Do you suffer from “Nomophobia,” or the fear of being separated from one’s cellphone? If you missed the Today Show this morning, Nomophobia is on the rise and to be expected with the rapid increase of mobile usage, advancements in mobile technology, & the continuous onslaught of mobile platforms & opportunities. This week’s Top Stories in Digital covers reports on Nomophobia & what people are doing with their mobile phones to be so obsessive.

Addicted to your Cellphone? Nomophobia on the Rise

• According to a study by SecurEnvoy, 66% of people surveyed say they suffer from Nomophopia, or “No mobile phone phobia”
• People check their cellphones an average of 34 times a day & 75% of people even use their cellphones in the bathroom

“Before I go to sleep, I put it under my pillow”

“I bring it into the bathroom instead of the newspaper”

• The study showed that the younger you are, the more likely you are to be afflicted with Nomophobia.

Global Mobile Usage Doubles: Now 10% of Worldwide Internet Usage

• According to a study compiled by Pingdom, people accessing the Web worldwide through mobile has doubled since 2010

Asia’s mobile usage amounted for 17.84% of the country’s total mobile Internet usage, a 192.5% increase over the past 18 months

Africa’s mobile usage coming in 2nd at 14.85%

North America’s usage sits at 3rd highest with 7.96%

• The worldwide average may only account for 10% of Internet usage, but the number is growing at a rapid pace, with some countries such as India already nearing 50% from mobile devices

Report: Smartphones Get More Time on Facebook than Computers

• According to comScore, the average time spent accessing Facebook via smartphones in the U.S. was 441 minutes as of March, or 7 hrs and 21mins

That compares with 391 minutes, or 6 hrs and 31 mins for people who tapped into Facebook via a computer

• The next most popular mobile services were Foursquare with 146 minutes, Twitter with 114 minutes, & Tumblr with 68 minutes
• comScore also found that Facebook has 158.9M unique U.S. visitors who access the site on computers & 78M who access it via mobile phones

Finally, please check out BBDO’s latest Digital Lab Decoder E-Magazine

Decoder Issue #6:The Future According to SXSWi

• The major topics, themes and technologies related to the future of consumer engagement, as defined by SXSWi, are recapped and dissected by all BBDO goers this year
• Read everything from Transmedia storytelling written by your’s truly to ambient discovery and mobile payments & also check out BBDO’s latest work

In the digital world, CTR has been king. But as social media has taken over the digital world, there are so many more metrics to monitor than just CTR. This week’s Top Stories in Digital takes a deeper look at the social metrics that we should all be paying attention to now.

The Value of a Facebook Fan: The Facebook Factor Report

Forrester released a study supporting how Facebook fans are a Brand’s best customers by analyzing Best Buy, Walmart, Coca Cola & Blackberry.

• For all four brands, being a Facebook fan of the brand boosts purchase, consideration, and recommendation.

For example, 79% of Best Buy Facebook fans bought there in the last 12 months vs. 41% of non-fans. And 74% of them recommend Best Buy vs. 38% of non-fans.

• Of all the questions asked, being a Facebook fan had more influence over these behaviors than any other factor.

Being a Facebook fan of Best Buy increases the odds that a customer will purchase by 5.3 times.

Having a Walmart nearby doubles the odds that you’ll consider buying there, but being a Facebook fan of Walmart increases those odds by more than a factor of four

• This study further supports how maintaining a following of quality fans (not just quantity) & keeping them engaged is important as we see that with Facebook “Fandom” is worth something

The Social Media Metrics that Matter Now

Early on simple standard metrics such as # of fans, likes, followers, tweets/retweets determined success, but as we become more socially sophisticated so should our measurements.

• Quality & Demographics of Fans & Followers

Maintaining a smaller core audience of interested, engaged followers will ultimately lead to more meaningful conversations and stronger sales

Knowing exactly who your fans & followers are will help ensure your social initiatives resonate & perform optimally

• Engagement/Repeat Visits

Every share, tweet, retweet, post, comment, pin, repin etc can be thought of as one small interaction that contributes to building a long-term relationship overtime

Unique visitors is often thought of as a key metric, but watching repeat visitors is important as it determines what content consumers like to engage & spend time with most

Keeping a close eye on what content produces the best engagements & understanding why will help determine effective content strategies & deepen customer relationships

• Conversion

As brands become more savvy on social media, it is critical to measure what your audience is doing as a RESULT of the time spent on Brand Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest & other social sites

Does a follower buy, sign up, share, recommend or consume something as a result of your social efforts?

This week has been quite a week for smart devices. We even saw tech leaders like Apple, whose Q2 results combined with CEO Tim Cook’s off-the cuff comment on “convergence devices,” spark more online buzz than a Kardashian marriage. This week’s Top Stories in Digital takes a look at the current trends in smart devices & if the future really is refrigerator-toasters.

