August 2010 Archive

Barcode Hero

Remember the pre-Internet days when you actually had to walk into a brick and mortar store to buy something? Well, you might have a reason to reconnect with the habit. Meet Barcode Hero, a mobile app that makes traditional shopping social and practical.

Using your mobile device, Barcode Hero lets you scan product barcodes and receive detailed information about them. In this case, you’ll see outside price comparisons through a partnership with PriceGrabber.com. But Barcode Hero works for more than just deal hunting.

As you scan, the application records each product in a database, creating a shopper profile that automatically generates recommendations as you shop. If that isn’t enough, Barcode Hero also includes a foursquare-style game element, where users earn points by scanning barcodes. Dedicated scanners can earn achievements, like dukedoms and kingships. And, of course, you can connect with friends to brag about your score.

The Win-Win-Win

Groupon, a group discount shopping website, can rightly be described as a win-win service. Customers receive steep discounts on products and services while businesses receive invaluable amounts of public exposure and goodwill. CEO Craig Barnes of Causeon, a new shopping service built on the Groupon model, describes his service as a “win-win-win.”

Where does the third win come from? 20% of all revenue from Causeon’s business is donated to their charitable partners, including Komen For The Cure and Girls Inc. The model is both admirable and strategic; by putting an emphasis on philanthropy, Causeon attracts new shoppers who like to feel good about their purchases.

Other Initiatives Breaking New Ground

Zagat for iPhone Adds Foursquare Checkins and Foodspotting Photos

Best Buy Rolls Out Shopkick’s Geo-Coupon System To 257 Stores

Cross-Innovation

Now that social and mobile applications have become widely adopted, we’re beginning to see faster and more streamlined development of useful services, both through formal partnerships and competitive imitation. In addition to creating applications that take advantage of new technology, developers are thinking strategically about how existing tools can be applied more effectively to different aspects of our lives.

Digg Patriots

Digg.com has always been a steadfast niche network. While it was arguably one of the pioneers of social networking, it is largely overshadowed by bigger players like Facebook and Twitter. For those unfamiliar with the site, Digg is a community-focused website where users post links to funny, interesting or socially relevant content from anywhere on the Internet. Members of the community have the ability to either “Digg” or “Bury” each piece of content; posts with more Diggs get featured more prominently on the site, whereas buried stories fall off the radar. You might call it democratic.

There is a lot of mindless entertainment to be found, but Digg users also show an interest in public affairs. Browsing through this year’s most popular stories, you will find screenshots of awkward Facebook moments nestled next to an article about Obama’s healthcare bill passing through Congress. Recently, a so-called conspiracy was uncovered in the Digg community, bringing the website into the spotlight.

Enter the “Digg Patriots,” a small, covert group of Digg members whose objective was to bury left-leaning stories posted on Digg to shield them from view. A group email containing a list of targeted posts was revealed to include a variety of perceivably liberal stories, including an article titled: “How Global Warming and Capitalism are Deeply Intertwined.”

While not widely damaging outside the website, the news has been a cause for concern among Diggers. Digg is in the midst of redesigning its interface (much to my excitement), and members of the community are now pointing to a need for more controls against gaming the system. New features might also help Digg regain some lost ground in the social media sphere.

Twitter and Torrents

Peer-to-peer (P2P) networking, a term used to describe a method of direct file sharing between individuals, often carries a negative connotation. This is because file sharing clients such as BitTorrent are often used for the illegal sharing of pirated files, such as movies and music. With the quick and simple download of a .torrent file, individuals can connect to peers across the world and be well on their way to hearing the latest Coldplay album.

The widespread adoption of Twitter may exacerbate this problem. Traditionally, if an individual wanted to download a copyrighted piece of content, he had to actively search it out. With Twitter pushing endless amount of information unto users, illegal file sharing becomes more passive.  There are plenty of handles on Twitter that regularly post links to .torrent files (both legal and illegal). Users following these handles will be exposed to files they would not have seen otherwise, and may be tempted to download them, much in the way that many users are compelled to read endless streams of Tweets.  This could potentially fuel the already growing problem of content piracy.

Caution is Key

The brief history of social media so far has shown a tendency toward altruism and collective goodwill. But when social networks become big enough, its users and moderators need to be more wary of potential threats, both internally and externally. Because social media is still a young industry, these threats are likely to be unfamiliar and unforeseeable.

Extra Bits

MTV has officially chosen its first Twitter Jockey. Follow her @MTVTJ

Social news site TBD is rethinking how to do journalism

Google adds to its acquisition spree with the purchase of social application site Slide.

Twitter Evolved

Remember a few weeks ago when Facebook announced 500 million users? Well this week, Twitter is making waves with a milestone of its own – 20 billion tweets. And even in the face of traffic and capacity issues, Twitter still has its foot on the gas. Consider the dedicated data center Twitter is building in Salt Lake City, and wave goodbye to the Fail Whale.

Putting the server farm aside, Twitter has revealed some new ideas to improve the service. Using the basic concept of @earlybird, an admin-managed handle popular among bargain hunters, Twitter wants to tweet deals relevant to real-time conversations. In other words, when users are tweeting about a particular product, Twitter will swoop in (in tandem with its advertising partners) with deals on that product, or the closest match. Maybe a little Orwellian, but who can resist a deal?

Twitter has also designed a personalized “suggestions for you” widget, which uses people you follow and those who follow you as factors for recommendations. This Facebook-like move aims to keep rookie users more engaged.

SCVNGR Hunt

SCVNGR is not yet a household name, but spend enough time poring over social media news (which, of course, I do), and you might catch onto a budding trend. The location-based check-in app is gaining popularity using one of the oldest and simplest game formulae – the scavenger hunt. There is an undeniable appeal to the simplicity of it all: go places, do challenges, earn points.

The game has already been used by the cities of Philadelphia and Boston to add a little excitement to otherwise ordinary bouts of sightseeing. Interestingly enough, NFL teams have also jumped on board, using SCVNGR as a way to keep fans engaged during the offseason. The New England Patriots paved the way with their “Help Vince” campaign, which encouraged fans to perform challenges in as many as 200 New England locales. The Minnesota Vikings recently followed suit with a pre-season expedition through Mankato, home of the Vikings training camp.

Being somewhat of a gamer myself, I’m really excited about the ways new services are fusing gaming elements with social medial, and I’ll be keeping an eye out for new developments.

Extra Bits

• Full-time video blogger Dan Brown is crowdsourcing his life to a quarter million YouTube followers.
• Speaking of crowdsourcing…remember Snuggie? The pseudo-blanket maker wants you to create its next viral commercial.
• Bing Maps has a cool new add-on that calculates cab fares for major metropolitan areas.