One of the most interesting occurred before the exhibit halls opened -- the first GDC State of the Industry survey that polled more than 2,500 attendees. The results revealed some intriguing trends in funding, platform preference and publishing models.

For starters, how are developers funding their projects? A few survey numbers:

• 72% are being funded by a company’s existing war chest or an individual’s personal funds

• 9% are from VCs

• 10% are publisher-funded

• 4% are crowdfunded – and 8% of the developers have worked on crowdfunded projects, with another 44% planning to go this route in the future

Indies Rising

The survey also found that 53% of respondents consider themselves ‘indie developers’; 46% are employed at companies of 10 people or less – and only 24% reported they worked with a publisher on their last game.

Platforms

According to survey results, more respondents are developing for smartphones and tablets than for any other platform – 38% released their last game for smartphones and tablets; 55% are making their current games there; 58% will release their next games on these platforms.

Cool Stuff

Survey results aside, there were some cool products to play with and even some significant Windows 8 stats rolled out by Microsoft as part of its full-court press to draw more games and developers to the platform.

Hands down, the most popular was Irvine, CA-based Oculus VR’s Rift, a virtual reality headset with stereoscopic 3-D, a 110-degree field of view and low-latency head tracking. Woe to anyone who strayed along the footpath leading up to their booth once the morning doors swung wide – they would have been trampled by the hordes who ran pell mell to line up and play ‘Hawken’, a first-person shooter game that situates players inside a levitating war machine.

Beyond, the hype, equally impressive was that the company raised $2.4 million from crowdfunding.

As reported by John Gaudiosi, editor of Gamerhub.tv, a video syndication network, Zombie Studios demonstrated Daylight, slated for release sometime this fall. It’s the first horror game for Sony’s new PlayStation 4. A team of six people, noted Gaudiosi, created the game and are self-publishing on PlayStation 4.

Daylight, said Gaudiosi, “traps players inside a haunted insane asylum. Armed only with the light and apps from your in-game smartphone, you must try to get out alive. There are no weapons other than your feet – which are best used to run.”

Gaudiosi added that the developer has written “a lot of back story about centuries of souls who were mistreated within the asylum’s walls.”

Lastly, Develop said that Microsoft is attracting a slew of developers to Windows 8, some of which include Disney, GameHouse and Glu. The publication added that “as for revenue share on the Windows Store and what benefits successful developers can receive on the platform, should an app pass $25,000 in sales, developers will start receiving an 80% share of all subsequent sales, instead of the usual 70/30 split.”

Look forward to seeing what will unfold during GDC 2014!

Changes can be unsettling, whether they're potential or actual, positive or negative. You may be gearing up for a promotion/new position, staring at a wide-open field of new prospective clients, or launching new products and services. Or you may be hunkering down in the face of outsourcing, downsizing, mergers/consolidations, takeovers, and local or global competition. 

Consider the Changes Taking Place at Yahoo!

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer has certainly unleashed enormous, untold passions about how, when and where people should work at Yahoo.

The recent, now infamous, change requiring Yahoo employees to work in the office instead of telecommuting from home has been likened to the shot heard round the world.

No less than a great war has ensued and Marissa Mayer has been villainized and vilified by some and verified and validated by others.

It is no secret that Yahoo has been struggling to keep pace with the likes of Apple, Facebook, and Google, all of whom have strong in-office cultures and not coincidentally, strong revenues to match.

In Our Opinion...It’s not about trusting people to work at home, it’s about Mayer’s challenge in the turnaround of Yahoo regardless of where people are working. Mayer has to build a new corporate culture of trust in the infinite possibilities of what the Yahoo organization can create together.

However, as we are hearing, this change process is creating considerable stress for Yahoo employees.

How We Respond to Change

Do you respond or react to change and do you know the difference? As soon as something nudges you out of your regular routine, or challenges your understanding of how the world works and where you fit into it, it will likely trigger a deluge of feelings including; fear, anxiety, overwhelm, excitement, distraction or denial.

How Does the Way You Respond to Change Impact Your Brand?

These feelings can manifest in your behavior.  You may, unconsciously, act out with behavior that is not a brand match for you, or your communication style alters, both at work and at home. You might feel compelled to push yourself and others to overwork, or take the opposite approach - which most do - and procrastinate, avoid the work that's on your plate and get sidetracked with misconceptions, assumptions and gossip to changes that may or may not happen.

On a personal level, your self-care may suffer and you may reach for unhealthy substances, get less sleep, skip meals or overindulge. You might cut yourself off from friends and family, and spend more time alone or with other people who have unhealthy habits or attract people who are in the same place as you.

The Impact

Dealing with change requires flexibility, resilience and an ability to think on your feet. Unfortunately, when you're caught up in your reaction to change, these mental abilities are affected as well. When you're preoccupied, worried and focused on the future instead of the present, it's much harder to concentrate and apply your brainpower to what's in front of you.

Great leaders are admired for their serenity and confidence even in the face of uncertainty and upheaval. For many of us, though, when change is afoot, serenity is far from our reach. Instead, emotions are much closer to the surface and can flare up at the most inopportune times. Whether you lash out, cry, or pound on your desk behind closed doors, it's incredibly uncomfortable to feel so out of control.

Consider, also, the impact on the people around you. Emotional outbursts, whether at work or at home, can irrevocably damage your effectiveness, your reputation and your relationships.

Successful Strategies for Dealing With Change

Here are five strategies to help you remain flexible and resilient in the face of change:

1. Take care of YOUr body. Eat well, sleep well and refrain from harmful habits like indulging in caffeine adrenaline behavior, excessive drinking, or other risky behavior. Work out whatever that is for you!

2. Take care of YOUr mind. Stay in the present moment. Challenge your negative thinking and keep things in perspective; when the doom and gloom sets in, ask, "How important is this, really?"

3. Take control of YOUr emotions. Find reasons to smile and laugh, even when you don't feel like it—especially when you don't feel like it! Funny movies, blogs or videos can help. Vent your negative feelings by exercising, banging on a drum or pounding on a pillow.

4. Treat others well. Strengthen your good relationships so you can draw on their support and work at your challenging relationships so they don't add to your stress.  In fact, this may be a good time to remove them from your life altogether.

5. Take charge. Be proactive and prepare the best you can for the changes that might come, but then accept the reality of the moment. Think back to other challenges that you've come through and remind yourself that everything will work out okay this time, too.

The amber nectar has been around for thousands of years – ancient Egyptians and Mesopotamians were probably the original craft brewers. In fact, in Mesopotamia, the oldest evidence of beer is a 6,000-year-old Sumerian tablet that shows people drinking through reed straws from a communal bowl. Party on!

Fast forward to the 21st Century. While enjoying a beer recently at a San Diego microbrewery, I began to ponder that with so many national and international brands available today, how do these smaller microbreweries rise above the advertising din of giants like Anheuser Busch and Coors and get noticed?

For the past several years -- via social media. From Singapore to Delaware, numerous microbreweries have utilized a wide array of social media platforms, programs, tools, etc., to help with branding and marketing.

So while sitting at home this afternoon with a cold wobbly pop (yes, another beer slang term), I decided to roam around online and check out a few microbreweries that appear to be doing a bang up job at promoting their brands:

Brewerkz Singapore

Established in 1997, the Singapore-based microbrewery and restaurant features a number of signature beers, some of which include Golden Ale, Iguana Lager, Hopback Ale, India Pale Ale and Oatmeal Stout.

