Vikki Chowney

About Vikki Chowney

Facebook’s App Center: the exciting bit is mobile

Last week Facebook announced that it would be creating its own version of an app store, aptly called the App Center.

Facebook software engineer Aaron Brady made the announcement via the company’s blog, explaining that: “In the coming weeks, people will be able to access the App Center on the web and in the iOS and Android Facebook apps”.

This will create a central place to find apps that use Facebook Open Graph, from Facebook.com or within the two most-popular mobile apps.

Q&A: Twitter’s UK sales director Bruce Daisley

Twitter has taken huge steps forward of late in terms of its strengthening its advertising offering.

In March, it starting letting advertisers target Promoted Tweets to desktop computers and laptops, or specifically to the 55% of its active users who log in via a mobile device.

Then last month it extended its roll out of its self-serve ad platform to a further 10,000 new advertisers in partnership with Amex.

While success in this area makes this look like a steady path to monetisation, we talk to former Googler and new UK sales director Bruce Daisley about his plans.

How social are UK SEO agencies: infographic

We’ve talked often about the overlap between social and search.

MDG Advertising suggests that the two channels hold exponentially more power when marketers use them in tandem – and the infographic the agency produced proved to be incredibly popular. 

We’re yet to find a search professional that believes their discipline can exist in a bubble, but are people practising what they preach?

A closer look at Nokia’s global social strategy

Nokia is facing perhaps its toughest time yet as a business.

No longer Finland’s most valuable company (electric utilities company Fortum took the lead last month on Helsinki’s Stock Exchange) it finds itself a challenger brand after years of dominance – with the Lumia 900 positioned as the way to break into the sophisticated US smartphone market.

But with this adjustment also comes opportunity: the company is able and prepared to take risks and try new approaches. Nokia’s approach to marketing and the success of this is critical to the business’ transformation, including driving a more connected organisation that is able to build and thrive in a new mobile ecosystem.

As such, the company has worked with Brilliant Noise to structure and roll out its social strategy across the business  – focusing on integrating this into every employee’s daily life, becoming a more social business from the inside out. 

Q&A: Foursquare’s Omid Ashtari

This week Foursquare announced that it had topped 20m users, with 5m of those registering in the last 16 months.

This year’s ‘4sqDay’, held on April 16th (4 x 4, see?) also saw confirmation that people had checked in a fantastic 2bn times – roughly 100 times per user.

Though growth has slowed of late, the location-based network pushes forward while the idea of ‘checking-in’ continues to roll towards becoming mainstream.

We spoke to business bevelopment director for Europe Omid Ashtari, Foursquare’s first European employee – who joined the company eight months ago from Google – about his plans for the UK, best practice and areas of growth.

Air New Zealand launches Share & Earn scheme

Air New Zealand has launched a Share & Earn scheme with digitalanimal, tied to the promotion of its 777-300 Premium Economy Spaceseat experience.

Those registered for the programme, which is being trialled in the UK, will receive £50 cash for every share that directly results in a Premium Economy booking for the airline up until 16 May 2012.

Q&A: Vitrue CEO Reggie Bradford

Attribution is the name of the name at the moment.

A hot topic at our recent Digital Cream London event, social and online spend is now more under the microscope than ever.

It’s not enough just to have fans and followers; you have to know who they are, where they came from and what they want from you.

As such, the social media management/dashboard industry has blossomed of late and grown into something much more mature.

We spoke with the CEO of one player in this space – Vitrue’s Reggie Bradford – to discuss Facbeook Timelines, changes to tabs, measurement and social advertising.

Profile: Ogilvy’s Rory Sutherland on human behaviour and innovation

When it to comes to innovation; Rory Sutherland certainly knows his stuff. 

A pure product of evolution himself, he started his career as a classics teacher and is now vice chairman of Ogilvy Group – stopping at the planning department and working as a copywriter along the way. 

Though, as an ad man, technology had a huge influence on the way he works with clients, what he’s really interested in is consumer behaviour.

When we sat down just before Christmas, I’d been told to question him about tiny tweaks in design that have mind-boggling changes, starting with the change of a button…

Jetsetter’s Kate Spade promo created 77,000 new members

Jetsetter has revealed that its Kate Spade competition last December was its biggest acquisition partnership to date, with over 23,000 entries filed online and over 54,000 coming from instore promotions.

Since opting in to the sweepstake meant registering, this resulted in a total of 77,000 new members for Jetsetter.

The members-only travel sales site also launched its first Pinterest competition yesterday and is due to make an announcement later today about a ‘big name CMO’ joining the company.

Budweiser strengthens FA Cup ties with Aurasma

Budweiser, to promote its sponsorship of the FA Cup, has updated its Man of the Match app to allow users to pose with a replica of the trophy by pointing their smartphone at a branded beer mat.

Budweiser Interactive is a new section within the app, powered by augmented reality technology Aurasma, and brings to life “anything from an advertisement in a match day programme to a beer mat”.

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