Consumers can access their accounts, check reservations and get directions. The application is available in BlackBerry App World.

“The new SPG app is one of several key initiatives in Starwood’s larger social media and Web strategy,” said David Godsman, vice president of global Web services at Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, White Plains, NY. 

“Mobile access is increasingly important for the fast-paced lifestyles of our guests and we are committed to providing solutions across mobile platforms that enhance their experience while on the go any where in the world,” he said.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts has 1,000 properties in nearly 100 countries. The company is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of hotels, resorts and residences, including the St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, W, Westin, Le Méridien and Sheraton.

Starwood worked with CSC to develop the application.

Here is a screen grab of the application:

Mobile booking
Guests can manage current reservations, view their Starpoints balance, check on recent account activity and connect with customer service.

Here is another screen grab of the application:

In addition, consumers can get direction and maps to the hotel from their current location.

Consumers can also access the company’s blog, which features travel trends and tips.

“I think in general it’s a good idea for a hotel to launch an app,” said Michael Burke, cofounder and president of appssavvy, New York. “From a hotel standpoint they should decide if it’s the app is more of a customer loyalty program or if it’s to drive more foot traffic into the hotel.”

“What these apps might not do is drive awareness, that’s where they should make sure to focus on,” he said.

Mr. Burke is not affiliated with Starwood. He is just a mobile application industry expert.

Starwood members who log in by Sept. 30, will be entered for a chance to win 100,000 Starpoints, which they can later redeem for free nights, award flights on more than 250 airlines and VIP access to concerts.

Here is another screen grab of the application:

Hotels go mobile
Starwood is not the only hotel that has a mobile application. 

Fairmont Hotels & Resorts lets guests view hotel information, special packages and destination recommendations.
Consumers can also view room descriptions and restaurant details (see story).

In addition, Waldorf Astoria lets guests book and browse 22 hotels via a full image gallery and read the history of each hotel. In addition, guests can search for discounted rates and special offers, book the property of their choice or modify existing reservations (see story).

“We are very focused on mobile technology,” Mr. Godsman said. ”We will be rolling out more enhancements to our successful platforms in 2010 and we have a variety of brand and property level initiatives currently underway that we look forward to sharing.”

Final Take
Rimma Kats, editorial assistant at Mobile Commerce Daily, New York

Leroy's Sportsbook application for BlackBerry

American Wagering Inc. subsidiary Leroy’s Sportsbook has launched a sports betting application for Research In Motion’s BlackBerry just in time for football season.

The application lets users legally bet on sports anywhere in the state of Nevada on their BlackBerry mobile phones. The application was developed with Leroy’s sister company Computerized Bookmaking Systems Inc. and with the help of BlackBerry’s sports division.

“The application itself was born out of convenience for our customers,” said John English, senior vice president at American Wagering, Las Vegas. “Sports betting is only legal within the state borders of Nevada, so we had to develop the app with geolocation to verify where the phone is, as the bets that are placed have to be within the state of Nevada.

“The application provides a convenient way for our customers to place bets within the state, no matter where they are,” he said. “They don’t have to be within the casino—they can be anywhere they want to be.

“The new wave of mobile technology enables the ultimate in convenience.”

American Wagering is a publicly-traded company that primarily operates through wholly-owned subsidiaries, including Leroy’s Horse & Sports Place Inc., Computerized Bookmaking Systems, AWI Manufacturing Inc. and AWI Gaming Inc.

Leroy’s owns and operates more than 58 race/sports book outlets in the state of Nevada.

A new era of mobile wagering
The Nevada Gaming Control Board recently approved the Leroy’s application. It is currently available to BlackBerry users on Sprint, AT&T and T-Mobile, with other wireless carriers coming soon.

Leroy’s collaborates with the carriers on a network-based location system to validate that application users are in the state of Nevada.

Leroy’s claims this is the first mobile phone betting application to be approved in Nevada.

The company spent more than a year planning and developing the new application.

Mr. English said that the Nevada Gaming Control Board scrutinized the project with a very thorough lab investigation, which helped Leroy’s establish stringent security features.