As reported by Tech in Asia, Brewerkz has been proactive from the gitgo in using social media to promote its products. One interesting promotion has been with BuUuk, a restaurant scouting mobile app with 50,000+ users in Singapore. The microbrewery recently ran a successful one-for-one beer pint promo with BuUuk.

Other social media platforms are constantly cross-linked – this example of a recent tweet offering giveaway tickets takes you to the Brewerkz Facebook page, which is chock full of photos, videos, news about contests and posts from fans:

We have a pack of 8 VIP Singapore Slingers tickets to give away this weekend Sunday, 24 Feb. 1600hrs Singapore... http://fb.me/ssJffgno

Tech in Asia indicated that Brewerkz is constantly measuring social media ROI too. Facebook Insights are used to measure post quality and interactions; Google Analytics is employed to find out how much traffic comes from Facebook.

SweetWater Brewing Company

The Atlanta-based microbrewery offers a variety of year-round brews – some of the more catchy brands include Georgia Brown: Smoother than a Bill Clinton Apology; Blue: Ain’t Just for Breakfast Anymore; and India Pale Ale: the Beer You’ve Been Training For.

SweetWater maintains a lively blog – The Fish Wrap, which also features links to Flickr (where the microbrewery posts photos on events, promotions, and more), a From the Tap section that links back to Facebook and Twitter, and a Twitter roll they call TweetWater. A SweetWater In the News section on the Fish Wrap page also provides updated information on key events/programs to be held at the microbrewery. One recent event was a fundraiser for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

Dogfish Head

Located in Rehoboth Beach, DE, Dogfish Head has been churning out quality craft brewed ales since 1995. The company, reports Philly Beer Scene, has had a lot of success in promoting its brand via Twitter – as of today there were 115,449 followers.

Co-founder Mariah Calagione, noted Philly Beer Scene, mused about receiving a tweet once that read, “I’m at #Dogfish Brewpub and I haven’t seen my waiter in a while.” Calagione tweeted back asking what the customer was wearing, then immediately phoned the restaurant and had the waiter at the customer’s table in minutes. The customer soon posted another tweet praising the superb service.

Microbreweries like the aforementioned have also gotten a boost from companies like San Diego-based TapHunter. Founded by beer aficionados Melani and Jeff Gordon, the husband and wife team launched TapHunter “to help bars, bottle shops and tasting rooms save time and increase sales by connecting to their most profitable customers with online and mobile solutions.”

TapHunter is both an app (see the graphic embedded in this post) and website that connects craft beer fans with beers, brewers and the locations that pour them. TapHunter started in San Diego and has since expanded services to more than a dozen U.S. cities and regions, some of which include Austin, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco Bay Area and Seattle.

Social media will continue to shape the beer universe. And that’s a good thing, I reckon. Philly Beer Scene’s Brittanie Sterner succinctly summed it up:

“If Twitter and Facebook can help weave the beer community into the world in positive ways, maybe it doesn’t matter beer drinkers might also use the platforms to broadcast puffed-up opinions. Critical consumer feedback can even serve as a gateway to brewers to tweak and tighten their methods, try new things, and ultimately take the craft industry farther. Maybe social media is just that kind of double-edged sword. At any rate, it’s making beer more popular. And isn’t that the idea – for everyone to drink good beer?”

I’ll raise a glass to that!

Despite the usual congestion and often daunting logistical challenges of getting from Point A to B at the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) or nearby hotels where many companies had suites, there were quite a few interesting trends, along with a gazillion gadgets, gizmos and gewgaws. And in certain areas of the LVCC it seemed like every other booth, suite or kiosk was rolling out yet another line of iPhone/iPad covers and assorted accessories.

A number of companies that debuted on sites like Indiegogo or Kickstarter were showing their wares at CES. CNN reported that one of these interesting prototypes was the HAPIfork produced by Hong Kong-based HAPILABS. The fork keeps track of how many bites of food you ingest – if you eat too fast, you’ll see indicator lights come on that remind you to stop emulating your dog. Eating information is also uploaded via USB to an online dashboard to track your progress.

According to HAPILABS, the fork also measures how long it took to eat your meal, amount of ‘fork servings’ per minute, and intervals between these servings. For those speed eaters, perhaps Version 2.0 might also feature a small electric shock to really get you to stop inhaling your food like a vacuum cleaner.

There were a lot of interesting apps and products aimed at senior citizens. Again, CNN reported that “new sensors can text family members or a doctor if something is amiss in the senior’s daily routine, such as not getting out of bed or skipping medication. If you’re concerned about an elderly relative’s safety, you can use smartphone apps to remotely control security systems, thermostats, and even kitchen electronics.”

In fact, one of these products, called Iris Care, was demonstrated by Lowe’s. Iris Care is a cloud-based home monitoring system; seniors can also carry a $30 pendant which can be used to reach emergency contacts. The system can even send an email to family members if an older relative doesn’t get out of bed at a normal time.

Next gen TV was also hot. LG showed off its CINEMA 3D Smart TV products that included PowerVR Series6 graphics from UK-based Imagination Technologies. Imagination’s VP-Marketing, Tony King-Smith, said that “the next step in TV smartness is to add features inspired by hand-held markets for engaging user interfaces, graphics-rich apps, Internet/cloud connectivity and more. TV is the largest physical display and the one that users spend the most time with. If the look, speed and responsiveness of the TV are not perfect, users will choose other products that do the job better.”

Another UK-based company, Civolution, showed off some innovative content recognition technology. As reported in the Guardian, the technology “can sync second screen experiences in both programs and ads. The company continually monitors around 2,000 TV channels, selling this real-time channel content data on to second screen companies, who can then launch apps fully synchronized with the TV.”

And market research firm CCS Insight said CES 2013 marked the coming of age of the Android platform. Android, noted the company, appeared at the show in cameras, media streamers, video monitors, and even an oven.

CCS Insight added that the smartphone is now a key ingredient in the multi-screen mix. The company estimates there were 1.25 billion smartphones in use last year; rising to 1.84 billion by the end of 2013:

“The smartphone is now assumed as one part of the larger story of the connected home, and just one screen among many, including smart TV’s and tablets…this theme raises big questions for phone manufacturers without a broader portfolio of consumer electronics products, such as HTC, Nokia and RIM.”

CCS Insight indicated that companies like these will need to present a clear message about the value they offer “by focusing on the smartphone as the most used connected device and about how their products are different from the devices offered by the larger consumer electronics providers.”

For the media, CES was the usual three-ring circus. But there were interesting advancements in fields ranging from telecommunications to mobility to healthcare.

Head-spinning, frenetic, noisy, long days/nights, but as always, never boring. Look forward to seeing what International CES 2014 will bring.

First up: Five big trends to look for in the world of social media marketing.

5. Social Gets More Physical

In the year ahead, look for an increasing number of social initiatives to move away from pure-play digital to the physical world. Coca-Cola has been a leader in this, with efforts like the Happiness Truck and Happiness Vending Machines, which engaged consumers in the physical world, and helped those consumers propagate the experience via digital.

You also saw Microsoft use branded mobile game apps like "Dance Cam" to engage in the physical world by enabling folks to create dance videos on their mobile phones and then share them.

