Holograms and Handheld 3D Printers and Oreo Conspiracies. Oh my! Our roundup of the week’s marketing news runs the gamut this week. Let’s get started.
New Mashable App
As if it is not obvious, we love Mashable for the latest news, trending videos and entertaining stories which is why we were excited to hear that Mashable is launching a new mobile app with a pretty cool extra feature. They really listened to the user with their new app too which of course we love! In their own article announcing the release, they talk about how they have had great reviews on their website’s responsiveness which is why they have chosen to implement an adaptive design strategy in their new app. The new app will also have a feature call Mashable Velocity which uses an algorithm to predict when a story is about to go viral. On the app, you will receive a notification telling you when a story is on the cusp of going viral. Be the first to know! We have to say, Mashable has really done some of the best things you can do to market a mobile app…differentiation, great design, listening to the user and going viral.
Football on YouTube?
Earlier this week, Google and YouTube met with the NFL to discuss putting the Sunday Ticket package on YouTube. The Sunday Ticket package broadcasts games that are not being shown on local stations. Will this make it easier to watch NY Giants games in Philly? One can only hope. (This is what you get when you let the only Giants fan in the office write the weekly recap this week…).
Bring Your Doodles to Life
Geek.com announced this week that the SwissPen’s release is just around the corner. What is the SwissPen? It’s a 3D printer in the form of a pen, check out the video below for a demonstration of its pretty awesome capabilities. But wait, there is some drama attached to this story. The SwissPen is mirrored after a strikingly similar gadget called the 3Doodler which was actually a Kickstarter project earlier this year. The 3Doodler raised $2.3 million through its Kickstarter project which was only originally looking for $30,000. The drama? The SwissPen is beating the 3Doodler to market by at least 4 months. Kickstarter backers are probably getting a little frustrated with this piece of news.
Who Needs a Human Receptionist?
The council offices in north-west London have let technology straight out of a futuristic movie take over their reception area. Meet Shanice, their new receptionist…their new hologram receptionist. Costing just around $18,500, Shanice will replace a human receptionist and will be able to greet visitors and answer questions (as long as they are pre-programmed into a tablet). The hologram is reportedly saving the company around $26,500 a year says Digital Trends.
Your Coca-Cola…Literally
Coca-Cola Israel launched a global campaign in which people could personalize their Coke cans and bottles with their name. They have recently taken the campaign a step further by installing remote interactive billboards on the country’s main roads. Consumers enter their name into a special location based Coca-Cola mobile app (just once) and the app will identify the consumers as they approach the billboards and display their names.
Coca-Cola Personal Road from Gefen Team on Vimeo.
Caffeine for Your Skin?
Ben Yu and Deven Soni introduced a spray caffeine this week…but you don’t spray it in your mouth. The patent-pending form of caffeine was designed to be sprayed directly on your skin. The reason? Apparently the caffeine spreads through your system more steadily when it is sprayed on the skin versus when it is consumed orally. A writer at Fast Company tried it for a day. Read all about her experience here.
Double Stuf Oreos Not Really Double Stuffed…SHOCK AND AWE
A teacher and his classroom of students investigated Double Stuf Oreos and found that they are actually not double stuffed. They found that the Double Stuf is only about 1.9 times the stuffing of an original Oreo. Check out this eye opening report from Fox News.
