Measurement Tools and Metrics

After setting out of the above-mentioned external links and PR activities, we wanted to track our site’s traffic for evaluation of channel effectiveness. One way of tracking a click through is by installing a tracking tag – a hidden javascript attached with the link such that we can track the source of traffic, number of visitors, unique visitors, pageviews as well as click through rates.

A simple way of measuring the number of visitors is by downloading a Visitor Counter from StatCounter.com. This is a free online measurement tool for recording traffic data. The higher the number of visitors recorded, the higher the interest level of our site.

Another sophisticated method of getting the traffic data is to adopt for Google analytics. This is a comprehensive measurement tools dedicated for tracking online traffics such as traffic sources, number of visits, and also for analyzing visitor’s profiles, such as their geographic locations, languages, network locations and user defined as well as tracking browser’s profile such as browser’s operating systems.

At a glance, our blog noted a total of 33 visits and 145 pageviews, all located in Hong Kong, for the period from 18 June to 18 July 2010. For detail of the report please go to:

http://www.google.com/analytics/

Online partnership and PR

While iPhone has been one of the most popular channels for mobile marketing, it has established a strong affiliate networks with its retail partner sites such as Three.com.hk, Smartone-Vodafone.com, Fortress.com.hk and Broadway.com.

http://www.three.com.hk/

http://www.apple.com/iphone/?cid=OAS-US-DOMAINS-iphone.com

http://www.ibroadway.com.hk/

http://www.fortress.com.hk/
http://www.smartone-vodafone.com

As a blogger of iPhone user, our recommendations for iPhone should be a credible source of information to mobile phone searchers. Therefore we propose to build partnership with these affiliate sites in return for building an external links to direct to our blog. In reality, a common practice is by placing of ‘Useful Link’ in these affiliate sites. This can be done by sponsorships and pertained within a long-term agreement so that traffic can be sustained to our blog.

Besides building relationship with business partners, we can also look for opportunity with vertical partners such as mobile phone interest sites HKgolden.com (http://www.hkgolden.com/articles/cover.aspx?catid=19) for a placement of our blog’s link. On the other hand, we can feature their link for increasing exposures. Similarly, we can build relationship with other bloggers who are with the same interest in the form of building an external link with each other for sharing with mobile phone lovers.

Online PR can be done by building external links with social networks such as Facebook, Uwants or Discussion forums. These are free platforms that provided a good environment for making referrals, recommendations or exchanging ideas.

As the theme of our blog is i-phone, therefore it should be a good meat for phone users’ reference. Moreover as i-phone is now a hot topic in the market, we can put our blog’s URL in a facebook’s group and invite friends, interested individuals or advocates to add for ‘Like’ such that we can build our ‘fans’ for our blog. This can be a PR skill for earning favorable publicity.
On the side, we can generate more noise by creating some gimmicks for the name of the group. This could attract people’s attention thus could prompt people from clicking to our sites.

In addition, we can do some social marketing by riding on these platforms. For instance, we can do some online PR managements for our site. We can find a writer who are experienced with social sites’ environment and can talk with the same language of the site to post some favorable mentions about our site and get influence to opinion leaders or other interest groups at an aim for increasing media reports of our site.

Promotion through external link

Apart of launching difference promotion activities in iPhone App with other company, our blog can be search in the search engine for both Yahoo & Google, when the user type “spd4120” or “spd4120 mobile marketing, the search engine (both Yahoo & Google) will show the blog link. In additions, we also promote our blog in other different channels to increase the views of our blog, such as Facebook, uwants. Facebook is a social utility that connects people with friends and others who work, study and live around them. Facebook helps people connect and share with the people in your life. Uwants is a famous forum for users to share different topics or information. The Facebook and the Uwants are the popular website of information sharing to increase our blog awareness. The external link of mobile marketing is important for product or brand awareness that allow people to know your promotion.

Searh Engine: Google

http://www.google.com.hk/search?hl=zh-TW&source=hp&q=spd4120+&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=


Promotion in the Facebook

http://www.facebook.com/pages/SPD4120-Mobile-Marketing-Year-2010/137804296244290


Promotion in the Uwants

http://www.uwants.com/viewthread.php?tid=10214833

Points to note in iPhone App development

To develop an interesting App in order to attract user downlooad, there are 10 points to note:

1 Creating a simple App

Avoid complex requirement or function, such as the App created at Pinger called Pinger Phone. Although this app did get into the top 100 for a short while, it had both a social media feed and an IM client. Those who understood it, loved it. Buy many people just didn’t get it.

