All aboard the tablet bandwagon!

Following in the footsteps of Apple's iPad, a BlackBerry tablet and a host of similar Android-based devices – by Dell, LG, Motorola and others -- are set to hit the market. But what might this mean for marketers who have been trying to embrace mobile and digital technologies by releasing apps and shopping platforms for as many devices as they can?

Not only are they already trying to capitalize of the iPad's popularity but also the several smartphone brands out today. It's beginning to resemble a game of Whac-A-Mole. As soon as one device is addressed, a new one emerges.

BlackBerry's tablet will support Flash, a technology that Apple has been resistant toward and one that could open plenty of possibilities for app developers. Developer Research In Motion has not yet announced a release date for the device.

Some Android tablets could be attractive to cost-conscious shoppers. Augen, for example, soon will sell a 7-inch model for $150 at Kmart. If a Retrevo survey is any indication, such affordable tablets could wrest a sizable piece of the pie: 53% of respondents said they would buy Android's tablet if it were less expensive than the iPad, which starts at $499.

Is Foursquare the mobile marketing flavor of the month or a future tried-and-true direct marketing and promotional platform? Forrester Research took a cautious look at it and similar services in its July 27 report on location-based social networks.

“Marketers need to know what audiences can be reached with these services, which companies – if any – area ready for prime time, and whether LBSNs align with business objectives,” analyst Melissa Parrish said in the report's summary. “Forrester recommends that bold, male-targeted marketers start testing but that most marketers should wait until they can get a bigger bang for their buck, when adoption rates increase and established players emerge from the fray.”

Forrester notes up front that the number of consumers using location-based social networks is small – only 4% of US online adults – but those consumers are also more influential. Nearly four in 10 (38%) are more likely than the average US online adult to say that friends and family ask their opinions before making a purchase decision. The report adds that event marketers, retail storefronts and online tools that facilitate offline interaction should keep a close eye on the location-based platforms.

Earlier this month, DMNews also asked two industry experts to square off on whether location-based marketing is a “must have” for brands. Click here to see what they had to say.

For the August issue of Time Out New York Kids, the magazine cover will be enhanced with mobile augmented reality.

Smartphone users “point and shoot” at the magazine and will then see and hear a short video of the fifth-grade chorus from Staten Island, who have garnered a lot of attention on YouTube, belting out Lady Gaga and Rihanna songs.

I don't know whether to be surprised that it's happened so quickly — the ability to unlock video and 3D content on a handset tied to print.

I'm not surprised at all that the effort is geared toward kids — I've seen six-year-olds with mobile phones.

Marketers may be interested in these figures. Though only expected to generate $2 million by the end of this year, projections for 2014 are in the neighborhood of $714 million. Mobile gaming is perceived to be the main driver.

The physical and virtual worlds are colliding — with escapism becoming all that much easier.

While I was at sister publication, PRWeek, we often chronicled PR agencies continued march into China and other areas of Asia where they hoped to grow not just revenues from multinationals but from Chinese-grown businesses as well. Now, The Wall Street Journal's Emily Steel points out in a July 22 piece, that the big holding companies are interested in another marketing discipline in China, online ad buying. From the Journal:

Publicis Groupe SA and Interpublic Group of Cos., hoping to capitalize on projections for fast-paced growth in the country, are now planning to launch digital-ad buying units in China, company executives say.

Most large advertising companies, like Publicis, have been investing in China for several years through acquisitions and partnerships—a move that provided a crucial buffer during the economic downturn in the U.S. and Europe. WPP PLC, in particular, has established a strong foothold in China by snapping up companies and aggressively pursuing partners for specialty areas.

The next frontier is the business of buying online ads—a lucrative sector that has become a sophisticated business in the U.S. Advertising companies are looking to take their expertise and apply it to China's fast-growing digital market, where the Internet population now ranks as the largest in the world. The efforts are likely to face some hurdles though, ranging from technology issues to relations with the Chinese government.

And where does direct marketing sit in all of this? As we work to plan our editorial calendar for the rest of the year, I'd like to hear from the DM community about areas of global growth, China in particular, and what challenges you face.

I know mobile tickets have probably been around for a while, but honestly, my first time using one was about six months ago when I hopped a Bolt Bus from New York to Boston. For the uninitiated, Bolt Bus offers cheap travel, free Wi-Fi and a decidedly more wired-crowd than say, your average Greyhound or Peter Pan bus trip. Instead of having to swipe my credit card again (which was no doubt buried under other travel gear) or having to drag along a print-out of my ticket, I just had the bus driver check my iPhone. Easy, convenient and catering to me - marketing and customer service at its best.

A new study by Juniper Research released this month shows that mobile tickets will be a prime driver of mobile commerce going forward. It forecast $100 billion in gross transaction values by 2012, doubling what the 2010 market is worth. It's not surprising given that if there's one thing we all carry with us these days, it's our phone. So if you arrive at a concert or a baseball game, why not hand over your phone?

