iMedia Connection Blog

If the economy picks up in the beginning of the year, we can expect to see several progressive companies take some big digital risks in 2013 and spend the hordes of cash they have accrued. To celebrate the New Year, we’ve made thirteen predictions for 2013 ranging from the fairly likely to the totally improbable.

Company News We’re Looking Forward To Reading In 2013
Apple: Apple buys Waze to replace its maps and finally offers social geotargeting
Twitter: Twitter’s impact on social media becomes less relevant and Google buys the service for a bargain price
Yahoo: Marissa Mayer packages up Yahoo and sells it to Microsoft
Yelp: Google purchases Yelp after the company fails to earn significant profit
Motorola: The release of the next great Android smart phone drives Motorola’s big comeback
Google: Big moves in the tablet market give Google double-digit market share growth
Foursquare: Facebook purchases Foursquare to continue to grow its social monopoly
Leap Motion: Gesture controlled televisions render the Kinect outdated and make Minority Report-like interfaces a reality
Probably Won’t Happen, But Would Be Interesting
RIM: Google purchases RIM for its patent portfolio
Barnes & Noble: Amazon buys Barnes & Noble and follows in Apple’s retail footsteps
Apple: Steve Jobs’ spiritual successor, Jony Ive, becomes the new... Read more

Facebook recently released a statement denying that it is “gaming” its news feed against posts written by advertisers. The social media giant claims that it merely promotes messages that receive a high level of interaction from users, as opposed to ones users are not interested in.
However, if you’ve been paying close attention to your Facebook news feed, you may have noticed that you’re not seeing many posts from any of the pages that you’ve “liked.” This would be because Facebook is doing the exact “gaming” that it denies. Since recent updates, Facebook pushes a brand’s updates to only about 15 percent of that brand’s followers. The only way to reach them all: paying up.

Read the full article by BGT’s Andrea Fishman, Facebook Stole Your Fans - and Wants a Ransom to Get Them Back, to learn about what this could mean for your business’ Facebook page.

With all the different ways that internet users are accessing website content (such as through mobile devices and tablets) the need for an effective and time-saving approach to delivering content to different devices/displays arises.
Because of this, responsive web design is a concept that is getting a lot of attention lately. The benefits are clear: one code base, one content source, multiple displays.
Now, if your organization agrees that it is the right way to go, you need to decide which process/project management approach will work best for you.
Waterfall Approach
The Waterfall methodology is basically what it sounds like; one phase 'flows' into the next, until all phases are complete.

Because design is completed and approved very early on in the process, you need to have a good idea how your site will appear in different displays before the actual development process begins.
Agile Approach
Agile is another project management methodology that takes a more iterative approach to creating a responsive site.

For responsive design, this approach is optimal because each iteration can result in a releasable display 'version.'
There are many different flavors of project management methodologies, and all have their merits and challenges. When it comes to responsive design, the agile approach has a natural... Read more

Life may offer few guarantees, but here's one I can offer: I guarantee there are company websites providing a better user experience to their customers than your current site is providing to yours. Don't be too disheartened, there are few perfect sites that do it all correctly. And even if there were, it's only momentary as sites are getting smarter every day.
So when is a website more than a website? When it transcends from being utilitarian to becoming the very best reflection of a company. In essence, it shows products and services in a better light and provides an experience in which people want to engage. This is online "nirvana," and it's something that's rarely achieved.

Some things to keep in mind:

When you don't evolve, you quickly get left behind
If your website isn't your No. 1 sales channel, it will be soon
Prioritize your marketing budget to optimize conversion rates

Sites that get it right
So ask yourself this, of all the sites you went to today, what percentage of them left you with the feeling of "wow!" this company really hit it out of the park? Take a look at my three picks for smart sites and see how the core features are... Read more

Facebook is launching Timeline for brands to establish a stronger relationship between brands and consumers.
Through real-time sharing and the Timeline, Facebook is continuing its path to a more integrated and personal Web. New features include everything from branding opportunities to customer service functionality. What does this mean for your business?
Below are five Facebook Timeline features that affect the way brands communicate and how marketers can use the new functionality.

Milestones
Customer Service Functionality with Messages
Facebook Apps & Tabs
Timeline Favors Visual Content
Pinned Posts

Marketers should leverage the new timeline for brands in order to better connect with consumers. Facebook is allowing brands to have a grace period to make updates to their Timeline before March 30, 2012. Before pushing Timeline live, review past posts, highlight the best photos and comments and hide anything that might seem out of place. In addition, make sure your page’s privacy and security preferences are up to date as new preferences have been added. Finally, have fun! Timeline is a great way to humanize your brand by sharing a part of your history.
To read more about Facebook’s new timeline for brands and how to leverage it for your business, click here.