Infographic: Great Trends in Mobile
A visual summary from Social Media today on mobile trends:

• Out of 7B people worldwide, 5.9B are mobile phone users which equates to 87% of the world’s population

Note – not completely accurate as many people have multiple phones, etc but few industries can say that by the end of 2012, there will be more mobile phones in circulation than people

• Where do people use their phones?

98% at home, 89% on the go, 79% while shopping, 74% at work, & 64% on public transport

• How are people using mobile? Browsing & searching

81%  browse – social networking accounted for 50% of all mobile page views in 2011

77% search – 71% search to follow up on a TV, online, or printed ad seen & 9/10 searches result in an action (purchase, visit a store, etc

• Mobile web surfing is estimated to overtake desktop web surfing by 2015

2011: 43% mobile web surfing, 57% desktop web surfing

2015: 52% mobile web surfing, 48% desktop web surfing

• 79% of Fortune 500 companies still do not have mobile optimized web sites

Forrester Report: Tablets Will Rule the Future Personal Computing Landscape
As mobile grows at a rapid pace, tablets are also a contender to watch. Below is a summary of Forrester predictions in the personal computing landscape:

• Tablets to become the central device in the personal computing universe – not smartphones

Tablets will rule because they are portable, simple & flexible

• Tablets will serve as the anchor of the personal computing triad at work & home

Use cloud for data storage but primary device to send information to your smartphone, TV, projector, or PC

• Tablet market overall will grow strongly through the next 5 years to 375M sold & 760M will be in use in 2016

• Tablets will cannibalize all PCs but eventually displace Laptops more so than Desktops

Apple Q2 Results: Theories on Convergence Devices
So what does Apple’s earnings & CEO have to say about the future? Mobile & Tablets are the bread & butter. Convergence shouldn’t be done for convergence’s sake.

• Yet again, Apple’s #s are out of the park as they announced hitting $39.2B in sales & selling 35.1M iPhones & 11.8M iPads in Q2

• When asked about whether an Apple tablet-laptop hybrid was inevitable, Cook responds that “Anything can be forced to converge. But products are about trade-offs.”

For example, “You can merge a toaster and refrigerator, but that’s probably not going to be pleasing to anyone.“

• Direct dig at Microsoft with their lead up to Windows 8? Maybe so as they have shown many hybrid laptop-tablet prototypes. But Apple stands strongly on stating they find niches & provide what consumers want & need.

The company sold 67M iPads at the end of 2011 in 2 years of being on the market. It took more than 24 years to sell that many Macs, 5 years for iPods, & 3 years for iPhones.

It seems memory is a hot topic here at BBDO Atlanta these days. Between the craze with the The Moron Test app to the copy of Buyology, I see everyone reading on their lunch break. I have also been more consciously aware of my own memory ability. So, I see it fitting to pass along these tips for maximizing your memory. Just think about how much your work productivity would increase if your ability to remember was limitless─ no more calendar invites or sneaking onto the intranet People Directory.

• Write Things Down – Seems like a no-brainer, but keeping a notepad or sticky notes on your desk is a must. By transforming the meeting’s key points into your own words, they will hold more meaning to you.
• Review Regularly- Take five minute breaks throughout the day to review your task list. This will keep you focused and help prioritize your day.
• Take A Break- One of the best things you can do for your memory is to increase the flow of oxygen to your brain. Refill your coffee from a machine on a different floor and take the stairs instead of the elevator for the short visits in-between floors.
• Write More Things Down- Write down things the random thoughts that come to mind throughout the day. It may end up looking like a tornado of sticky notes invaded your wall, but by writing thoughts down you are clearing them out of your mind and resisting the urge to do them right now. This keeps you on the task at hand.
• LIFO – Last In, First Out – Respond to the newest messages first as you can surprise and delight others. Respond to older messages next – responsiveness is a sign of a true digital leader. It fosters reciprocity and will pay dividends not only now, but down the road.
• Avoid multi-tasking – You think that juggling multiple screens at the same time makes you smarter and more effective?  Think again. Focus on the task at hand and complete it in a shorter amount of time. This will result in fewer errors. Erik Qualman (author of Socialnomics) says multi-tasking can lower your IQ by 10 points! You may also be surprised to hear that the effects of multi-tasking are more damaging than those of certain drugs.
• Categorize Into Smaller Groups- Another way to help your memory is to separate information into smaller pieces. It’s logical that smaller pieces of information are easier to remember than more complex ones.

Integrate these simple techniques into your daily routine, and in no time, you will have the memory of an elephant (yes, it’s because they have a larger brain). For more on this topic, check out author Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, which teaches how ordering the information that enters our consciousness increases creativity and productivity. And, if you truly want to remember these tips, write them down and review them regularly. See how easy it is?

