What better time to share some updates on the fast-growing mobile space, which is creating all sorts of new opportunities for show organizers, than the week before the new version of one of the hottest mobile products in the world, Apple’s iPad, starts shipping. Some 55 million iPads have been sold in the two years since it was launched; 62 million iOS devices (iPads, iPhones, … Read the...

In a new report entitled “Global Digital Communication: Texting, Social Networking Popular Worldwide”, Pew Research indicates “text messaging is a global phenomenon—across the 21 countries surveyed, a median of 75 percent of cell phone owners say they text.” In looking specifically at the U.S., 67 percent of cell phone owners regularly send text messages, according to the report. This usage level is unmatched by any … Read the...

Last Thursday, I presented a session at IAEE’s Expo! Expo!, entitled “Leveraging Mobile Marketing to Drive Attendance, Engagement and Value”. It was great to be part of this major industry event, and hear first-hand all of the different ways show organizers are using mobile marketing. I conducted a mini-survey at the session to find out how many of the participants were actually using mobile … Read the...

Several weeks ago, I visited the LA Auto Show. Three quarters of a million square feet exhibition space. More than 1,000 vehicles on display. Plenty of world and North American debuts. Great place to visit if you are shopping for a new car, but that is not why I went to the 100+ year-old show. I attended to see the latest marketing strategies and … Read the...

A few weeks ago I attended the MMA Forum Los Angeles, presented by the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA). When I heard some of the traffic numbers from the presenters, it was hard not to be amazed at how fast mobile has grown since I attended the MMA Forum LA 2010, just one year ago. The first day luncheon keynote was delivered by ESPN, which … Read the...

The recent announcements by out-of-home advertising giant, Clear Channel, to add near field communications (NFC) functionality to 300 key out-of-home advertising sites in Singapore and 100 locations in London are worth noting by event marketers, as it looks like these type of units will eventually be seen across the globe. The trend in the outdoor advertising industry towards digital units, and the integration of NFC, … Read the...

One of my takeaways from the marketing for this week’s CTIA Enterprise & Applications trade show in San Diego was the prominent promotion of an SMS alerts programs in its attendee brochure and on the show Web site. Ad units headlined “Be the 1st to Know” promoting the SMS program were on three different pages in the attendee brochure. A large unit ran across the … Read the...