2 Providing both Paid and Free App
It is suggested to have a free and paid version if possible in order to get double the possible exposure in the app store and let users try the App before spending money on it.

3 Using Attractive and Eye Catching Graphics
Just look at the top 100 apps. Some of the icons are blurry, unprofessional, and don’t stand out. Create the best graphics that budget allows.

4 Priced your App Properly

What are your competitor’s apps priced at? You could price your app a bit high to start, then lower the price later. Some Apps would free for the first couple days so as to market it into the top 100. Then made it $.99. So it’s not always one size fits all. Think it through.

5 Having a Marketing Plan

You should make your marketing plans at the same time while you’re developing your App.

6 Keep Tracking Everything You Can

At a minimum track downloads, ranking, revenue, and important changes daily. You have to check what is driving your downloads and what is not. Get a great review in an app review website, check the effectiveness before you spend money on mobile ads.

7 Willing to Spend Money to Promote your App

You’ve spent hours and hours building a great App. You should be willing to spend some money to promote your App.

8 Doing Keyword Research

Apple allows 100 characters to enter keyword information about the App.Use Google’s free keyword tool and the iPhone App store search box to figure out what keywords to use.

9 Using your Userbase

If you’ve got a userbase when you launch your first app, announce the app to them.

10 Becoming or Hiring a Marketer

You should not just develop the App but not market it, you need to become a marketer. Either start learning on your own or hire someone who can help you.

Source by http://howtomakeiphoneapps.com/2010/01/10-iphone-app-marketing-mistakes-to-avoid/

iPhone App review

Apart from iPhone App introduction, we would also like to show you a great iPhone App review site, as the iTunes App Store is a bit of a big deal these days. New applications pop up in the iTunes store everyday. With hundreds of apps to download from it can be time consuming to sort through them all. Unfortunately, most of the App do not provide a trial version, user could not experience before confirm to buy. So, if you find one that looks interesting, but requires you to pay for it, App reviews really come in handy.

http://www.iphoneappreviews.net/ to check the Apps review

Let’s click to the links:

Advertising in iPhone App - Centraline Property

Central Property launched the iPhone App, property searching and sharing. Users can search through a number of different ways post own blogs, including the release site visit major housing estates in various districts, the property name or different conditions for the search and browse each individual salesperson's agent shoots plate Blog. Users can also GPS positioning, showing up near the plate.

In the marketing perspective, users can make use of iPhone App to place the advertisement and to source the property information, which can develop the advertisement and increase the brand awareness for the Centraline Property company.

Source by http://hk.centanet.com/iphone/

Citibank X iPhone Launch mobile marketing

Citibank currently partnered with iPhone for launching mobile marketing. Once an i-phone user downloaded a free Citibank’s apps, the user can logon to Citbank’s on-line account, where users can manage his/her online banking such as stock accounts. Besides, user can also search for nearby Citibank ATMs/branches, check out for the world privileges and browse the hottest credit card offers, such as restaurant discounts, dining coupons as well as other promotional freebies.

In our view, Citbank can achieve 3Ss of e-marketing, sell, serve and sizzle for customers. Meanwhile, customers can benefit from 2Cs, convenience and lower cost.

Sell – Mobile phone provided customers a new channel for accessing to personal finance, locate their product out of store or even increase cross selling with their affiliated restaurants and retail shops.

Serve (Cost) – Add value by giving customers extra benefits online through e-coupons. Instant inform of new offers to customers is another way of better service.

Sizzle (Convenience) – Extend the brand by creating a new medium for keeping contact with customers. Customers can also get connected with the bank business easily and more conveniently, anytime, anywhere with their cell phone.

sourced by http://www.citibank.com.hk/global_docs/mobile_app/english/index.html

QR code apps for iPhone

A QR code is a matrix code or two-dimensional bar code created by Japanese coporation Denso-Wave in 1994. The "QR" is derived from "Quick response" as the creator intended the code to allow its content to be discode at high speed.

QR is common in Japan, where they are currently the most popular type of two dimensional codes. Most current Japan mobile phones can read this code with their camera.

By doing this QR code, iPhone camera can facilitate this function in order to find out the information.

Source: http://iphone.click2creation.com/2009/12/qr-code-apps-for-the-iphone/

Brand New iPhone 4 Full Design! Video Conferencing(FaceTime), HD Display...