The report found other areas of growth for m-commerce as well, including the mobile coupon market, which Juniper predicted would reach $6 billion by 2014. Here are a few others from the report's author, Howard Wilcox:

Our report demonstrates the spectacular growth that we forecast across all the segments of mobile commerce. Four of these segments (Ticketing, Money Transfers, Physical Goods and NFC) will more than double in transaction value over the next two years, whilst Digital Goods, Banking and Coupons will still post very healthy growth of 30% to 50% over the two years.

Is mobile commerce increasing companies' sales, or is it cannibalizing their e-commerce business?

That was one of the discussions held at MeritDirect's Business Mailer's Co-Op and Interactive Marketing Conference on July 15 in White Plains, NY. The sentiment shared by those speaking was that m-commerce isn't having much of an impact today but that companies still should be moving in that direction.

“We don't consider that to be business that we wouldn't have gotten if we weren't mobile-ready,” said Kevin Lyons-Tarr, president of 4imprint, which sells personalized items such as office supplies, clothing and drinkware. “That will probably change over time.”

Said Brad Darooge, CEO of Baudville, which sells recognition gifts and awards: “It probably is cannibalizing some of what we're doing. But we would rather cannibalize ourselves than let someone else do it.”

Being a bit of a tennis junkie, a sweepstakes offering given by AirTran Airways to meet Melanie Oudin caught my eye. Though, admittedly, it struck me as a bit odd. AirTran who? Oudin, you may remember, was the 17 year-old dynamite that stole many hearts at last year's US Open. I had the great fortune to see her play, and witnessed firsthand her dogged determination to win.

I understand that's what AirTran is eager to promote. In a statement, Tad Hutcheson, VP of marketing and sales for the airline said: “Melanie Oudin exemplifies many of the qualities AirTran Airways stands for—hard work and determination.”

The winner of the sweepstakes will receive a dinner or lunch with Oudin, two roundtrip tickets on AirTran Airways, one double occupancy hotel for four nights, a $100 Adidas gift card and a $500 Visa gift card—all to enjoy in New York City. The winner also receives an autographed racket.

Whoa. That's a whole lotta stuff for someone who only turned pro in 2008 and has yet to prove herself. The Williams sisters, definitely, Federer absolutely.

Not that it's not a great opportunity. I am always inspired by people who fight for what they want.

I don't know, maybe it's because I feel she hasn't quite yet earned her place

I don't warm to this one.

Ford shuffled its top executives around this week, including adding new duties for CMO Jim Farley. Beginning August 1, Farley will now have global responsibility for all marketing, sales and services. It is the first time anyone at the company has held such a role. 

Clearly this move raises the profile of the automaker's CMO and the position of marketing within the company. Though some worry about placing such responsibility into the hands of an executive whose average lifespan with a company is just two years, it seems Ford is willing to take that risk. Besides, Farley has been with the company since November of 2007 and overseen successful programs, such as the Fiesta Movement marketing program and the company's continued forays in social media.

From the release:

"As we accelerate our profitable growth plan around the world, it is critical that we build a world-class global marketing, sales and service operation. There is no one better to lead this effort than Jim Farley,” said Ford president and CEO Allan Mulally. “Jim has been instrumental in building the Ford brand to unprecedented strength in North America, and we are fortunate to have his experience and expertise to accelerate this progress globally.”

Omnicom Media Group has partnered with Google to buy display ads for clients through the search giant's ad exchange, according to the Wall Street Journal. OMG will reportedly spend “hundreds of millions of dollars” during the two-year agreement according the WSJ.

Google will also help OMG build a global technology platform allowing the agency to buy display ads more easily, an extension of the exchange Google rolled out last year to

ComScore reported earlier this year that display ads were up 21% in 2009 over 2008, and Google said last fall that display ads could be its largest growth sector in the future, since text ad revenue was declining.  

App stores are not just for downloading weather forecasts and sports scores to your smartphone anymore. Technology giant Microsoft is opening a CRM app store.

At the Worldwide Partner Conference in Washington, D.C., which began July 10 and wraps up July 15, Microsoft announced plans for the next version of its Dynamics CRM Online software, formerly known as CRM5. The platform will be unveiled to beta in September and officially be released before the end of the year.

The app store, called the Microsoft CRM Marketplace, will allow businesses to sell and buy CRM solutions that can be applied to Dynamics CRM.

“Our ‘Dynamic Business' vision of bringing people, processes and ecosystems together so organizations can quickly adapt to change before change happens, helping people be better informed, make smarter decisions and  be more productive,” wrote Umran Hasan on Microsoft's CRM blog.

Dynamics CRM 2011 seems to be designed to counter Salesforce.com's forthcoming CRM app store, AppExchange2, noted Nicholas Kolakowski of eWeek.