Pizza Hut iPhone app generates an extra $1m sales
Another example of the potential of mobile commerce comes from Pizza Hut, with its iPhone app generating $1m in sales in the three months since launch.
The app, which allows customers to order food on the move, is approaching the figure of 1m downloads. It is only available in the US at the moment.
Social media stats round up
Here's a selection of recent social media stats, taken from a range of sources, including Econsultancy's Social Media Statistics document, which forms part of the Internet Statistics Compendium, and other reports...
What should be above the fold on an e-commerce site?
As a number of usability studies have shown recently, the fold on a webpage doesn't have to be a barrier to users, and people are willing to scroll down to see more.
However, the area above the fold is the first thing visitors to your website will see, so what should be above the fold? Here are a few suggestions, with e-commerce sites in mind...
App review: thetrainline for iPhone
Rail ticket retailer thetrainline has just released a new free iPhone app, which allows users to check UK train timetables and plan journeys.
With the only competition being the Rail Enquiries iPhone app, which retails at £4.99, then it could be a popular app. I've been taking a closer look...
Mobile app review: Amazon
Online retail behemoth Amazon launched the UK version of its iPhone app this week, allowing users to search and shop from their mobiles.
I've been trying out the Amazon mobile app...
Only 7% of Europeans shop online across borders
Despite the potential for growth in e-commerce in Europe, just 21% of online retailers are selling in other EC member states, and just 7% of people shop online across borders.
These are some of the findings of a European Commission survey, which were presented by Maglena Kuneva, the European commissioner for consumer affairs. He identifies language, regulatory barriers to business, as well as consumer trust issues, as some of the barriers to cross border e-commerce.
Does Twitter really cost UK businesses £1.38bn?
Another survey about the cost of social network use is doing the rounds today, this one suggesting that workers' use of Twitter and other social networks costs the UK economy £1.34bn in wasted time.
As with many of these types of surveys, on social network use during work, or using worktime for Christmas shopping, fails to take shrinking lunchtimes into account, as well as the potential benefits of having employees using Twitter.
Q&A: Rob Colling on why online video needs subtitles
Launched earlier this year, internetsubtitling.com is a startup that, as the name suggests, provides captions and subtitles for online video.
The captions and subtitles, as shown in this example,
provide a potentially useful way to make online video more accessible.
I've been talking to founder Rob Colling about the company and
concept...
Site review: Auto Trader
Motoring website Auto Trader has recently launched a new version of its site in beta, updating the technology behind the site and introducing a more modern design.
The Auto Trader mobile website was impressive when I reviewed it recently, so I've decided to have a closer look at the new desktop site. It's a pretty big site, so I've confined my review to a used car search...
Q&A: Robin Terrell, MD of John Lewis Direct
John Lewis is one retailer which has been a success online over the last few years, experiencing consistent sales growth, and has often been used as an example of a usable website on this blog.
I've been asking John Lewis Direct MD Robin Terrell, one of the keynote speakers at the recent Internet Retailing conference, about the company's approach to e-commerce...
Social media: the best and worst of 2009
Email marketing: six steps to improving customer engagement in 2010
Web 2.0
Graham Charlton
Strategy & Planning
