Marketing Pilgrim

While Siri is taking the voice recognition world by storm Google is down under testing their voice search. Hey it’s not answering the meaning of life or anything but the engineers from Google Australia have done a series of different tests putting voice search through a few unique trials. Here is one in the Great Barrier Reef.

There are a few other videos that go out into the desert for some voice search fun and games. While it’s more for the gimmick it’s still interesting to see what some engineers are up to down under on their 20% time (or is this their job?).

Everyone loves a great deal, right? Coupon for $1.00 off. Free Shipping with $50 purchase. Up to 75% off! Consumers not only eat this stuff up, they demand it. But according to a new survey by Accenture, America isn’t as enamored with daily deal sites.

Their survey, conducted in September 2011, showed that 56% of Americans do not subscribe to a deal site. Even more interesting, 42% said the “do not like anything” about daily deal sites.

Who is favoring the art of the deal? People 18 to 24 and households with earnings of more than $150,000 a year. Accenture’s numbers showed a direct correlation between income and the proportion of consumers who subscribe to at least one deal site.

TV executives have discovered the power of Twitter. At first, they used it to just to send promotional messages to fans. Then they found it was a useful tool to gauge viewer reactions and interest in a show. Now, they’re using Twitter to make people a part of the show and that’s where The X-Factor comes in.

Simon Cowell’s American Idol look-alike series is about to break new ground by giving viewers the option of voting by Twitter. Cowell, once a Twitter scoffer, now takes the social media site very seriously. An article in the New York Times states that Cowell not only reads the Twitter comments about his show, he also acts upon the feedback immediately in order to satisfy the biggest audience. With the new, Twitter voting system, Tweeters will have more power over the show than ever.

Most people agree that literally everyone, from the individual to the multi-national corporation, should be paying attention to what is being said about them online. The use of listening tools like Trackur are a critical component of the online strategy of a business because it’s simply the prudent thing to do. If you decide not to listen to the online space you have no one to blame but yourself if and when something gets sideways concerning your reputation.

A recent report from eMarketer tells of some research conducted that suggests that listening should only be the first step in this strategy as consumers are looking for response to their online pleas although the level of expectation of any response at all varies greatly based on age. Look at these findings from a study conducted by Maritz Research and evolve24 regarding Twitter complaints and the expectations of those who lodge them.

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B2B marketing is usually viewed as being behind the curve with regard to the online space. It has a reputation of being more traditional in its approach to how prospects and customers are reached and then developed. While this image of B2B marketers being less progressive than their B2C counterparts is warranted to a degree it appears as if that perception may be changing.

A recent study by Eccolo Media (which is a content marketing company so our research source antennae should be up class) shows that B2B technology buyers are expanding their marketing intake palette a bit. In other words, it’s not all white papers any more. Here is a snapshot of some of the ways that these tech folks are consuming marketing messages over the past six months.

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There is a very funny parody regarding the Groupon IPO that was put together by the folks at Runningshoes.com. It really is funny. That is unless you are part of the “we are funny and irreverent unless you do the same to us” folks at Groupon. It’s all fun and games until someone makes fun of Groupon, huh?

Oh well. It’s not like they haven’t invited it as of late with their comical handling of their public image. Here is a shot of the site. Check it out and chuckle a little before the Groupon legal eagles do their thing.