The application offers an array of sports bets, including straight bets, parlays, teasers, in-game betting, contests and scores.

Leroy’s plans to unveil new applications in the coming months for the iPhone, Android and Windows-based mobile phones.

Leroy’s also plans to add race book and fantasy sports features.

To get the word out about the application, Leroy’s is running television commercials, and there are billboards promoting the application around Las Vegas and all over the state of Nevada.

In addition, Leroy’s is using social media such as Twitter and Facebook to spread the word virally.

“Leroy’s has a bricks-and-mortar presence with more than 60 locations where customers have to show ID to prove that they are 21-plus and open an account,” Mr. English said. “Once they’ve done so they can go to Leroys.com and get the link off of the Web site or we can email them the link to download the app, and from there they can wager at will.

“They cannot activate the app until they have an approved account, but it’s not a complicated process,” he said. “They fill out a one-page application with us.

“We’re currently looking at all the smartphone platforms, are we’re optimistic that we’ll launch apps for them as well in the near future.”

Final Take
Dan Butcher, associate editor, Mobile Commerce Daily

The San Diego-based restaurant is letting consumers order via their iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry and Android devices. The company is using Just Enjoy’s mobile ordering services.

“It’s what the customer wants,” said Dan Stiel, vice president of business development at Just Enjoy, Santa Ana, CA. “Customers are embracing mobile devices as a way to better manage and do the things that they want to do and have this ubiquitous experience.

“We’re not always in front of a computer,” he said. “It’s another value-added service to existing customers and provides a growing number of people another way to shop and use their phones to order.”

Text for meals
Phil’s BBQ customers can opt-in to receive offers via SMS.

Customers can text the keyword PHILSBBQ to the short code 67777 to receive news and offers.

Additionally, customers can view the restaurant’s entire menu and pick and choose what they want to order.

“We helped Phil’s BBQ with their efforts to build an SMS opt-in database,” Mr. Stiel said. “Customers can place their order and pay for it and we’re able to prepare the customer’s meal in time.

“We’re also able to hold their order until they get within a pre-defined distance from the restaurant,” he said.

Here is a screen grab of the application:

Mobile BBQ
Users who own an iPhone or Android device have the option of accessing the service via a mobile-optimized site or an application, which they can download for free.

Consumers can access the mobile site by entering http://m.philsbbq.net on their mobile device.

Customers check their profile, view active orders and previous orders, as well as get directions to the restaurant.

Here is another screen grab of the application:

“We’re doing everything from in-store signage to signage at the baseball stadium,” Mr. Stiel said. “We’re also doing a sweepstakes.

“If you opt-in right now to our mobile database, you are entered for a chance to win a catered party for 25 people,” he said.

Final Take
Rimma Kats, editorial assistant at Mobile Commerce Daily, New York

Guided By Voices pays the bills via mobile content sales

Indie rock recording artist Guided By Voices is launching a multi-content mobile storefront in conjunction with its upcoming reunion tour kicking off later this year.

The band’s mobile storefront is powered by Livewire Mobile Inc.’s Mediadrome, a new online and mobile service that lets recording artists and record labels sell digital media, including full-track music, ringtones, graphics, videos and physical merchandise, to their fans.

“Guides By Voices is an artist that came on the radar of MTV and the commercial scene a little bit, but it quickly retreated to a smaller market niche,” said Matthew Stecker, president/CEO of Livewire Mobile, Littleton, MA. “The band has hundred albums, tens of thousands of songs, and it is an interesting artist because it has a lot of passionate fans.

“We power a mobile and wired Web site to demonstrate a couple of things—users are given easy access to the artist’s entire body of work, and we want to get people to become curators of the music,” he said. “The goal is for average consumer to purchase dozens of tracks and albums over time.

“Another goal was to leverage our existing infrastructure, as we have agreements with major and indie music labels to aggregate their artists’ content.”

Guided By Voices’ tour includes a headline appearance with Sonic Youth, Pavement, Belle & Sebastian and many others at Matador Records’ “Matador at 20” festival.

