Author: Richard Yao

By The Numbers: What Consumers Want Out Of Connected Cars

Posted on by Richard Yao

It’s estimated that by 2015, more than half of global vehicles sales will be made up of connected cars. As the connected car is still a relatively new concept for buyers, it will be crucial for manufacturers and brands to determine which features truly interest them.

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Not surprisingly, the “driving assistance and safety” category is top of mind. The “infotainment” features that the auto industry is attempting to upsell, however, are not as important in comparison.

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Looking closer at the infotainment features, it is clear that in-car music streaming, which replaces traditional car radio, enjoys high popularity among connected drivers. (No wonder Pandora has been aggressively vying for the market.) Downloading media content, in comparison, is most likely hindered by the high cost of data plans in connected cars, which remains a major obstacle for connected car adoption.

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A look at the big picture, though, reveals that the majority of U.S. car owners don’t really understand the full capabilities (and possibilities) of the connected car. The auto industry will need to do a better job at familiarizing car consumers with the great benefits of connected cars if they wish to stay ahead of the curve.

Gen Z and Digital Privacy

Posted on by Richard Yao

Contrary to popular belief, Gen Z knows what they are doing when it comes to digital privacy.

Adults often criticize Generation Z — teenagers between the ages of 13 and 17 — for their lack of interest in protecting digital privacy. Such a consensus is bolstered by the numerous selfies posted, the tons of private information cavalierly shared, and the details about their personal life broadcasted through social media — a consensus seemingly backed up by relevant studies.

Despite all the alarming oversharing, however, Gen Z is not unconcerned with privacy. Today’s teens might just have a different idea about what privacy entails. They don’t separate their online and offline lives the way older generations might, but they are concerned with sharing information with a selective group of trusted friends or brands.

Privacy Settings Are Key

Teens are savvy about using privacy settings online, which is why they are so much more comfortable sharing personal information online. Facebook privacy settings, for example, are especially put to good use by today’s teens. Instead of thinking that “whatever’s online can be found” as many older users would, teens feel free to share while protecting their privacy. That’s why 60 percent of teenagers have their Facebook profiles set to private so that people they are not friends with cannot access their information, according to a Pew Research study

Self Expression v.s. Privacy

Today’s teens trust social media more than older generations do and consider it to be a platform for creative expression. Many teens dislike the cyberbullying common on social media therefore prefer sites that do not require users to provide their real names or personal information — places where bullies and enemies are less likely to find them.

Growing up as digital natives attuned to NSA surveillance as well as targeted ads on Facebook, Gen Z has learned to navigate with ease between the “do-not-track” features and the convenience that location services provides. They are shunning away from Facebook and other “un-cool” platforms alike and flocking towards apps like Instagram and Snapchat. Gen Z prefers platforms that have earned their trust by allowing them greater degrees of anonymity and privacy without sacrificing their ability to express themselves and connect with each other.

Brace Yourself – Apple Pay Is Coming On Monday

Posted on by Richard Yao

We’ve known about Apple Pay since its grand introduction at the last Apple event, but that doesn’t make Apple Pay’s official release any less exciting. If anything, some new developments surfaced today that only increases the anticipation. Billed as an easy, secure and private way to pay by Cook, Apple Pay is set for a public release on Monday, October 20.

More Merchants On Board

Merchant acceptance is key to any payment method, and Apple is doing all it can to bring national retailers and franchises on board. Since the last announcement, Apple has persuaded 500 more banks and even more business, like Airbnb and StubHub, to use Apple Pay.

Pay With The New iPad

Unsurprisingly, the new iPad Air 2 arrived with Touch ID embedded, enabling users to pay with tablets, as well as encouraging cross-screen shopping. Right now it seems that it is limited to online shopping, as no mention was made of NFC.

Set for public launch next Monday, Apple Pay is well poised to finally push mobile payment into mainstream, and we can’t wait to see the changes it will bring to consumer behavior.

Why The Release Of OS Yosemite Will Boost iOS 8 Adoption

Posted on by Richard Yao

Apple today announced that its newest entry in OS X is set for official release today. First revealed at Apple’s WWDC back in June, the much-anticipated OS X Yosemite boasts new features such as enhanced iMessage support and spotlight search, actionable notifications, and most importantly, iCloud-based continuity. 

