mobiThinking Global mobile statistics 2011: all quality mobile marketing research, mobile Web stats, subscribers, ad revenue, usage, trends… http://mobithinking.com/mobile-marketing-tools/latest-mobile-stats (July 2011)

² The Mobile Movement Study, Google/IpsosOTX MediaCT, (Apr 2011)