Livewire Mobile specializes in managed personalization services, operating full-track music services for 40-plus carriers worldwide, including Sprint, Virgin Mobile Canada and Telecom New Zealand.

The Mediadrome service provides a complete fulfillment channel inclusive of end-to-end content operations, storefront building and payment/settlement services.

Mobile content distribution
The music group’s customized multi-content storefront, called “Guided By Voices Digital,” features an in-depth artist experience that combines the group’s catalog, rare tracks and previously unavailable material, as well as live tracks. 

In addition, Guided By Voices fans can buy tracks from the reunion tour performances, with next-day availability.

The projected material available on the site will include songs from Bob Pollard’s Guided By Voices, along with his prolific solo output and side projects, including Circus Devils, Boston Spaceships and The Takeovers. 

Livewire believes that this type of commerce-enabled mobile site will be crucial in the digital music discovery experience of the future.

“There are many vintage live recordings and demos that haven’t seen the light of day yet, largely because it’s been cost-prohibitive to put them out,” Mr. Stecker said. “Making them available for digital sale eases some of those restrictions.”

ManageThis, the band’s business manager, said that Guided By Voices Digital will provide a way for fans—both old and new—to discover Mr. Pollard and Guided by Voices’ extensive library and a place to aggregate a diverse set of content.

Its partnership with Livewire is intended to enable fans to further connect with its recording artists, broaden their music discovery and purchase the broadest array of content.

The storefront offers various payment mechanisms, including credit cards, PayPal, gift cards and other stored value.

To get the word out, the band will build awareness throughout the tour with on-stage mentions. In addition, on-site street teams will hand out free download cards at the concerts

The band plans to do wired Web and mobile Internet marketing, including banner ads, as well as search-word campaigns.

“Livewire has been in two businesses for quite some time—the music business and the mobile business—so we’ve been spending time with record labels and thinking about how people find, buy and consume music,” Mr. Stecker said. “As physical record stores vanish, MTV goes to not playing music anymore and people are less focused on listening to music on the radio, how do people discover new artists?

“We’ve seen two real spikes of users: hit samplers, tweens, teens and consumers in the twenty-something age demographic who listen to top chart hits, then people who are music curators, consumers who have a  real interest in music beyond wanting one or two tracks—real music fans who want an artist’s full catalog,” he said.

“We want to provide an immersive experience where people can come to a one-stop-shop to not only get existing catalog of music, but also use the fact that digital medium has lower costs for publishing material that might not exist in physical channels.”

Final Take
Dan Butcher, associate editor, Mobile Commerce Daily

The opinion pieces should cover the latest trends, discuss challenges or opportunities and offer solutions without self-promotion. Submissions go to Mobile Commerce Daily editor in chief Mickey Alam Khan at mickey@napean.com. 

Each column should offer insight unique to the issue discussed and customized to Mobile Commerce Daily’s core audience of retailers, marketers and mobile commerce service providers.

The goal of these industry-expert columns is to educate readers on the ins and outs of mobile commerce as more consumers add mobile shopping and buying to their daily routines.

The columns will complement Mobile Commerce Daily editorial coverage from editors and reporters on staff.

Columns should have a 600- to 700-word count, with exceptions for longer pieces based on a discussion with Mr. Alam Khan. Sentences should be short and so should the paragraphs. Jargon should be avoided. Columnists cannot promote their product or services.

Those interested in writing columns on a one-off or regular basis should send a one-paragraph summary of the topic and email to mickey@napean.com.

Once signed-off on, the opinion piece should be submitted within two weeks.

The column should include the author’s name, title, company, city, state and email address at the bottom of the piece, along with a high-res jpeg color headshot.

Please visit the site at http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com to glean ideas on mobile commerce issues of the day.

Nine West is promoting a collection via a 2D bar code campaign featuring Joss Stone

Jones Apparel Group-owned Nine West has invested in 2D bar codes for the launch of its Fall 2010 Vintage America Collection featuring Joss Stone.