And ad hoc physical world social networks will become commonplace. Look at efforts like Heineken's personalized QR codes for music festivals, where users can create their own customized QR code stickers that other attendees can scan to spark up conversation.

Factor in augmented reality, and "liking" things in the physical world will take on all-new forms.

In a world gone mobile, having a desktop presence or experience becomes increasingly irrelevant.

4. 'Presence' Takes A Backseat to Campaigns

As I write in my book THE ON-DEMAND BRAND, the first question to ask about social media is not "how?" It's "why?" When you think in terms of objectives, you begin to see the value of augmenting social "presence" - that much vaunted, ongoing conversation with consumers - with specific, short term and very actionable campaigns.

Look at Mercedes' "You Drive," a TV campaign that viewers could "drive" via Twitter. Or Mustang's "Dream Mustang" social media street fight. And of course, Coca-Cola's live social Super Bowl experience - in which the brand's popular polar bears comment on the game and ad bowl commercials in real time.

These are short-term efforts designed to engage consumers for a specific amount of time, around a specific promotion. Look for more of that in 2013, especially in the form of games.

3. Brands Bash Social Media

We're all finding ourselves starting to unfriend "friends" who aren't really, well, friends in an effort to get as authentic in our online relationship building as we are offline. With growth rates for Facebook leveling off in mature markets, attrition may come to the fore. Already, a huge bulk of brand "likes" are from inactive accounts.

Perhaps it's no surprise that more brands are using social media to poke fun at social media instead of glorifying it. Mitsubishi's "Unpretentious" app enables you to run over your most annoying Facebook friends, for instance. And DKNY recently made fun of social media by creating a fake success story to build actual buzz through social media.

Indeed, I've said this before and I think it will continue in the year ahead: For some brands in some categories, a premium will be placed on how few friends and follows you have, instead of how many. Authentic, high quality connections will begin to mean far more to brands than mass, unqualified connections.

2. More Standalone Branded Social Platforms Emerge

To engage consumers in social, marketers have largely turned to Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and so on - with good reason. You should reach consumers where consumers congregate. But as mentioned in trend #5, that doesn't mean in some desktop Internet experience anymore. It's the physical world.

In 2013, more brands will move beyond viewing social media as (just) a cool way to connect with consumers, and start viewing social media as a cool way to enable consumers to connect with one another, enabled by the brand.

One of my favorite examples actually emerged a few years ago, when Vail Resorts launched Epic Mix, a mobile app that enables groups of real friends to connect with one another while they're skiing. They can see where their friends are physically on the slopes. They can automate status updates based on those activities. They can earn points that they can redeem back at the lodge. And once they're back home, they can review their performance and share it with the broader community.

One need only look at PlayStation Home, AMEX OPEN, and Johnson & Johnson's BabyCenter to see that social media is about lot more than Facebook & Twitter - and that brands can be the enabler of community, instead of just a participant.

1. Social Media Go Geriatric - While Teens Keep on Texting

In 2013, more brands will begin to realize that social platforms like Facebook and Twitter have profound value for reaching people over the age of 40, the fastest-growing segment of users. But millennials use social far differently.

I'll put it this way. If a parent wants to know what a teen wants them to know about, check out the teen's Facebook page. To find out what a teen is really up to, check his or her text messages.

As the Pew Internet and American Life Project reported this year, 63% of teens say texting is their preferred mode of communication on a daily basis, compared to just 29% for social media sites (regardless of which device they're accessed on).

Teens just aren't as into sharing their lives with the world as adults think they are. They're far more interested in closed loop systems like text messaging where they can connect with friends - and, sometimes, the brands they know and trust.

And there are quite a few of these that could impact both consumers and businesses.

But first, the numbers.

The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), an Arlington, VA-based trade association that owns/produces CES, recently reported that shipment revenues for smart phones will be about $37 billion next year, with almost 126 million units shipped to dealers, a 16 percent increase from this year. And tablet computers will continue to be immensely popular – unit sales will exceed 105 million (+ 54 percent from ‘12), translating to almost $36 billion in shipment revenue.

To further accentuate just how quickly the mobile connected universe is expanding, check out these numbers from a November ’12 Pew Internet and American Life project:

• 56 percent of all U.S. mobile phone owners access the Internet.
• 85 percent of all U.S. adults own a mobile phone.
• 53 percent of mobile phone owners have smart phones.
• 88 percent check email on their phones each day.

Forbes reported earlier this month that two areas we’ll see a lot of at CES are digital health and smart cars. The digital health market, encompassing telemedicine, mobile apps, medical records, fitness monitors, and more, is growing more than 40 percent a year.

“As the health industry meets the consumer electronics industry you’re seeing dozens of innovations from mobile personal emergency systems to glucose, blood, heart rate and other monitors that you’ll be able to use at home, to a remote session with your doctor. The tech industry knows how to market to consumers; the medical industry is looking to them for that expertise,” said Forbes.

A few years ago, for example, Nebraska-based telemedicine solution provider AET completed a first of its kind, real-time remote diagnosis of a newborn baby's heart murmur between Faith Regional Health Services and Children's Hospital & Medical Center in Norfolk and Omaha, NE, respectively. The diagnosis used advanced wireless video conferencing technology through a mobile camera device connected to an ultrasound machine.

Forbes added that smart cars and related technologies will also be a popular CES attraction – the Google car, for instance, will be on display featuring its LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging; an optical remote sensing technology) system. And smart transportation will continue to generate considerable interest, added Alexandru Voica and Simon Forrest of UK-based Imagination Technologies, which designs and licenses multimedia and communications semiconductor cores.

Writing in the September/October issue of Vision, CEA’s flagship publication, the co-authors said “solutions will appear to enable advanced servers to detect immediate dangers, automatically avoid traffic jams and closed roads and monitor surroundings. This will lead to a reduction in fuel consumption and carbon emissions, a decrease in traffic jams and an improvement in the efficiency of existing infrastructure.”

I reckon vehicles will become so intelligent that eventually they won’t need us.

Snarchasm aside, there are a number of other interesting mobile marketing/tech trends that will accelerate in popularity/growth. To wit, yesterday, Tom’s Hardware prognosticated that LTE will ‘build out and up’ in ’13.

Here’s a snapshot quote of where they think things are heading:

“Adoption of LTE is still in the initial stages but consumers will see widespread coverage in 2013. In North America, Verizon should finish its LTE rollout by June 2013, and the Global Mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) forecasts that 209 networks will be commercially launched in 75 countries by the end of 2013. GSA also reports that over 500 LTE devices including tablets, femtocells, smart phones and routers have been introduced this year, a 164 percent increase compared to the number launched in 2011. LTE coverage is clearly seen as a competitive differentiator by carriers, and as network rollouts accelerate worldwide, manufacturers are responding with products for these markets.”

NFC
A wireless communication standard enabling data to be exchanged between devices over a distance of about four centimeters (two inches), NFC is inherently secure since devices must be placed close to each other – this contrasts with long-range protocols like Bluetooth or Wi-Fi which must select and connect with the correct device out of many that might be within range. NFC sets up connections faster than standard Bluetooth and its low-power variant, Bluetooth 3.0.

