Tips & Trends

 Mobile is on the rise. Here are five stats you need to know. 

I was recently invited to speak at DUXcamp hosted by NPR and then again at Microsoft Research around the subject of Mobile and Storytelling. I created a rather stream of consciousness presentation, bringing together various thoughts about storytelling in the mobile space. Still very rough around the edges but a central theme is beginning to emerge: Mobile allows stories have scale.

Recently, I joined a number of luminaries for the launch of the 4th Digital Media Learning (DML) competition, Badges for Lifelong Learning. Digital Learning Badges are online tools that recognize, measure, and support lifelong learning. The DML competition is a MacArthur Foundation-funded initiative of HASTAC (Humanities, Arts, Sciences, and Technology Advanced Collaboratory).

Ramadan is traditionally a time for Muslim families to come together, enjoy one another's company, and reconnect. With the exponential diffusion of mobile in the Middle East, technology played a much larger role in this year's annual festivities. Muslims used mobile technology to share greetings with friends, make plans, and experience a "virtual Ramadan."  Companies took advantage of mobile alerts to market products and reconnect with customers for the season in real-time. Different "Apps" and SMS services also played a role, providing reminders for daily fast break times, direction on which direction people should pray or Qibla, and information on how to donate money to different charities.

After nearly 10 years since it's formal inception, most of us in the web strategy world are really starting to understand the critical role that content strategy plays in the overall success of any web communications plan. From web redesigns to social media marketing, content strategy holds the key to your organization's ability to grab your audience's attention, connect with them in a meaningful way, and mobilize them to take action on your behalf.

Forum One is a digital consulting firm, so we are frequently asked, “How good is my website?” When we hear this, we typically have two thoughts. First, what really matters isn’t your “website,” but really your organization’s full digital strategy. Second, this is a big question that doesn’t have a short answer. That said, internal audits can help you answer this question, and keep your website growing and evolving in the right direction.

I’m on the plane to Austin for the “South by Southwest” (SXSW) interactive technology conference and getting hungry already – thanks to the SXSW iPad app! 

User adoption is tricky. Naturally, everyone tends to focus on the technical aspects that surround adoption: picking a solution that fulfills the list of user needs that have been identified. I assume most people start there because it is arguably the easiest part to grapple with; at least you can quantitatively evaluate and compare various solutions. But what about the people/social factors that influence adoption?