AL Marketing. The Blog.

White iPhones are out…………..NOT

ashleylmarketing — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 15:39:33 +0000

Yesterday, Apple geeks were delighted to learn that the iPhone 4 in White was finally available in the Apple Store App. But if you thought you were going to sell your current iPhone 4 in Black and get the swanky, much anticipated White one, well, the jokes on you. “We’re sorry to disappoint customers waiting for the white iPhone yet again, but we’ve decided to delay its release until this spring,” said Apple spokeswoman Trudy Miller. Boooooooo.

Who will take over the world first? Facebook or Walmart?

ashleylmarketing — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 02:26:48 +0000

Don’t people work anymore? Just when you thought you were sick enough of Farmville and Mafia Wars, it looks like you’ll be seeing a lot more of the social gaming phenomenon come holiday time because credits will now be sold in Walmart.

Already available at Target stores, the social networking site is set to offer the credits -– which can be used for in-game purchases in games like FarmVille –- at Walmart and Best Buy too. Walmart will offer $5, $10 and $25 versions of the gift cards, while Best Buy will sell them in denominations of $10, $25 and $50.

A Facebook spokesperson tells Mashable that, “As we approach the holiday gift-giving season, we’re happy to expand the availability of Facebook Credits gift cards to Walmart and Best Buy. More than 200 games and applications accept Facebook Credits, giving people a fun, convenient and secure way to buy premium items, and making Credits gift cards a unique gift for the holidays.”

My Bike is Smarter than your Bike

ashleylmarketing — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 13:59:04 +0000

I was reading the latest Bicycling Magazine last night and came across a little blurb about a patent that Apple has filed for a system called Smart Bike. Allegedly, this app would let cyclists use iPhones as bike computers AND share your data such as location, speed, power, the awful look of pain on your face? with others. So naturally, I needed to know more about this!

So I logged on to PatentlyApple and found the following:

On Aug 5, 2010 Apple filed the patent for the Smart Bike System. The blog says it similar to the technology for Nike + iPod for runners… except for cyclists. Patently Apple says, “While the system is for individuals, it’s also designed to work with teams of cyclists so that they could communicate with each other on-the-fly about course difficulty or perceived problems. The Bicycle system monitors speed, distance, time, altitude, elevation, incline, decline, heart rate, power, derailleur setting, cadence, wind speed, path completed, expected future path, heart rate, power, and pace. The system could utilize various sensors built-into the iPhone in addition to working with sensors already built-into the bike itself. Apple’s patent is extraordinarily detailed and packed with interesting twists that the sporting cyclist will really appreciate.” I feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

The blog goes in to great detail about the system and how it could possible be used so if you are cyclists, techy or both, I definitely urge you to read the whole article. Personally, the coolest potential feature is that the display could include a movable display or a projecting system for providing a display of content on a surface remote from the bike, such as a video projector, head-up display, or three-dimensional (e.g., holographic) display.

I’m a geek. You’re a geek.

ashleylmarketing — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 13:39:30 +0000

I’m a self admitted geek. Tech geek. Computer geek. Social Media geek. And of course, geek chic. And the inner geek within me LOVES a good infographic. So on this Friday, I bring you “What kind of geek are you?” by flowtown.

Print your Facebook Photos at Target

ashleylmarketing — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 15:50:24 +0000

I don’t know about you, but I sadly haven’t printed a photo in AGES, although, I always mean to/want to. I just never get around to it and viewing them online (for the whole world to see) seems to do the trick as stand-in. But now Target has announced that their Kodak photo kiosks will allow you to simply log-in to your Facebook and print the photos in stores.

Now to all of those who have concerns about privacy issues, the software developed for the kiosks is very sensitive to privacy and has limited access to your Facebook information. That being said, this is Facebook we’re talking about, the ultimate in “sure we believe in privacy……………. not”

What do you think? Will you use this service? I’ll probably be giving it a whirl in the very near future.

Mario and Luigi take it out on Facebook

ashleylmarketing — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 15:17:58 +0000

This was too irresistable not to share with everyone. The folks at www.walyou.com posted this. Enjoy some mindless social media humor.

There’s an App for that, Mac.

ashleylmarketing — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 18:40:28 +0000

As usual, there was a lot of hype over Steve Jobs keynote presentation today. And as usual, he didn’t disappoint. He told us earlier this week it’s “back to MAC” and boy was he right!

Here is the short and sweet of what to expect with the new MAC Applications:

Mac App Store which will be in Mac OS X Lion. It will be much the same as the current App Store found in iOS devices. 90 days and counting til it opens!
Apple says the Apps will be managed in the ‘Launchpad’. Ooooh sounds so awesome!
There will be a 70/30 split between free and paid Apps.
It will essentially be the same thing for developers, too.
Apps will download and install within seconds. That’s pretty amazing!

In addition to the new announcement of Apps for MAC, we learned that the new MacBook Air will be as Steve Jobs called it, “what happened if iPad and MacBook hooked up.” (Cue angel heavenly music) – Picture below.

Mark your calendars… October 20…um, that’s today! (Go online to get yours now) They start at $999. The larger version will have a 13.3-inch screen and weigh 2.9 pounds, while the smaller one will have an 11.6-inch screen and weigh 2.3 pounds. The larger MacBook Air measures just .68 inches at its widest point, and .11 inches at its slimmest point. I need one.

And one more thing, FaceTime for your Mac now.

Halloween Sales & Trends

ashleylmarketing — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 17:33:39 +0000

Hi, I’m the new Twitter.

ashleylmarketing — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 22:09:39 +0000

So the question has been asked all day, “Have you met the new Twitter?”

I took the time today to get know the new Twitter and explore it’s changes. To quickly sum up the changes being rolled out on to your nearest viewing screen: multimedia will be integrated in to your stream.

What does this mean? Aside from the new design, here is exactly what will happen with the biggest and most important change being first.

View photos, videos, and other media content

Now, it’s easy to see embedded photos and videos directly on Twitter, thanks to partnerships with Dailybooth, DeviantArt, Etsy, Flickr, Justin.TV, Kickstarter, Kiva, Photozou, Plixi, Twitgoo, TwitPic, Twitvid, USTREAM, Vimeo, Yfrog, and YouTube.

Discover related content

When you click a Tweet, the details pane shows additional information related to the author or subject. Depending on the Tweet’s content, you may see: @replies, other Tweets by that same user, a map of where a geotagged Tweet was sent from, and more.

Mini profiles

You can click a @username to see a mini profile without navigating from the page, which provides quick access to account information, including bio and recent Tweets.

So what does all of this mean for Twitter?

As Mashable perfectly put it, it’s sort-of like the “Facebookification” of Twitter. Meaning that, you can view all of your content on one viewing screen. You will never have to actually leave your Twitter stream page to view any multimedia. The big question is, will this be the Desktop Client killer? For the average Twitter consumer, I’d say yes, there is no point in downloading any applications like Seeismic or Tweetdeck anymore. In fact, the new Twitter blows most of the downloadable applications out of the water. But for the industry folk like myself, who manage multiple accounts, our desktop apps will remain intact. Either way, this is a positive change for Twitter and I think most “Tweeple” will enjoy it.

One more point for ” The Web is Dead”.

NEW Social Media Stats

ashleylmarketing — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 22:27:59 +0000

Brought to you by the folks at Razorfish. (Whose site I love, must check it out) Their new study offers some compelling information which further proves that Social Media is not just a phase. (Click an image to enlarge)