Nine West tapped Jagtag and has incorporated 2D bar codes on in-store signage, online, print and product packaging. Nine West’s Vintage America Collection campaign with Jagtag allows consumers to interact with singer-songwriter and style icon Joss Stone, who helped design the new product line, through email messages, free music downloads and digital videos.

“They asked us to help with a multifaceted campaign that includes Jagtags as part of in-store, online, microsite and on-packaging,” said Ed Jordan, CEO of Jagtag, Princeton, NJ. “This marks the first time that a Jagtag appears on product packaging, which in this case is the shoe box.

“The custom branded Jagtag acts as a means of starting a conversation with consumers, which is initiated when they take a picture of the tag and text it in,” Mr. Jordan said. “Consumers receive video content back, which is a really unique utilization of the tag.”

The collection
Joss Stone has been a hands-on partner with Nine West on all aspects of the design process for key looks in the fall 2010 Vintage America collection. 

Together, they have created a series of looks that showcase the laid back confidence and Bohemian style of the Nine West Vintage America Collection. 

There was a lot of inspiration from the singer’s personal tattoos and this influence is evident throughout the collection–from the footwear designs to the logo and packaging.

Jagtag
Users will also have the chance to enter a sweepstakes to win products from the Nine West Vintage America Collection. 

The specially branded Jagtag features Joss Stone’s signature flower tattoo design.

To use the Jagtag, consumers can take and send a photo of it with any camera phone and will receive multimedia content and automatically be entered into a sweepstakes to win Joss Stone’s Vintage America look, including shoes, clothing, jewelry and other accessories.

Those who participate in the sweepstakes will receive several text and video messages directly from Joss Stone including performance clips, behind the scenes footage from the Lucky photo shoot and how-to style tips.

Jagtag works on all camera phones and across all major wireless carriers in the United States without requiring users to download an application.

The Nine West campaign with Jagtag will run from Aug.16 – Oct. 31.

“The beauty of what’s going on here is Nine West has used existing physical assets and is making them digital,” Mr. Jordan said. “They are able to provide multimedia content and also use it as a CRM acquisition tool.”

The research is from a Coupons.com study that focused on the differences between the coupons selected by iPhone and Android users. The data was pulled by analyzing coupon usage via the Coupon.com’s Grocery iQ shopping list application Jan. 1-July 31.

“The data demonstrates that different platforms have different users and different usage characteristics, and those differences aren’t as cut and dry as early adopter versus mainstream–as evident by Android shipments surpassing iPhone recently,” said Steve Horowitz, chief technology officer of Coupons.com, Mountain View, CA. “It’s not as black and white as a gender bias, male versus female.”

Grocery iQ is available for iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and Android. The free application also integrates coupons from Coupons.com. Users can browse available offers and then either print out the coupons for in-store redemption or load them directly onto their store loyalty cards for automatic at-the-register savings.

Digital couponing behavior
The top coupon in the body wash category among iPhone users was for women’s body wash, which was eight times more popular than the same coupon among Android users. Men’s body wash topped the list among Android users.

Chicken was the most popular item in the dinner meats category among iPhone users, while pork ribs were most popular among Android users.

IPhone users printed or saved the top chicken coupon six times more than Android users.

The top household cleaner/supplies coupon among iPhone users was for multisurface cleaner, while Android users gravitated to continuous toilet bowl cleaner.

In the pet food category, fish food was the most popular item with iPhone users, who snagged the top coupon 26.2 times more than Android users. Bird food topped the list among Android users.

For the personal care category, coupons for baby products were overwhelmingly more popular with iPhone users. These offers were printed or loaded to loyalty cards from iPhones a whopping 41.7 times more than from Androids.

Conversely, Android users take care of themselves before tending to baby. This group selected pain relief coupons 2.1 times more than iPhone users.

Common ground
An area of common ground among both iPhone and Android users is they are increasingly using their smartphones for savings. The number of coupons accessed from Coupons.com mobile applications increased 232 percent from January to June.

“The implication is that one size does not fit all,” Mr. Horowitz said. “Like they have done with more traditional media and platforms, marketers should know their audience.”