A mobile phone equipped with NFC technology can be used to carry a portable identity credential and then wirelessly present it to a reader – the phone is simply waved in front of the reader. One of the key features of NFC is the ability for NFC devices to operate in a passive, power-saving mode, while still being able to communicate with active NFC devices. An RF field is generated by the active device powering a passive target without an electricity source. Only one of the devices needs to be powered in order for the communication to occur.

Current uses are largely focused around contactless payments; but one emerging app is micro marketing using intelligent posters. Consumers can use their NFC phone to read a tag on the poster, which takes them to a special web page on their phone with more information.

“Ultimately, NFC smart phones will operate as smartcards in a peer-to-peer environment, taking advantage of the fact that the ‘card’ (smart phone) is actually a fast computer attached to a network in a cloud-computing environment,” said Tam Hulusi, Senior Vice President, HID Global, a security vendor.

Location based payments
Eoin Keenan posted on CustomerThink (a global online community of business leaders) last November that the GPS transmitter which is now standard in just about every device, can track where users are when they post online and willingly share their location. This opens up new horizons for marketers.

“You could create discounts in exchange for check-ins, literally drawing people to your location,” said Keenan. “It also allows for geo-fencing, where you target ads at users who enter specified locations based on a set radius. A real opportunity is a one-off, temporary offers or create really local ads. Finally, it allows you to develop profiles of users based on their travel and location patterns – people that regularly pass your store can be targeted as a potential customer.”

One company, Tabbedout, uses location-based technology to show available merchants in a given area. Users who have turned off their location capabilities are still able to search within the app for available locations by zip code. Tabbedout CEO Paul Fiore said the strength of the Tabbedout solution is found in the ability to transmit payments without being within a specific distance of a location, what he calls ‘Far Field Communication.’ It’s suited, he said, for the hospitality industry where customers may not be in proximity to card readers, scanners or a POS system. The restaurant chain T.G.I. Fridays signed on with Tabbedout in April, the company’s first national partner.

Mobile phones have developed light years since those bulky models of yesteryear – they’re now just about surgically attached to us 24/7 and smart marketers who realize this will benefit most going forward into 2013.

Mark Simmons, reporting in EContent, succinctly summed it up:

“As consumer behavior continues to shift from the web, mobile will no longer be an afterthought but the initial one. Brands will have to enhance the mobile experience whether it is about content, m-commerce or interactivity.”

1. Use Twitter to Reach New Audiences

Twitter is an important platform for reaching new audiences. One quick tip is to look at your competition and see who’s following them. Safe bet they’re the people you want following you. Follow them, retweet them and interact. Get their attention. Make sure your Twitter bio has the info necessary for them to go download your app if they’re interested. Don’t make them work too hard trying to figure it out. Using social media tools like Social Oomph and HootSuite allows you to view analytics to measure your progress and adjust course. Analyze the metrics and see what’s causing spikes and dips. Do more of the things that are working and less of those that aren’t.

Consider quick giveaways as rewards for people who retweet or use certain hashtags that refer to your app. For example, offer a chance at winning an iPad Mini to everyone who retweets a certain message using the hashtag #MyApp.

2. Build Your App Community on Facebook

Facebook is a great social media platform for sharing content like videos, photos and links as well as keeping your fans up to speed on the latest and greatest improvements to your app. Go beyond just collecting “likes” and challenge app users to give you feedback and suggest improvements.  Make them a part of your community and be a part of their communities. Address issues and share other types of information they may find useful or entertaining. Facebook is also ideal for contests, but since their terms of service require contests be run on third party apps, be sure you’re following the rules or your account could get suspended. More on contests below.

3. Make and Share App videos on YouTube

Produce cool, fun, shareable videos that will entertain your target audience and at the same time show them what your app does. Post the videos to YouTube and other video sharing sites. If you have the budget, invest in paid YouTube ads to drive traffic, but only do that after your app is available, otherwise you’ll get lots of video views and no downloads. Share the video across your social media channels and get everyone in your social and professional networks to share as well.

Optimize your videos and YouTube channel so that anyone interested in downloading the app knows exactly where to find it. Consider giveaways on YouTube as well, using the comments as a place for people to answer trivia questions or respond to challenges for chances to win.

4. Raise App Awareness with Contests

Contests are a great way to build awareness of and interest in your app, while building an audience. People love to win things and the lure of even small prizes is often enough to get them to interact with you, like, follow, download, evaluate and share. The simplest contest is a sweepstakes, where fans are just asked for their basic information to enter, and a winner is drawn randomly. More complex contests require fans to create and upload photos, videos or write essays. These types of contests result in fewer entries but often involve more dedicated, engaged fans.

To conform with the Facebook terms of service, you may consider a contest platform provider like Wildfire by Google that allows you to build Facebook-compliant contests, or you can work with a full service social media agency that can handle everything for you, from contest ideas, contest management and promotion, to prize suggestions and fulfillment.

5. Reach Influencers Through Blog and Publication Outreach

Getting bloggers, review sites and other media outlets to talk about your app with their readers is invaluable. Before your app is approved and available for download, put together a media list of the blogs, publications and review sites you’d most like to have write about you. Send them a pitch email briefly explaining what your app does, why it’s unique and basically, why their audiences should care. Always offer a free download for review, or offer early Test Flight access. You never want to make a writer work too hard to find anything, so be sure to share links to your video, any contests you’re running and most importantly, the app download page.

You won’t always get a response, so make sure you follow up about a week later to remind them and see if they need any additional information. Set up Google alerts so you’ll be notified when your app is mentioned. And, as tempting as it may be, don’t just copy and paste a press release. Writers are busy and get tons of submissions and suggestions for article topics and reviews, so personalize your pitches, try to stand out and be brief.

App marketing, like any kind of marketing, is about finding your target audience and connecting with them on a consistent basis so that when they're in the mood to download, there you are!

Our second day of Christmas will celebrate, or should I say educate, you on two dynamic tools in today's social world: HootSuite and WordPress. If you're not already familiar with the two, check out the links below to see just how easy it is to get started. If you're already a pro, take a look anyway and brush up on those skills or discover a hidden feature!

HOOT SUITE TUTORIAL
Hoot Suite is a social media management tool that allows you to control various platforms in one place. Here at HMG Creative, we use one HootSuite account to allow all of our social media managers to post and schedule content to our various platforms.

WORD PRESS TUTORIAL
WordPress is web software almost anyone can use to create a beautiful website or blog. The program began in 2003 with a single bit of code and since then it has grown to be the largest, self-hosted blogging tool in the world. Check it out!

How can you be a part of the fun festivities of the 12 Days of Christmas, you ask? By Liking us on Facebook or Following us on Twitter, if you don't already. (You don’t want to be on that naughty list, do you?)

This year was no exception – SIGGRAPH reported that 21,212 attendees from 19 countries roamed the exhibit hall at the Los Angeles Convention Center. There were also more than 1,200 speakers/contributors who participated in an array of panels, screenings, tutorials and presentations.

One of the most interesting exhibits was a human-plant interaction that added capacitive touch to ordinary plants. As reported by engadget, Walt Disney’s development arm, Disney Research, unveiled a project called Botanicus Interacticus.

engadget said the project is centered on a custom-built capacitive sensor module, which pipes a low current through a plant, then senses when/where you touch (bit creepy).

“Assuming your body is grounded, the device uses more than 200 frequencies to determine exactly where you’ve grabbed hold of a stem, reported engadget. “Then, depending on how it may be programmed, the sensor can trigger any combination of feedback, ranging from a notification that your child is attempting to climb that massive oak in the yard again, to an interactive melody that varies based on where your hand falls along the plant.”

