There are more smartphones in the hands of consumers than ever. The natural consequence of smartphone penetration is that more users are downloading more apps. It comes down to simple economic theory: as volume increases the cost of acquiring loyal users goes down.

Mobile app marketing platform Fiksu revealed new stats today showing January saw the highest download rate of iOS apps ever. Users downloaded the top 200 free iOS apps 6.79 million times per day in January, a 12% increase from the previous high in December. That kind of volume comes with benefits to publishers who are now spending less to acquire users than any time since June 2011.

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Fiksu defines a loyal user as anyone that opens an app at least three times. That is not to be underestimated as users may download many apps but only use a handful. App marketers rushed to meet the holiday demand in December, spending $1.81 to acquire a loyal user during the holiday season. In January the marketers stepped off the throttle of their marketing campaigns but ended up seeing better return on investment as volume increased and averaged $1.14 per loyal user.

These types of fluctuations point to larger trends. App publishers are rapidly approaching an inflection point where download volumes will not fluctuate on a month-to-month basis but continue to rise as smartphones and tablets find their way to more people. With more smartphones and more apps the competition to remain relevant in the marketplace will become difficult. Overall that means that marketers will need to spend more and become more efficient in targeting loyal users.

Yet, while the bar for popularity rises, the ability for the mid-sized developer to make money goes down. The theory is that the top portion of the ecosystem will help the middle ascend.

The idea is to find the market inefficiencies. Fiksu points out that January was a great time for marketers to take advantage of all-time high download rates while spending less. The enterprising mid-sized publisher can create a base of users in these so-called "down" times by aggressively targeting users while the large budgets of the top publishers are less active.

"We've historically observed this spike in volume and costs around peak periods - such as major holidays or iPhone launches - then seen a return to more normalized costs levels once the initial rush dies down. This year was no exception. Cost-conscious marketers who chose to hold off on Christmas spending, preferring to target a period when costs were expected to drop, won big in January 2012," Fiksu's report states.

Update: The headline of this article has been altered from its original publication.

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Sony didn't just reveal some new smartphones at its Mobile World Congress press event today. It also took the opportunity to announce that it will be launching what Sony Mobile CMO Steve Walker describes as "by far the largest brand advertising campaign that we have run for many years." He went on to say that Sony would be "significantly increasing" its marketing investment in 2012, but failed to get any more specific than that, noting only that the company would be "engaging consumers in new and very creative ways." There's also no word on when that campaign might start, but the company's two latest smartphones are slated to roll out sometime in the second quarter of this year.

Sony plans largest ad campaign in 'many years' to launch new Xperia smartphones originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 26 Feb 2012 13:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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I think we're all annoyed by the marketing speak we see and the shill language that we use ourselves. From the silly ways we promote individually to the worst tech buzzwords in press releases, we've been inundated with this type of false speech for so many years, that we're immune to its dubious charms. Even so, it's still not uncommon to accompany an advertising spend with silly brand definition memos that mean very little to your audience.

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Last evening's Colbert Report spotlighted a Wheat Thins memo that initially seemed to be a joke, until you realized it wasn't. References to brand image Dos and Don'ts were ridiculous, and the audience had a nice laugh at the expense of the advertiser. I'm sure that's not at all what Nabisco intended when they spent thousands of dollars on the air time.

I've been involved in marketing campaigns since the late 1990s and I can not tell you how many times I've been presented with a similar memo and each time you're both disgusted by the tone of these documents and feel pity for the creature who had to draft the brand definition.

Please stop asking your marketers and PR leads to create lifeless documents that waste their time and make your brand a mockery.

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The first interactions a user has with an app will determine its overall success ands longevity. If a user likes an app, its long-term potential greatly increases. If not, well, it is destined to the black hole of app oblivion.

That is why the ability to track the first few sessions a user has with an app in real-time is critical. Mobile marketing and analytics startup Apsalar is releasing an update to its platform called Daily Cohorts that allows publishers to track app analytics in real-time the day it is published. Developers can then make determinations on how best to market and monetize the app while it is still fresh in the users' mind.

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Oiknine describes the results of updating Xco's app after the first batch of analytics: "After the update is released, Xco looks at the cohorts of users who first launched the app for the 3 days after the update. Both revenue and retention is up for each cohort - not quite yet reaching the benchmarks, but a significant overall improvement can be seen. In addition, more users are now completing the tutorial, with the rate up to 75% of new users. Xco is pleased with the results but knows it needs to do more and so it will begin the iteration process over again."

The ability to retain users after the launch of an app is critical. All the best plans for marketing, engagement and monetization will go for naught if a user has stopped using the app after the first few days.