“Developers should develop and advertisers should advertise with as much precision as possible to attract their primary target markets,” he said. “The strategy has not changed. The platforms have.”

Consumers that checked in to either San Francisco International Airport, LAX or one of Virgin America’s mobile taco truck locations yesterday between 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. PT with the free Loopt Star iPhone application scored a two-for-one taco deal and a two-for-one ticket offer on Virgin America’s new flights to Mexico.

“We think Virgin America is the best airline in the world and we’re thrilled to work with them,” said Sam Altman, CEO of Loopt Star, San Francisco. “Location-based special offers are a great way to interact face-to-face with customers, and the strategy here is to try a new way to get people excited about a new product.”

When consumers check-in to qualifying locations with Loopt Star, they are asked to enter their email address.

In return, they receive an email with details of the two-for-one offer.

Loopt Star, currently available as an application for Apple’s iPhone and iPod touch, lets consumers check-in to compete with friends and win real-world rewards from retailers and organizations.

With Loopt Star, users play with friends and gain achievements, coupons and other brand-specified rewards for checking into specific locations.

“Loopt Star offers brands like Virgin America a virtual loyalty card, allowing them to connect directly with their customers when they’re out and about, and give them something they want or need — like a discount,” Mr. Altman said.

“We think this helps brands to drive loyalty, but also with Loopt Star, users can see what rewards are nearby, so can find deals and shop at places they hadn’t planned to go,” he said. “The foot traffic businesses can get, capturing people’s attention from a few miles away, that’s where a lot of brands will see true benefits.”

Dan Butcher contributed reporting to this story.

82 percent of shoppers use mobile phones in-store

A whopping 82 percent of shoppers use their mobile phone while in the store, echoing the immediate need for marketers to develop a mobile presence for the 2010 holiday buying season.

Millennial Media’s July SMART report showcases the power of mobile technology and trends that can be leveraged by nearly every vertical as the holiday shopping season approaches. A key takeaway of the SMART report was that advertisers should not underestimate the buying power of the male shopper this holiday season.
 
“Brands should be keen to leverage mobile couponing this holiday season to optimize sales through both mobile and traditional store channels,” said Erin McKelvey, senior vice president of marketing at Millennial Media, Baltimore, MD.

Mobile shopping insight
Each month, Millennial adds a special section into its SMART report that profiles something specific. This month, the company partnered with InsightExpress to focus on mobile shopping, since the holiday shopping season is right around the corner.

The featured section this month “Mobile Shopping Behaviors” showcases survey results from InsightExpress’ second quarter 2010 Digital Consumer Portrait. 

The survey found that nearly 20 percent of smartphone owners made a special trip to the store after receiving a mobile coupon.

“[This proves] that mobile is not just another customer communications channel, it is rapidly evolving into an effective commerce channel on its own as well as a great tool to drive additional brick-and-mortar sales,” Ms. McKelvey said.  

The study also found that males over index for coupon usage in the electronics, clothing store, department stores and service categories.

Engagement
Rich media was on the rise in July. More than 13 percent of advertisers incorporated rich media elements in their campaigns.

The number of campaigns that used “Expand Rich Media” also grew in July and represented 23 percent of the destinations on Millennial’s network.

“This growth indicates to us that advertisers continue to find success by offering mobile users a deeper, more engaging experience,” Ms. McKelvey said.

The increase was due to advertising verticals such as CPG, travel, retail and restaurants incorporating rich media elements in their summer campaigns to attract highly engaged mobile users.

Advertisers in the telecom, automotive, retail and restaurants verticals leveraged the store locator and view map post-click action to drive foot traffic to their bricks-and-mortar locations. 

Targeting
The trend of advertisers using targeted-audience campaign methods continued in July with 43 percent of campaigns on Millennial’s network leveraging this method, representing a 2 percent increase month-over-month.

Behavioral targeting accounted for 17 percent of the targeted audience mix in July and experienced a 5 percent increase month-over-month. 