Besides new things to do with house plants, a section of the floor was devoted to Emerging Technologies – there were more than two dozen innovations submitted from the U.S., China, Hungary, Japan, Singapore, and other nations worldwide.

SIGGRAPH featured a number of them in pre-conference announcements. Three of these included:

TELESAR V – Created at Tokyo University, it enables users to bind with a dexterous robot and experience what it feels with its fingertips when manipulating/touching objects remotely.

MIT Media Lab - Demonstrated ‘Tensor Displays: Compressive Light-Field Synthesis Using Multilayer Displays with Directional Backlighting.’ In plain English, glasses-free 3D displays that are viewed from any angle. Very cool.

Gocen – From Tokyo Metropolitan University. It’s a small optical musical recognition device that detects musical notation from handwritten notes. When connected to a MIDI instrument (Musical Instrument Digital Interface; a communications protocol/hardware standard that enables electronic musical instruments and computers to communicate), it plays the notes as the Gocen sensor bar is traced over them.

Next year SIGGRAPH heads south to Anaheim. I’m thinking of bringing along some of my house plants so they can enjoy the show too.

Why the decrease? The staggering numbers listed above may be to blame. Smartphone users are overwhelmed by the variety of mobile apps available. What app is best? Should I download the free app or spring for the paid app? I should probably download an app to complete x, y and z, right?

While the iTunes App Store isn’t likely to disappear any time soon, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to sift through the 500,000 apps in the App Store, let alone other app sites. If a business “category” is already heavily populated, you might not even find an app that would be best suited for your needs.

After all of this back-and-forth, you have probably downloaded more apps than you can use which are now taking up precious memory on your phone.

The app clutter becomes overwhelming resulting in what I like to call “app-athy.”

How should you avoid this app overload? Here are a few questions to consider:

• Why am I getting this app? If it will result in time saved, increased productivity or entertainment, hit the install button. If you’re having difficulty stating the benefits, it probably won’t make your life any easier or more fun, and you can probably operate without this app.

• When will I use this app? If you can’t list three situations or features of the app that you will use on a regular basis, skip the download. A flashlight or level app may be handy, but if you aren’t stranded in dark rooms, camping or involved with home improvement projects often, these apps are just taking up space.

• Do you use the Web version of the app on your computer? If you already use the features and functionality of this application in a browser format, you may be more likely to use the app. This is probably why Facebook, YouTube, Android Market, Google Search and Gmail are the top five mobile apps according to a May 2012 Nielsen study.

• Is the website better than the app? Many apps are more difficult to navigate and don’t provide all the bells and whistles of the brand’s website. Since mobile apps provide the same content as the website, why bother with the app? Businesses need to make the app simpler and more efficient than the website. For example, an app used for directions should have GPS capabilities to determine your location instead of having to enter your address or zip code.

If you already have pages upon pages of apps and numerous folders filled to the brim on your smartphone, it may be time to reevaluate your app usage. Otherwise, you could always download apps like Greplin or Pixable to help you manage your current apps. An app to use an app.

Don’t be surprised if you have to go to ther-appy.

That got me to wonderin’ – how do some of the world’s most popular religions, in effect, ‘market’ themselves? What are some of the digital tools available online and does going the virtual route somewhat detract from physically being in a place of worship or complement someone’s spirituality?

So I spent a bit of time wandering in the digital desert and came across a number of interesting sites and apps.

Here’s a snapshot (alphabetized -- not listed in any particular order of preference):

Buddhism

Sumi Loundon Kim, the Buddhist chaplain at Duke University and minister for the Buddhist families of Durham, NC, summed up the dilemma of teaching Buddhism to a new generation that uses texting, Facebook, Twitter and other online social media.

“These other worlds exist only through the eyes and mind; there is no touch, no taste, no smell, and very little hearing. As such, virtual worlds present us Buddhist teachers with students who live not just one step removed from reality, but two,” said Kim.

Kim added that Buddhist teachers can’t afford to underestimate the impact of social media on young people today since they have become ‘neurologically adapted’ to this lifestyle.

“The next generation of dharma teachers must not shy away from understanding the force of technology,” she said.

And one of these entities is The Buddhist Channel. The site’s home page has a pithy slogan on its landing page – ‘Bringing Buddha Dharma Home.’ The Buddhist Channel offers a welter of information and tools – global news related to Buddhism, features on archaeology, arts & culture, healing, travel, various podcasts from Buddhist scholars, even e-cards and games.

Another site, Unfettered Mind was established in 2001 by a Buddhist teacher, Ken McLeod. It provides scores of hours of iTunes podcasts, Buddhist text translations, sutra sessions, and more.

In South Korea, where smartphones are more ubiquitous than in the U.S., there are numerous Buddhist apps ranging from a mobile version of Buddhist prayer beads to a location search program that uses GPS to find the nearest temple. Another app, ‘Hello Dharma School,’ features pop-up animations of the Buddha’s life and uses simple vocabulary to explain basic Buddhist philosophies.

“Modern day people are too busy and don’t have time to visit temples,” said Jung Ho, director of missionary research at the Jogye Order, the biggest Buddhist sect in the country. “With mobile apps, people can keep in touch with Buddhism – smartphones can serve as mobile temples.”

Christianity

Even the pope’s gone digital.  The Vatican is using technology to help Pope Benedict XVI reach out to his flock of more than one billion Catholics worldwide. The site has its own multimedia player called Vatican Player that aggregates content from Vatican media (managed by Vatican Radio). On the site you can access the pope’s encyclicals, homilies, read apostolic letters, download info on basilicas and papal chapels, etc.

But in one of his messages, the pope offered a caveat. New media and social networks offer a ‘great opportunity’ but he warned of the risks of having more virtual friends than real ones.

“It is important always to remember that virtual contact cannot and must not take the place of direct human contact with people at every level of our lives,” said the pope.

Another thriving Christian online site is GodTube.com, which is now drawing over two million monthly users. CEO Chris Wyatt recently said “we apply web technology to the Gospel in a way that appeals to young people – we call it Jesus 2.0.”

Chris Ford, a social media expert with the Southern Baptist Convention, said social media is a big plus for Christianity and has had an overall positive impact in three areas – evangelism, ministry outreach, and educational communications.

“It should be no surprise that, for spreading the Gospel and globally mobilizing people for missions, social media can have significant, positive implications,” said Ford.

Brandon Vogt, a Catholic writer/speaker who also blogs at ThinVeil.net, said that at its core, the church is ‘one giant social network.’ Church fellowship, noted Vogt, shouldn’t be exclusive and closed in on itself – it should always be outward-focused and mission-oriented.

“Fellowship in the past was constrained to times when people gathered at churches or in homes, but now conversations about Sunday sermons can linger throughout the week,” said Vogt.

Vogt added that social media also opens the doors of Christian fellowship, inviting millions of outsiders to join the community.

“Young secularists who would never darken the doors of a church find themselves dialoguing with Christian bloggers, and an atheist YouTube viewer stumbles across a religious debate and becomes intrigued by the idea of God…when used prudently, social media tightens the bonds among Christians and also connects them with millions outside the faith,” said Vogt.