As with previous OS releases, Yosemite will be free to upgrade and come preinstalled on new Apple’s many new offerings unveiled today, which will no doubt boost its chances of quick adoption. Since Yosemite is designed to work with devices running iOS 8, especially thanks to continuity features like auto-synced text messages, instant hotspot, and Handoff, Apple users who upgrade to OS Yosemite will be more incentivized to update to iOS 8. Not only will this help Apple sell more devices (some old devices, like iPhone 4S, cannot handle iOS 8), it also spells good news for media owners and brands, as this is only going to drive cross-platform media consumption.

Apple Unleashes New iPads and More

Posted on by Richard Yao

As speculated, the focus of today’s Apple event turned out to be hardware updates: from new iPads to an updated Mac Mini and redesigned iMac desktops, Apple’s product lineup got a big update just in time for the holiday season. Let’s take a look one by one.

Next-Gen iPads

Everyone suspected that the new iPad Air 2 would be lighter, thinner (only 6.1mm, 18% thinner than its predecessor), and faster (with a new A8X processor)—and it is. With Touch ID, the new iPad will also be Apple Pay-ready to help with Apple’s entry into mobile payment. In addition, the iPad Mini received a similar update to continue occupy the lower end of tablet market.

New iMac with Retina Screen

The iMac desktop hasn’t received any significant updates in the past two years, so it came as a pleasant surprise when Apple unveiled an improved iMac, complete with a stunning retina 5K display and an even thinner design, and boosted key specs across the board. Starting at $2499, the new iMac starts shipping today.

Updated Mac Mini

Similarly, the Mac Mini was last updated was in 2012, making it due for an update. The refreshed Mac Mini sports a compact design with faster WiFi, more storage space, and an updated Haswell processor that boosts general graphics performance.

On Trend: Blame It On The Third-Party Service

Posted on by Richard Yao

Here’s the newest budding “trend” in the tech industry: when your app gets hacked and users’ privacy compromised as a result, don’t take the blame, but point your finger at an incompetent third-party application for its failure. In the span of one week, both Snapchat and Dropbox have resorted to this tactic after news of major security breaches broke. Snapchat is specifically naming Snapsaved.com as the leak source, while Dropbox vaguely faults “several third-party apps”.

One troubling implication with this blaming game is that by choosing and trusting poorly secured third-party application with their personal data, the users have no one but themselves to blame. Snapchat even specifically noted in a statement that “Snapchatters were victimized by their use of third-party apps to send and receive Snaps, a practice that we expressly prohibit in our Terms of Use precisely”.

But still, the truth remains that Snapchat and alike could at least take partial blame for not managing their APIs and monitoring third-party services better. It is common practice for big-league social services like Twitter and Facebook to develop official APIs for better control over third-party apps, yet neither Snapchat nor Dropbox has released one. With more users turning to third-party apps for features unavailable in the main app, cloud-based services like these are in need of better regulation over their APIs. Resorting to a clause buried deeply inside a lengthy Terms of Use is not going to help eliminate the security concerns, and it is our hope that such “trend” will not catch on.

Event Recap: ESL One New York DotA 2 Championship

Posted on by Richard Yao

With Amazon’s billion-dollar acquisition of video gameplay-streaming platform Twitch, competitive video gaming, often called “eSports”, has matured into a multi-billion industry. And today, we experienced this phenomenon firsthand at ESL One New York, ESL’s second major Dota 2 tournament this year, held at Madison Square Garden Theater .

For some, it might be hard to imagine that people would actually pay over $60 just to watch other people play video games. But as Twitch’s success has proven, there’s definitely a market today for speculating digital gameplay. Video game tournaments have been around long before streaming services like Twitch brought it into mainstream spotlight, but all that added attention certainly doesn’t hurt. In fact, around a thousand enthusiastic game-lovers filled up the spacious venue.

As brands follow where the audience goes, eSports might just become the next frontier for marketers to explore. With help from a plethora of sponsors such as T-Mobile, Pizza Hut, Mad Catz, reed pop, and of course, Twitch, today’s event is professionally organized and legitimately marketable.

Event Recap: AdWeek – Reimagine Retail for the Connected Shopper

Posted on by Richard Yao

“Reimagine Retail for the Connected Shopper” is the second Ad Week seminar we attended earlier today. Presented solely by Michael Dill, Managing Partner of Match Marketing Group, the seminar explored the various facets that today’s digitally connected shoppers are reshaping the retail market.