Apsalar CEO Michael Oiknine describes the scenario of a mobile game from a theoretical mobile gaming company called "Xco." The company set up several cohorts to track the retention of users and finds that after three days the app is not living up to expectations and revenues are falling short. Xco finds that users that completed the app tutorial are more likely to keep using the app while those that do not are letting it slide into app oblivion.

"As Xco takes a closer look at the data they realize that by looking at the segment of users who completed the tutorial, retention and revenue are slightly ahead of their benchmarks and those users are leveling up more frequently than other users," Oiknine said in an email to ReadWriteMobile. "However, only 65% of users are completing the tutorial. Based on this data, Xco goes into action and decides to make the tutorial more prominent in the UX after first launch of the app."

This is a familiar scenario for many mobile games. The ability to track early sessions is extremely important. In this case, a quick tweak to the app to push more people towards the tutorial would benefit its longevity.

The cohort method of analytics differs from just tracking sessions or daily average users. It provides a level of detail that other metrics (what Oiknine calls "vanity metrics") do not.

"With daily cohorts, app developers can make critical changes fast enough so that they don't lose the valuable users they've acquired," Oiknine said.

Apsalar's Daily Cohorts allows publishers to group users together in a single segment by the day they launched the app. For instance, users that downloaded the app the first day it was available can be grouped as "Day 1" users and their history can be tracked as a single segment. Same with Day 2 users, etc.

Apsalar's platform focuses on engagement and monetization. Daily Cohorts is a change for the company, as it used to provide weekly cohort analysis, which means that the information gained from initial users could not be acted upon immediately. A week is a long time for a newly-downloaded app and can cost the publisher thousands of dollars (and a plethora of poor reviews) if the app is subpar or users are not sticking with it.

To a certain extent, Apsalar's Daily Cohorts falls into the realm of "predictive analytics" but with real-time data. The ability to track and group user sessions from the earliest possible moment will give developers a better understanding of how future users will interact with the app. The idea is to get actionable data as soon as possible. Apsalar can then engage the user across apps with its Mobile Engagement Management (MEM) system that segments the user base on a common criteria.

Apsalar puts its Daily Cohorts up against a variety of other services that offer similar functions. Mobile analytics company Flurry, which Apsalar considers its chief competitor, tracks user sessions and has a "Re-Engagement" model to monetize user behavior. PlayHaven has the ability to track user behavior in real-time in mobile games and update an app accordingly.

Developers: What do you think of Apsalar's Daily Cohorts? Is there anything similar on the market that you prefer to use? How important are early-stage analytics to the success of your app? Let us know in the comments.

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To many's disappointment, superheroes weren't exactly on RIM's list to be the face of its latest advertising crusade. Simply dubbed "Be Bold," the ad campaign focuses boldly on the famed BlackBerry Messenger, as well as the productivity aspects found in the 9900. Research in Motion is also taking a swing at its competitors with expressions like "I'm about action, not distraction" and "we need tools, not toys." At this point, the Canadian manufacturer will take what it can get, thus it shouldn't come as a surprise that it's showing off what some consider its best traits. Wondering what all the fuss is about? Head on past the break to take a quick 30-second glimpse and see if it's enough to get you over to the Bold side.

Continue reading RIM launches BlackBerry 'Be Bold' ad campaign, superheroes nowhere to be seen (video)

RIM launches BlackBerry 'Be Bold' ad campaign, superheroes nowhere to be seen (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It's a common human trait that, when faced with a series of calamities, the brain will retreat into a fantasy world in which everything is the exact opposite of reality. Could this be the inspiration for RIM's four new cartoon characters, which the company hopes will spread its "Be Bold" marketing message? The pattern certainly seems to fit. From left to right: there's GoGo Girl, who "saves the day with a brilliant strategy" (translation: we don't have a strategy). Then comes Justin Steele, who's "always ready to stick up for his friends" (translation: we don't have friends). Trudy Foreal "isn't afraid to call it as she sees it" (translation: our shareholders are complaining). Finally, the adventurous Max Stone is "able to jump out of a plane" (translation: we're going to crash).

Update: RIM has provided a little update stating that this is "not a new ad campaign." Still, it's fun to imagine what might have been.

RIM: It's okay, we have superheroes originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Jan 2012 08:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The necessity of having a clear and cohesive mobile marketing strategy has never been greater. Companies that do not have a mobile marketing strategy now are light years behind the curve in the face of booming smartphone adoption and changing consumer behavior. Research firm Forrester took a look at some of the biggest and best mobile marketing companies to see how they stack up and what benefits they can add for companies.