Hinduism

Hinduism, the world’s third largest religion after Christianity and Islam, has about 950 million followers. It’s the dominant religion in India, Nepal and among the Tamils in Sri Lanka.

Hindu Online purports to be the world’s largest portal on Hindu religion, culture, shastras, and more. There’s a vast array of information available on the site – scores of articles, sections devoted to religion, culture, community, a digital library featuring manuscripts (e.g., Veda, Upanishads, Ayurveda), even a Learn Online area where you can get up to speed on everything from Sanskrit to Vedic mathematics.

Two more interesting examples:

Kauai’s Hindu Monastery, located in Kapaa, HI, is a monastery-temple complex with 21 monks. Established in 1949, the monastery has a very popular Facebook page – at last count almost 4,200 had ‘Liked’ it. The Facebook page features photos and videos of the temple, and site visitors share their thoughts and experiences on the monastery’s Wall. Lastly, the site provides links to other Hindu organizations such as the Hindu Students Association, Hinduism Today Magazine and Hindu American Foundation.

Twitter is also being used more frequently for major religious holidays.

Diwali, India’s biggest and most important holiday of the year, is celebrated in October or November each year and is also known as the Festival of Light. Run a search that time of year and you’ll find that #HappyDiwali will be trending.

One popular Tweet last year came from Bollywood actress Kareena Kapoor:

“A very happy Diwali to all of our followers! Spend some quality time with family and friends and be safe!”

Popular Hindu leaders have jumped on the Twitter bandwagon to reach out to their followers. Devotees of Mata Amritanandamayi, a spiritual leader and guru who is sometimes referred to as ‘The Hugging Saint,’ regularly tweets (@amritapuri) in order to provide real-time updates of her activities.

Islam

It has been well documented how social media helped usher in last year’s ‘Arab Spring.’ But technology is also playing an important role in reaching out to Muslims worldwide on religious matters/issues.

For starters, there have been a suite of apps developed for smartphones that have become popular during Ramadan, the ninth month on the Islamic calendar. Ramadan generally lasts about 30 days; participating Muslims refrain from drinking, eating, smoking and sex during daylight hours. Other apps help find the nearest mosque or halal (food that’s permissible per Islamic law) restaurants in various cities.

Some examples:

iQuran, an Android app on Google Play, enables viewers to read the Holy Quran in Arabic alongside its translation. It provides verse-by-verse audio playbacks, repeat functions and unlimited bookmarks.

The Essentials of Ramadan, available on iTunes, provides in-depth info on the rules and laws of Ramadan.

Find Mecca, also on iTunes, uses GPS to locate the Qibla (the direction that should be faced when a Muslim prays; it’s fixed as the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca) anywhere worldwide using an iPhone or iPad. Users can see Mecca with the camera in augmented reality mode; the app also can set an automatic countdown to the next required prayer and adjusts to various time zones.

Nidhal Guessoum, reporting in The Huffington Post, said Twitter is now being used frequently to send Quranic verses and religious injunctions; YouTube and Facebook to disseminate sermons.

Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamanei, even issued a fatwa (a juristic ruling issued by an Islamic scholar) on using Facebook:

“In general if it requires engaging in immorality and evil acts such as spreading corruption, lies and false materials, or if there is concern that it is sinful, or it strengthens the enemies of Islam and Muslims, it is not permissible. Otherwise it’s fine.”

Judaism

There are about 13.4 million Jews worldwide, about 0.2% of the world’s population, with about half in Israel, half in the United States. The rest are scattered widely.

One rabbi in the U.S. has taken proactive steps to bridge this diaspora.

Rabbi Laura Baum founded OurJewishCommunity.org – catchphrase under the Welcome sign on the home page reads, ‘Bringing Judaism to People Where They Are.’

The site’s chief objective is ‘to provide the same services of a brick-and-mortar congregation, such as access to rabbis, sermons, educational materials, social networking, discussions, and more.’

OurJewishCommunity.org uses a variety of tools to generate live content – live stream, blogs, video casts on YouTube, audio podcasts on iTunes, a Facebook Fan Page (currently more than 5,200 fans from 18 countries) and a Twitter feed.

Baum recently presided over an online Passover Seder, which attracted more than 400 people – but no Orthodox Jews, who are not allowed to use electronic devices during the Seder or Sabbath (Friday night through Saturday sunset).

“Sitting in a room is a powerful way to have community; but the fact you can do Passover with people all over the world, that is not any less of a community,” said Baum.

There are also a number of interesting mobile apps being used by Jews around the world.

The Orthodox Union recently released a new mobile app that provides information on what food products are kosher for Passover.

Crowded Road, a software firm, rolled out iTorah-iPad Edition, which includes vowels for Hebrew text to make it easier to read.

Davka Corporation, which bills itself as ‘First in Judaic Software,’ offers the Tanach Bible, a Study Tool for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. It includes the Hebrew text and English translation of the Torah and other important works, and can be downloaded on iTunes for $1.99.

Can social media glean modern day solutions to the challenges that first arose during biblical times and are still with us thousands of years later?

Jury’s still out. But these digital tools are having a significant impact on the social and religious lives of people of all faiths and denominations.

“Three obstacles have limited the impact of e-government efforts: ineffective governance, lack of Web-related capabilities, and reluctance to allow user participation in the creation of applications and content,” the report stated.

But 24 months in tech years probably equates to something like 500 dog years – in other words, advances in e-government technologies/processes have been remarkable.

These software solutions are now being implemented by various public agencies and municipalities both stateside and overseas.

Some capsule snapshots:

• The Newnan, GA Police Department is using an integrated software program called SunGard ONESolution, created by SunGard, a privately held Fortune 500 (ranked #434) software/technology services company. Once fully implemented, the city will team up with the Coweta County Sheriff’s Office to share important information as part of a multi-jurisdictional law enforcement strategy. SunGard says the interagency approach will enable emergency dispatchers to push info into the field faster and also help officers access data remotely via wireless-enabled mobile technology.  The software suite is also being used for the City of Johns Creek, GA (tenth largest in the state; incorporated in 2006) for local government, including apps for finance, human resources and community development.

• The Tauranga City Council (TCC) in New Zealand is using e-government software from Accela to manage more than US $2 billion of city assets and infrastructure. Tauranga is New Zealand’s sixth-largest urban area with about 120,000 residents. TCC also plans to use Accela Mobile Office, a mobile solution that will allow workers and contractors in the field to receive/transmit from-the-job work orders, inspection data, GIS data, and occupational health and safety information.

• GovPartner’s online permitting portal, known as CommunityDevelopmentPartner, has been a big hit with the Municipality of Abu Dhabi (pop. 1.6 million). The portal, accessed via the Abu Dhabi municipal website, issues more than a thousand monthly permits and handles electronic plan reviews. Here in the U.S., National City, CA (just south of downtown San Diego) is using the company’s software to centralize and streamline the city’s Community Development processes – it has also automated multiple departments, including Building, Business Licensing, Code Enforcement, Engineering and Planning.

“The old paradigm of residents having to go to City Hall to conduct business is shifting significantly for two reasons – technological innovation, and the ubiquity of Internet-ready devices,” said National City IT Manager Ron Williams.