This youtube video acts like a online conference by iPhone 4 creator, Apple. The designers from Apple have fully describe the concept behind and every feature clearly. For example, the Vice President of iPhone product marketing briefly talked about the position of iPhone 4. The Senior Vice President of iOS software and Senior Vice president of Hardware are in the video as well, talking about the core function and support for the iPhone 4. Besides, by doing this online video, customers can clearly know all the benfits of every functions in the iPhone 4 directly. Not only the management team present how great the iPhone 4 is, also there are a lot of short video inside for demontration how muti-task it is.
Youtube is one of the channels to show the iPhone core features and outstanding functions among other competitors by interviewing the management and demonstration video. Since youtube is the most famous online video channel of people around the world to explore and search for their interested videos, so by putting this as advertisement is a wise decision that people can find out the information of this new iPhone 4.

Sony Newly Launched iPhone Rock Da Phone App!

Sony launched a brand new iPhone App, Rock Da Phone on 14 June 2010 for mobile game playing. The musical game aims at challenge players with their musical coordination while enjoying the latest tunes from the band, MR.

The current version has two songs, “Everyone and “Rock Hed Mix”, from the bestselling album, Mr. – Link Black. Start on Easy and unlock new levels by scoring high points with hitting musical notes on the iPhone or iPod Touch screens.

In the mobile marketing perspective, user’s engagement with Sony could be increased via games playing. Through the interactivity between user and brand, users can develop a unique experience with Sony and thus could associate the brand with its brand value proposition – bringing innovative technology to life.

source by http://www.ndn.com.hk/mobile-iphone-solution/rock-da-phone-by-sony.html

Durex baby on iPhone App

Durex Baby application is a clever approach to reminding guys using condoms for their own benefits through iPhone application. From this mobile marketing approach, Durex can explore the new channel in order to increase the market penetration. This outstanding creative idea and advanced technology can differenciate Durex from other competitiors. In fact, this application arouse large awareness , especially it makes a video introduction in youtube that the audiences think it is very interesting and willing to share with their peers through facebook.

This application can show the unlimited possibility to do a mobile marketing of the traditional products. See?

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQkEzBXd52M&NR=1

Example of iPhone App to increase brand awareness and arouse customer interest to Pizza Hut

iPhone Apps are being developed and launched everyday, to stand out among the Apps, gimmick, practical or fun should include in the App. Take a look at this fantastic App launched by Pizza Hut, you can play games while you wait for the pizza to arrive. In this game, you can bake a pizza, cook the spaghetti, select the sauce, all the food are available at Pizza Hut, just like another way to show you the menu.

The Pizza Hut iPhone App - a smart marketing tool where Pizza Hut is putting together fun, playing a game, convenience and sales.

Source by http://www.pizzahut.com/iphone/

Advertising in iPhone App - Shopping.com

Online shopping comparison website Shopping.com, enabling consumers to make informed purchasing decisions while on the move. Shopping.com is launching a free iPhone app that will give on-the-go shoppers easy access to product information, price comparisons and reviews. Now, consumers can stand in the aisles and check out product reviews from the shopping.com's members. They can even price check and discover if the store they're in has the best prices or if they need to look further.

The FMCG company can make use of this App to place advertisement to the Shopping.com App, so apart from develop an Ad on your own to promote your product or company, you could also placing the advertisment in other App.

Reference: http://econsultancy.com/blog/5604-shopping-com-iphone-app-review

iTunes share of the US music market swells to 26.7%

Apart from Apps, the music company can also make use of mobile marketing to promote their product, one of the example of promotion channel is Apple's iTunes music. Apple's iTunes music service has strengthened its lead in the US music market, growing to a whopping 26.7% of all music sold in the States, up from 21% a few years ago and 12% in 2007.

There is a growing trend of digital purchase, while the famous retail outlets Best Buy and Walmart, their shares drop by a few percentage points recently. So iTunes music is a channel that marketer should contribute it.

Source by http://www.macsimumnews.com/index.php/archive/itunes_grows_its_share_of_the_us_music_market_to_26.7/

Productivity Equals Big Revenue in Mobile Apps

News and entertainment apps continue to dominate market share in download volume which bring real money makers in mobile. According to recent research by In-Stat, productivity apps – like mapping, business and enterprise applications and other smartphone tools & resources – are responsible for generating nearly 60% of all smartphone app revenue.

While games and other time-passing apps remain enormously successful and profitable, productivity is the new buzzword in lucrative mobile app development.

There are no less than eight notable smartphone OSs, and the number is more likely to grow rather than shrink. Google will exploit its Internet dominance, and Apple will leverage its development community and stable platform. Microsoft is placing its bet on Windows Mobile 7.

According to In-Stat, the number of Android apps downloaded is growing at the fastest rate, but Apple apps “still dominate both free and paid downloads.”

Source by http://convertiv.com/the-battle-rages-on-iphone-vs-android-os-and-app-market/