There is a problem with Forrester's research. Mainly, it looks only at the biggest and best. It is an enterprise-focused report that narrows in on nine mobile marketing companies and the strengths behind each. Fundamentally, this is the wrong approach to take in a world where dozens of innovative startups are tackling the idea of mobile marketing with fresh ideas and eager teams.

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The nine vendors that the Forrester Wave research report focused on are: AKQA, iCrossing, Ogilvy, Possible Worldwide, Razorfish, Rosetta, SapientNitro, TribalDDB and VML.

It is important to note the criteria in which these companies were chosen for inclusion in the report:

A comprehensive mobile services offer: the ability to provide core mobile marketing services with strategy, native and mobile Web development, messaging, advertising and management. Experience developing mobile programs: five years of experience. Strong and growing revenue stream from mobile marketing: met or exceeded Forrester's threshold for revenue from mobile services. Recognition of mobile work from peers and marketers: Forrester asked agencies to name mobile marketing competitors. It also asked "11 mature mobile marketers" to share the list of agencies in their selection process. A company needed to be on each list three times to be included in the report.

As you can see, the criteria makes the selection process stacked in favor of established entities. The "leaders" of this survey were SapientNitro (with the highest score across all criteria), AKQA, Ogilvy, TrialDBB and Razorfish. All the other companies figured into the "strong performers" category.

Clients looking for mobile marketing strategies would do well looking to these companies. They have strong development teams and good strategic initiatives. Most include analytics and audience insight into their offerings. There is nothing wrong with choosing a so-called industry leader, even if the criteria in which is was chosen is inherently flawed.

Yet, if you are looking for tools that are more powerful or are under the radar of this enterprise-focused group, there are a variety of terrific startups across the country. For instance, Apsalar has an innovative and ambitious set of mobile marketing tools and robust analytics. Flurry and Localytics are both great startups with intense analytic tools and engagement philosophies. In the gaming world of native apps, PlayHaven has a great dashboard to produce results. Jumptap is emerging as a leader in targeted mobile marketing.

Each of these companies has one or two tools that could be of significant use to companies looking to make a splash with their brand on mobile devices. What they often lack in comparison to the so-called leaders is the experience (as an established company) and the development shops that enterprise-grade mobile marketers have. More often, they can be classified as "tools" better than fully well-rounded mobile marketing shops. There are perhaps a dozen more startups in the mobile marketing arena that are worth consideration.

There is nothing wrong with going to a smaller company that has the tools that are right for you. Often the smaller companies will be more attentive to your needs. What they lack in scale they make up for in innovation and eagerness. That is not to say that the bigger mobile marketing shops are not eager but the point is that there are plenty of options. A company does not have to match some set of obscure criteria to be a great option for mobile marketing needs.

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Considering how 2011 progressed for Netflix, it's not entirely surprising to hear some changes are in store at the top when it comes to marketing and communications. The video rental giant announced that its Chief Marketing Officer of the last dozen years, Leslie Kilgore, will be taking a position on its board as a "non-executive director", replaced in the interim by Jessie Becker as it conducts an external search for a permanent replacement. Also shifting positions is Jonathan Friedland who will be the new Chief Communications officer, and both Becker and Friedland will report directly to CEO Reed Hastings. Netflix's relationships with its customers were definitely damaged by last year's price hike and the shocking Qwikster spinoff announcement / unannouncement that followed, with a slate of original content on the way and some changes in store for its content licensing, we'll see if it can get the magic back in 2012 -- we're not so sure that the latest round of ads featuring beavers and hamsters (one's embedded after the break) are the way.

Continue reading Netflix is looking for a new Chief Marketing Officer, if you think you can do better

Netflix is looking for a new Chief Marketing Officer, if you think you can do better originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 21 Jan 2012 13:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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No word on whether it goes to eleven.

Edgar Alvarez contributed to this report.

Visualized CES Edition: Behringer's iNuke Boom speaker dock, a 10,000-watt altar for your iPod originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 Jan 2012 21:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Intel's betting the farm on Ultrabook PCs with its biggest-budget advertising campaign since 2003. April will see the start of a massive advertising campaign designed to convey the benefits of thin and light notebooks to the masses. Kevin Sellers, Santa Clara's head of advertising was boasting ahead of Tuesday's Intel press conference where we're expecting plenty of juicy revelations about the company's Medfield smartphone platform. We'd say "keep your eyes peeled" for the adverts, but given how deeply ingrained the Intel bunnies are on our subconscious, we'll just wait for the PR onslaught to begin.

Intel mounting 'biggest advertising campaign since 2003' for Ultrabooks originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 10 Jan 2012 06:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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