Look for e-government to be a big part of so-called ‘smart cities’ in the next few years. ABI Research recently reported that $8.1 billion was spent on smart city technologies last year (including what they called ‘smart government’ services).  The market research firm expects this to increase to $39.5 billion by 2016.  ABI Research said there are currently 102 smart city projects worldwide – Europe has 38, North America at 35, Asia Pacific at 21, the Middle East and Africa at six; Latin America with two.

Writing in Public Management, GovPartner President Mike Daniel said that the most relevant e-government trends “will have as much to do with management principles as with technology, including integration, self-customization, and shared services and outsourcing.”

Palo Alto (CA) Mayor Sid Espinosa best summed it up:

“Technology providers are often seen as the delivery mechanism for these shapeless, faceless advancements that government leaders will then contend with. But the truth is that the simple daily use of a system coupled with a permit technician who thinks outside of the box, or a municipal staffer who envisions a new way of using that software, is what truly drives e-government.”

Ad of the Day: Cycle Safety | Adweek

While i don’t usually post broadcast ads, I am a cyclist, and the visual effects on this are striking.

TRUE STORY: Facebook Is Keeping My Brother Alive

I’ve seen posts talking about the problem of leaving a deceased person’s Facebook page active. This is a compelling argument for the opposite approach. Keeping their page alive, even if they’re not.

Why iPads are a retail game-changer – USATODAY.com

Some good data in this story about a recent Forrester study. Bottom line is while tablets are often lumped into mobile, we’re seeing more and more evidence that tablets are a more distinct screen experience.

DIGIDAY: 5 Niche Social Nets That Work

While the big social networks pull all the buzz, if your target audience is niche enough, you might find social networks like these to reach them through.

Don’t Be a Content Marketing Grinch – Convince & Convert

I couldn’t agree more with these fundamental ideas behind distributing content wherever you can find relevant readers.

How YouTube Wins in the Great Unbundling of Cable TV | Advertising Age

A good read on where the future of television and video content is headed.

AppGrooves: App Recommendation Engine Combines Social With “Hot Or Not” Feature | TechCrunch

It’s no secret that one of the biggest challenges in app production is getting noticed in the app store. This is an interesting app idea — to help you discover the most relevant apps — but there’s still a chicken and the egg situation. How will people discover this app?

Video Marketer’s Guide to YouTube Annotations & Why You Should Use Them

Video is still proving to be some of the most effective content you can produce, and these tips will help you make your videos on YouTube even more effective.

Disney Marketing: The Happiest Social Media Strategy on Earth

This article is a great example of how content is different from advertising. If you want to drive engagement, you might still need to be selling, but you’re selling in a less-direct way.

Is Social Media Taking Over Search: SlideShare Presentation

While this gets into some higher levels than non-search people may be able track, the upshot is, if you want to improve your seo standings today and even moreso in the future, get people to share your content.

Rhoda Alexander, director of monitor research for market research firm iSuppli, said hardware designers are overlooking an opportunity to leapfrog over what Apple is currently offering by moving the mobile platform beyond a simple consumption tablet to include true creation offerings.

“Touch provides the all-important key to a growing number of content doors, enabling users to easily flick from one application to another,” said Alexander. “Yet for the most part, these doors swing one way, allowing users to easily pull content while providing only rudimentary input options.”

The ideal paperless solution, added Alexander, would allow users to interact with the electronic content in the same way one does with the media it is replacing. This is particularly true in education environments where students and educators want more flexibility than a soft keyboard provides.

“They want the ability to make notes in margins and underline critical passages with the simple motion of a stylus, to jot down thoughts as they occur, and to sketch out a diagram or a mathematical solution,” she said.

Guillaume Largillier, co-founder and chief strategy officer of Bordeaux, France-based Stantum, which has been providing multi-touch technology solutions since 2002, concurred that education will be a key vertical for touch –  and the broad solution will be multi-touch technology, an ideal form factor for mobile and school computing because it's transportable and offers enough surface area for proper content manipulation and viewing.

“But the specific form factor requires the right type of multi-touch technology—a technology that makes touchscreens easier and less costly to build than those that use traditional capacitive multi-touch and, most importantly, that respond best to the needs of the user,” said Largillier.

"A user-friendly, touch-enabled smaller screen that doubles as a connected, multimedia e-textbook would be welcomed by students, parents, and teachers," says Lynn Marentette, a noted school psychologist who blogs about accessible off-the-desktop natural user interfaces.

"Tech-savvy teachers often incorporate digital storytelling and multimedia activities into their lessons, and 21st century learners need a fast and easy way to input and manipulate their creative content. Although some of the netbooks in line for purchase by the schools offer this capability, they don't provide the mode of touch that students love, a touch that might make learning tangible—and real," Marentette adds.

In developed countries, noted Largillier, students account for about 25 percent of the population. But in emerging countries, with governments investing heavily in developing their IT and education infrastructures, the addressable market is already close to a billion users. Also, given that education is now on the cusp of the cloud revolution, it would not be surprising if the education market becomes the next El Dorado for makers of connected devices of any sort.

“Computerized slates could be a learning and discovery tool from the very start, rather than yet another discipline to learn—a concept that has much more in common with paper notepads and plastic slates than it has with traditional classroom PCs,” he said.

And Largillier notes that a single interface could respond to the educational needs of users throughout their school careers—from elementary school to university—adapting input mechanisms, graphical elements, interaction flow, and applications as the user's ability grows.

The stakes are staggering. Apple claims more than 10 billion apps have been downloaded. Google's Android Market has seen 2.5 billion downloads. And Samsung reported last week that its mobile and TV apps have been downloaded 100 million times, although only a few million of these are TV apps.

Apps are now the life and blood of the mobile phone world. And their amazing success have caused ripple waves that are nothing short of astonishing. Apple has launched an App Store for its Macintosh platform. HP says that WebOS, formerly Palm's operating system, will be ported to HP’s computer platform. This new "app era" way of thinking will transform user interfaces, by making software developers focus on simplifying things — a boon for computer users worldwide.

Read the full article here.

Usual colorful characters were in full regalia promoting a respective company and/or product – a pair of vertically challenged hires wore head-to-toe bear costumes, an attractive young lady decked out as some kind of fairy godmother passed out flyers, and a number of people sported coiffures with bright hues of green, tangerine, even magenta.

Standard stuff for GDC.

Looking beyond GDC, overall, the PC gaming industry appears healthy and poised for significant growth assuming the economy slowly continues to improve both in the U.S. and abroad.

Market research firm Jon Peddie Research recently released its figures on the forecast for video game graphics boards sales for the next two years and actual Q4 2010 shipments. The firm found that worldwide, consumers spent five percent less during the holiday season on ultra high-end enthusiast video graphics than during Q3 2010, but four percent more on upper-end midrange performance boards.

This suggests, says Dr. Jon Peddie, president of the firm, that consumers were still watching their wallets and despite some encouraging news about an improving economy, cast their votes with their hard-earned dollars.

Overall, noted Peddie, the graphics board market generated sales of $4.4 billion in Q4 2010, and of that the firm estimates 44 percent was for gaming graphics (although the graphics boards can of course be used for other functions).

Looking forward, Peddie sees a steady growth in the high-performance enthusiast segment and expects it to reach $2.45 billion by 2013.  And last month the company released a PC gaming hardware market report, estimating that 2011 expenditures will be up 27 percent over 2010 to about $22 billion worldwide.