Written By Megan Merrifield. Connect with Megan on LinkedIn or drop her a line at megan.merrifield@bbdo.com

Memory Tips from Maximizing Your Memory by Jason Womack
Digital Leadership: Managing Your Digital Legacy by Mike Lewis
Digital Leader: 5 Simple Keys to Success and Influence by Erik Qualman
Buyology: The Truth and Lies About Why We Buy by Martin Lindstrom
Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

(more…)

This week was the annual Ad Age Digital Conference in NYC that started off by saying they aim to one day just call the conference the Ad Age conference. AT&T, Verizon, Budweiser, Spotify, even CitiGroup’s stock expert Mark Mahaney to name a few were some of the big players to make a splash this year. This week’s Top Stories in Digital provides you with a full wrap up on what you don’t want to miss from this year’s conference.

AT&T Discusses New Strategy to Win Consumer Love: Be Human

• Greg Heard, VP Brand Identity & Design, presents AT&T’s new brand strategy as he stated “Welcome to an endlessly evolving brand around the human experience.”

• The challenge – consumers love their technology, but not their carrier. The answer – evolving the brand to be more human through deeper sensory connections

Look – New flagship store design & ad campaign “It’s what you do with what we do”

Voice – Tone moving from informational to humanistic to ensure the brand sounds like one person talking to another

Sound – Sonic branding “four notes with a human snap” to create an anchored sound of possibility

Experience – AT&T Foundries inviting developers to “create new technologies along with us”

• What was echoed by many brands, Greg Heard was right on par when stating “It’s about the experiences. The customer experience needs to be in line with & drive your business model.”

Verizon Exec Tries to Structure Media Around People, Not Content

• John Harrobin, VP-marketing communications and customer-relationship management at Verizon, states “Marketers should work toward structuring media around people rather than content.”

• At the core of his presentation, he sang the praises & importance of data & data-management-platforms as “This is the age of the real-time CMO. Our ability to capture & act on real-time data is going to determine our role in the marketplace.”

At his office, he even has a real time social media digital dashboard that charts & monitors all chatter across the web on Verizon & competitors

• He discusses how even your smartphone is a tool for real-time data with it’s internal accelerometers that act as “sensors in your pocket”

“Its not just about seeing the world with new eyes but about using tools and technologies to measure things we were never able to measure,” Mr. Harrobin said.

“We can then make connections between people and things. As marketers that’s what we’re paid to do.”

Coca-Cola and Spotify Partner in Global Deal

• Spotify kicks off Wednesday’s keynote with a presentation on all that’s new & what to expect from Spotify, a leading 4-year old music star-up that’s growing fast.

• Branded apps on the platform with McDonalds, Intel, & Reebok are mentioned & a future Spotify iPad application is teased but the Coca-Cola partnership announcement steals the show

• Spotify & Coca-Cola have forged a strategic partnership to promote the music-streaming company as it launches in new countries

• In turn, Coca-Cola who looks to double revenue by 2020, will feature Spotify as the centerpiece of their “Year of Music” campaign in 2013, as well as future Facebook & Olympic campaign integrations

Music has been central to Coca-Cola’s efforts to reach teens, a demographic group projected to represent one-third of the global population by 2020.

Budweiser Taps Social-Planning Startup Wendr for $25,000 Partnership at Ad Age Digital

• Anheuser-busch InBev execs take the stage to announce their on-going role as “Match-Makers”

Finding technologies that can become best practice tools for their brands & engage with their consumers directly

• 5 competing start-up companies battle it out on stage with a live audience to be selected as the next AB InBeV venture

Winner is awarded as $25K partnership deal with Budweiser

• The winner? Social start-up Wendr’s “Buds by Budweiser,” that uses the already established Wendr API

Mobile app leting you find friends to go out with, find local bars that carry Budweiser beers, and then check in on Foursquare to earn a free beer or some other type of discount at the venue

Citi Analyst: Online-Ad Market Reaping Benefit of TV Ad Dollars’ Shift

• Citi Investment Research’s Mark Mahaney, who covers about 30 stocks, presents “2012  Trend Report” naming his top-10 internet trends:

The rise of all things mobile

The rise of all things social

The rise of all things local

The online migration of TV/Video advertising

The rise of online gaming

The rise of the cloud

Rise of mobile payments

The hardware-ization of the internet

Increasing Merger & Acquisition momentum

Robust IPO movement

• He also even gave away free stock advice that may have helped many substantiate the price of the conference tickets

Buy: Amazon, Google, Netflix, Priceline

Neutral: Expedia, eBay, Groupon, LinkedIn, Yahoo

Sell: Akamai Technologies