As social media becomes a more integral part of many company’s operations, there’s a battle being waged behind the scenes pitting public relations, digital and advertising agencies against each.
The prize they’re pursuing is the mandate to help companies create strategic and tactical social media plans and campaigns. The winner [...] Continue Reading…
There’s so much talk about social media and the tools that can be used, it’s refreshing to see how a company actually leverages social media to drive awareness and sales.
Here’s a video that I discovered in which Marcus Wilson, Idea Paint’s head of marketing, talks about how the [...] Continue Reading…
The high-tech IPO is a mysterious beast. It’s attractive, seductive and irresistible. But it’s also fickle, temperamental and not always well-behaved. Still, investors have a difficult time resisting the high-tech IPO even when the fundamentals aren’t solid or even exist.
In the coming months, it looks like investors will get [...] Continue Reading…
I wrote this post for the Sysomos blog earlier this week but wanted to share it with MET readers.
For those of us in the social media, digital marketing or online service worlds, social media is pretty much a no-brainer. It’s a new and different way to connect with customers, [...] Continue Reading…
Earlier this week, I came across a new and cool service called Take My Mac, which purchase Apple hardware (iPhones, MacBooks, iPads, etc.). As someone with a lot hardware sitting in my office (and an environmentalist), it struck me as a great idea so I fired off five questions [...] Continue Reading…
Forget About 3D TV, I Want My Apple TV
Since the iPod’s launch in late-2001, Apple has been steadily introducing new and improved products that have transformed it into the world’s most exciting and leading consumer electronics company.
The launch yesterday of Apple TV 2.0 is another example of Apple’s ability to disrupt well-entrenched markets with something that may not be revolutionary but it’s bound to make an impact based on its design, functionality and, of course, the magical Apple aura.
Designed to stream television shows, videos and movies off the Internet or via a personal computer, the new Apple TV (aka the hockey puck) is simplistic yet it has the potential to be disruptive. At $99 (or C$119), it’s a product lots of people will if only because it’s from Apple, it’s cool and it will easily change how you watch TV, movies and videos. Heck, I’m going to buy one, and I’m someone who has steadfastly resisted buying an iPad because it’s been impossible to justify.
The another interest aspect to Apple 2.0 is how it puts the spotlight on another part of the TV world: 3D. For months, the TV industry has been aggressively trying to convince consumers they need a 3D TV, even though the amount of programming available is minimal right now. At a time when many consumers are upgrading to large-screen plasma or LCD TVs, the TV industry is trying to force us to take another step forward that consumers aren’t prepared to take.
Apple, on the other hand, is appealing to couch potatoes in a different way. Apple’s approach is providing consumers with choice and the ability to easily take advantage of all the content on the Internet. It is appealing to how consumers want to watch what they want, when they want, which is a powerful proposition.
My sense is Apple TV will be a smash-hit with units flying off the shelves because Steve Jobs will convince them it is something they need to have because it will make their lives better and more enjoyable. Whether or not they need one is another question but Apple, in many ways, is a master of getting people to believe there are things they wand, and then there are things (such as the iPod, iPhone and iPad), they need.