Another market research firm, NPD, released its figures covering video game console and game sales for February. They reported that U.S. consumers spent three percent more (a total of $1.36 billion) on video games last month compared to the same period a year ago.   NPD said console accessories sales figures scored the biggest gains – a 22 percent hike from last year - primarily due to sales of Microsoft’s Xbox Kinect motion sensor controller.

NPD said for February, the top five games in the U.S. were Call of Duty: Black Ops; Marvel vs. Capcom 3; Just Dance 2: NBA 2k11; and Dead Space 2.

Powerhouse Electronic Arts is somewhat upbeat too. In an interview with Gamasutra, EA Games President Frank Gibeau said MMORPG’s (massively multiplayer online role-playing game) and other PC games will continue to be a key revenue producer for EA.

“The user base is gigantic,” said Gibeau. “PC retail may be a big problem, but PC downloads are awesome. The margins are much better and we don’t have any rules in terms of first approvals. From our perspective, it’s an extremely health platform. It’s totally conceivable it will become our biggest platform.”

There are a number of key factors influencing the amount of money people are spending on PCs as a gaming platform.

Here are a few of these as reported by Jon Peddie Research:

• The natural cycle of PC hardware purchases from historical inflection points. The biggest inflection points correspond with highly anticipated software releases. The refresh cycle of PCs for this crop of gamers is hitting over the last year and through the next year. This stimulates sales.

• System demands of modern FPS (first person shooters) and RTS (real-time strategy) titles. To play Black Ops or Starcraft II at good resolutions and frame rates requires a pretty decent rig. Gamers that are interested in these titles are buying new rigs to run them, stimulating sales.

• The cost of 1920x1080 PC displays has dropped to around $200. This is a very important factor in mid-range PC gamers buying and upgrading equipment to run on this resolution at good frame rates.

• Solid state drives are on the wish lists of a lot of PC gamers and they are using this technology as the decision base for upgrades and new rigs.

• Steam, The EA Store, Direct2Drive, and other services make buying PC games very convenient. The word is getting out and it is influencing people to adopt the PC as a gaming platform.

• The current console platforms are old and they have performance limitations. Gamers are choosing the PC because of the incredible quality that is possible beyond a console. One can obtain a $600 PC that exceeds the capabilities of a console (and you can use it for a lot of other things).

• Direct X 11 is being widely applauded amongst higher end PC gamers who spend a lot of money.

• PC gamers are spending a lot of money on high quality speaker systems, headsets, mice, cases, cooling, and other accessories and customizations.

• 3D is also opening the wallets of PC gamers. Though it is not universal, there is a significant and growing interest in 3D capabilities.

• Ultra HD displays are on the wish lists of many high end PC gamers. Gamers need a very fast system to run these resolutions and this is stimulating sales.

• Wide gamut displays are starting to attract attention and dollars from PC gamers. Traditionally used by graphic designers, “wide gamut” displays are capable of showing more of the color spectrum, often making games look better.

Games go well with desktop and notebook computers; the market should only get stronger over the next several years.

Fast forward a year later, where 88% of small businesses and 74% of midsized organizations now use Twitter as their social media application of choice. However, marketers do have a preference when choosing their conversation agent.

A Website Magazine report shows that the top three Twitter clients among Web-savvy marketers are TweetDeck (my #1 preference), Tweetie, and HootSuite (my #2):

A recent LinkedIn poll confirms those findings, with 65% choosing TweetDeck and 25% opting for HootSuite:

Additional LinkedIn poll insights:

- 70% of respondents were male

- 30% of CxOs and VPs prefer HootSuite

- 60% of mid-level managers opt for TweetDeck

- 50% of marketers use both TweetDeck and HootSuite

(If you’re undecided about Twitter clients,  Sarah Worsham at Sazbean.com publishes a nice feature-by-feature breakdown of TweetDeck versus HootSuite, and Jarel Remick lists his thoughts in his post, “10 Reasons I’m Switching from TweetDeck to HootSuite.”)

So why are these figures important?

Because they paint a pretty picture as to which Twitter clients are preferred and which favored clients are true conversation agents. My prediction is that by the end of 2011, we’ll see far fewer companies sparring to be the number one Twitter client, with many on Website Magazine’s list being rolled up into another provider’s wheelhouse or disappearing altogether. Just another indicator that the market—and in this case, the marketer--dictates demand.

Which Twitter client do you prefer?

More from my source interview with AKQA CEO Tom Bedecarré, for my new book, THE ON-DEMAND BRAND.

In part two, Bedecarré talks about some of AKQA's all-time greatest initiatives, beginning with the Nike PhotoID mobile app (see video above). Along the way, we'll learn that for all the hype that surrounds Facebook, Bedecarré believes it remains grossly undervalued by marketers.

Tom Bedecarré, CEO, AKQA (Pt. 2): Nike, Visa & the Surprising Power of Facebook

>> Click Here to Listen to Audiocast <<

(Approx. 5:10)

In just the last few days, his global firm, AKQA, launched the new campaign for "Halo: Reach," which includes everything from a dark, engrossing online video series set in the video game's universe, to a robot that is enables fans to help select the position of 54,439 points of light for a new social media-enabled light sculpture.

And Friday morning, AKQA launched the latest in a long line of innovative digital & mobile initiatives for Target.

Dubbed My TargetWeekly, the solution will enable shoppers to customize Target's weekly ad to best fit their interests, and to even create alerts, which will send them the latest offers on their favorite brands and items via PC and mobile phone. The idea: to target, as it were, the smaller number of hard-to-reach, digitally savvy shoppers - who tend to spend more than others. They can even share their shopping experience via Facebook.

"Target is doing what smart retailers have to do: Go to where the customers are," Rebecca Lieb, vice president, North America at the research firm Econsultancy, tells USA Today. "You have to engage people on their own terms."

That may as well be Bedecarré's persona motto. In part one of an expansive source interview for my new book, THE ON-DEMAND BRAND, Bedecarré shares the behind the scenes steps he took to shape what is arguably one of the most forward thinking digital marketing firms in the world

"There are a lot of advertising people who want to hang onto the past, want to hang onto 30-second television commercials and full-color magazine ads, and I think it's very hard to catch up," he tells me, with considerable understatement, before explaining how his team started putting the pieces in place a decade ago to capitalize on this amazing new era.

Over the next few days, I'll share more from this interview, including Bedecarreé's insights on some of today's mos exciting new channels, as well as his firm's most famous digital initiatives, from Design The World A Coke, to Nike PhotoID, to the Target snow globe iPhone app and more.

Building The Agency of Tomorrow, Today

AKQA CEO Tom Bedecarré (Pt.1)

(Approx. 3:10)

In part one of this exclusive audiocast, Tim Zuckert, CEO of ShiftControl Media, shares some of the astonishing statistics associated with branded games, and his insights on why a growing number of brands are exploring this emerging channel.

Zuckert, of course, is the man behind Coca-Cola's "Happiness Factory" branded game, as well as initiatives for Yahoo, Starwood Hotels, Energizer and many others. 

In this, a source interview for my new book, THE ON-DEMAND BRAND, he'll showcase the engagement branded games can activate - and have you thinking differently about what games can do for your brand.

Audio Interview: Tim Zuckert, CEO of ShiftControl Media - On Boosting Engagement Through Branded Games (Part 1)

CLICK HERE TO PLAY AUDIOCAST

(Approx 5:01)