The rise of the social customer
Two weeks ago we presented the findings of a report, commissioned by first direct from social media think-tank ItsOpen, on the future of customer service at the Social Media Leadership Forum in London.
These regular events bring together organisations that have a track record of innovation, success and progressive thinking in engaging with stakeholders through social media.
Customer service, since the beginning of recorded history, has been very simple. It is just about information and the power to control it.
Facebook finally files for IPO
The wait is over. Last night Facebook filed its much-anticipated S-1 paving the way for an IPO which could happen in as little as a few weeks.
The company, which was founded in a Harvard dorm room in 2004, is looking to raise $5bn - though there is still the possibility that it could raise as much as $10bn if it sees strong demand.
Capital One signs up for MSN Exclusives
Capital One is the first major brand to sign up for a multichannel advertising deal across MSN’s new website, mobile and Xbox.
The deal wraps Capital One banners and pre-roll ads around a special section of MSN Entertainment called 'MSN Exclusives', as well as tie-ins to exclusive web content and competition prizes.
Four proven steps to boost your online testing
Many businesses have dipped their toes into the world of online testing, and sometimes expectations of high returns from simple tests can outweigh reality.
The truth is that there are genuine and continuous benefits to be had, but you should think outside the box to drive real change.
Visa and La Caixa make Barcelona contactless for MWC
A new deal between Visa and Spanish bank La Caixa will see contactless payments rolled out across Barcelona.
One million NFC-enabled cards will be issued, 500 ATMs upgraded and 15,00 new point-of-sale terminals installed around the city.
How much of a dent could Facebook make in Google’s search business?
With recent news that Google is more forcefully entering the social realm by integrating Google+ into its results, what about Facebook? What impact could it make in search?
While Google and Facebook have a very similar number of users, there is a notable difference in the revenues they extract from their users. Google makes over seven times more money, pulling in $29.3bn a year while expert estimates (Facebook is still privately held) puts Facebook’s ad revenue at about $4bn (this year).
Search is, quite simply, the best game in town, commercially speaking.
PayPal mobile payments surge to $4bn
In late 2009, PayPal president John Donahoe indicated that he believed online payments should account for 20% of global payments, even though, at the time, they accounted for just 5%. His goal: find ways to grow that number.
There are a lot of ways of doing that, but none may be as promising as mobile payments.
Mobile virtual currency market to hit $4.8bn by 2016
Virtual currency has fast become a multi-billion dollar industry. It's the juice that could propel Facebook to great IPO heights, and has already served as the foundation for other billion-dollar businesses, like social gaming giant Zynga.
In fact, a study released yesterday from Juniper Research predicts that the amount of money being spent on virtual currency in mobile apps is going to more than double in the next four years, going from $2.1bn last year to $4.8bn by 2016.
Visa enables NFC payments in LG, Samsung and RIM phones
Visa has announced that its NFC payment system is now certified for use in LG, Samsung and RIM smartphones.
The payWave application allows consumers to use their mobile to pay for goods at the point-of-sale.
Four ways managing frequency can make money from email in 2012
An important question on the mind of the modern email
marketer is: 'how often can I send marketing emails to my list?'
It’s not surprising really; online sales hit record highs this Christmas and New Year, email is now a core revenue-driving channel and is proving to be very important.
So how do you manage that fine balance between short term revenue and longer term list value, to make the most of the sales potential now and protect the value of your list for the future?
In this post I will set out the key elements to consider when deciding who to send to and how often.