Four Aspects Of Connecting

Dill started by noting that when Ad Week first started in New York 10 years ago, “neither Twitter or smartphones existed.” But things have changed, as social media and mobile devices have significantly altered the retail experience by keeping consumers constantly connected. Shoppers today are connected to stores, to the media, to each other, and most importantly, to the shopping experiences. The connected shopper “thinks of brands and retailers as providers, both in terms of value and experience”, and therefore expect to form a connection with them.

Three Types Of Connectors

While Dill did acknowledge that “the coveted Millennials are the mainstay of connected shoppers”, he maintained that “it’s not about the different generations or demos, but rather how different types of shoppers connect to stores and each other”. According to Match Marketing’s study, today’s connected shoppers can be behaviorally categorized into three archetypes: Mass Connectors, Task Connecters and Elite Connectors, each with their unique characteristics and demands.

Two Ways To Earn That Connection

To earn that valued connection with today’s shoppers, marketers need to utilize an insight-driven, shopper-centric approach to drive action while also building emotional connections with relevant and valuable connectors. “With transparent prices and ubiquitous social recommendation, it’s the retail experience that truly differentiates“, Dill explained, “so connected shoppers today are looking for something different and richer than the traditional shopping experience”. And as retail enters a new era where digital drives offline sales, “to connect with the shoppers is to win at the crucial moments of the connected shopping experience”.

Event Recap: AdWeek – Proximity Marketing and Its Future

Posted on by Richard Yao

Continuing our coverage of New York Ad Week, today the Lab attended “Proximity Marketing, Wearables, and the Art of the Possible”, focusing on disruptive technologies and their impact on customer experience marketing. Led by Moderator Andrea Fishman from PwC, the panelists consisted of Fishman’s colleague David Clarke; Andrew Markowitz, Global Digital Strategy Director, GE; Mark Donovan, Chief Operating Officer, Thinaire; and Jordan Grossman, US Head of Sales at Waze.

Contextualization

Fishman started the discussion with the claim that “NFC and beacon-enabled proximity marketing is already happening—and not just in retail and consumer space, but globally in B2B and enterprises too”. Grossman concurred with her comment while also pointing out that “today’s marketing is about relevancy and proximity—it’s about offering people what they want in the right context to engage with them”.

The Value In Data

“NFC and RFID chips could be easily embedded and thus turn any daily item into a wearable,” Donovan noted, “and that means a lot of consumer data to be generated”. As Clarke pointed out, however, many companies are still “trying to figure out what to do with the data that proximity and wearable tech generated”. In order to realize the aforementioned contextualization in consumer marketing, we will need figure out how to leverage data into consumer insights.

Future of Marketing

Changing consumer behaviors led by new technologies indicates that “the future of marketing lies in where physical, digital and mobile spheres all converge into one total experience”, concluded Clarke. Markowitz also shared his vision that “the next marketing revolution will be internal, starting within the industry” and the only way to survive such disruption is to “trust and collaborate with your partners”.

Event Recap: AdWeek — Future. Video 3.0

Posted on by Richard Yao

As part of our continuing Advertising Week coverage, this morning we attended a discussion on breakthroughs in audience targeting in cross-platform video advertising. Moderated by Scott Donaton, Global Chief Content Officer & Head of UM Studios, the panelists consisted of Bryan Gernert, CEO of Resonate; Jamie King, CPO of Keek; Andrew Snyder, Video Sales VP of Yahoo; and Matt Van Houten, Ad Sales Director of AT&T Adworks.

Video 3.0 and the Content Business

“Everybody knows mobile is the future, and mobile video is the key to that future”, declared Snyder at the start of the session. This mobile video content has been dubbed “Video 3.0” and is promising for advertisers partly because the viewers of Video 3.0 are measurable and can be targeted. Furthermore, “there is hope for a single content marketplace,” as Gernert noted.

More Helpful & Less Disruptive

The panel also discussed one persistent issue in video advertising—its disruptiveness. “Pre-roll video ads can sometimes be disruptive to viewer experience, and that depends largely on the content,” King noted, as the discussion turned to using behavior data generated by Video 3.0 to determine to the right context for video content.

The bottom line here, as Gernet and Donaton concluded, is that “advertising is the ‘necessary evil’ that fuels the content business”, which, with the improved targeting and measuring capacity of Video 3.0, will hopefully become more helpful and less disruptive.