“Brands in the Travel vertical created targeted audiences of vacationers and Telecom advertisers developed custom audiences designed to reach consumers ready to switch service providers,” Ms. McKelvey said.

Final take
Giselle Tsirulnik is senior editor of Mobile Commerce Daily

Targeting senior executives and decision-makers at brands, ad agencies, publishers, retailers and service providers, the East Coast summit will be followed a few months later by a West Coast event. (Conference agenda below write-up.)

“The Sept. 2 event is focused entirely on holiday strategies incorporating mobile into the multichannel mix from a marketing and commerce perspective,” said Mickey Alam Khan, editor in chief of Mobile Marketer and Mobile Commerce Daily.

“This holiday season will mark the first time where mobile will play a key role in marketing, shopping and buying decisions,” Mr. Alam Khan said. “To not have a mobile element in the holiday marketing and commerce outreach will mean a lost opportunity for brands to get closer to customers and prospects.”

Gooooooooooooooooooooooal!

The New York summit is limited to around 100 executives on a first-come, first-served basis.

Registration open
Titled “Mobile Marketing Summit: Holiday Focus 2010,” the daylong event features keynotes from senior executives at Pepsi, Kenneth Cole, ESPN and Waterford Wedgwood Royal Doulton, with an indepth look at Steve Madden’s holiday mobile tack.

Speakers from Microsoft, AT&T, Verizon Wireless, USA Today, National Geographic, Neustar, Weather Channel, Millennial Media and Forrester Research are among others who will share ideas, research, best-practice tips and case studies.

Mobile is in style

The Mobile Marketing Summit is priced at $495 to cover the conference and breakfast, lunch and a cocktail reception at day’s end.

Sponsors of the holiday Mobile Marketing Summit include Millennial Media, Netbiscuits, Kony Solutions, Microsoft, iLoop Mobile, Neustar, OpenMarket, Medialets, Air2Web and Siteminis. For sponsorship information, please contact ads@napean.com.

Please click here to register for the conference.

Mobile Marketing Summit New York: Holiday Focus 2010
Thursday, Sept. 2, 2010

A presentation of Napean, owner of Mobile Marketer and Mobile Commerce Daily

Focus: The Mobile Marketing Summit New York is focused on delivering strategic and tactical advice to marketers for including mobile marketing and commerce in the multichannel mix for the upcoming holidays

Price: $495 to cover conference, breakfast, lunch and cocktail reception

Registration page: Please click here

Venue:
National Museum of the American Indian
One Bowling Green
New York, NY 10004
Museum phone: 212-514-3700
Directions: A Beaux Arts building, this Smithsonian museum is directly across from Battery Park downtown and at the start of Broadway. Entrance is from the ground floor to the right of the main steps.

Please show up early. All attendees have to pass through a metal detector since the museum is a federal building.

7:30 a.m. – 8:45 a.m.
Registration and Breakfast

8:45 a.m. – 9 a.m.
Welcome Address
Speaker:
Mickey Alam Khan, editor in chief, Mobile Marketer and Mobile Commerce Daily

9 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.
Why Mobile is Key to the Multichannel Mix for the 2010 Holiday Season
This holiday season will be the first where mobile will play a key role in shaping shopping and buying decisions for today’s convenience-seeking, bargain-hunting consumer. More Web-enabled smartphones in the market will play a critical role in influencing how consumers interact with content, marketing and commerce over the holidays. So what mobile-enabled strategies and tactics should marketers and retailers employ to ensure the attention and business of the holiday consumer? Hear session panelists discuss:

 What’s the risk of not including mobile in the holiday plans?
 What makes this holiday season for mobile different from years past?
 Which brands are getting it right for mobile – and why?
 Is there such a thing as a holiday mobile strategy?
 The one thing marketers and retailers can – indeed, must – do to mobile-enable their holiday campaigns and commerce efforts

Speakers:
Andrew Koven, president of ecommerce and customer experience, Steve Madden
Maria Mandel, vice president of media and marketing innovation, AT&T Ad Solutions, and North America chair, Mobile Marketing Association
Marcus Startzel, senior vice president of sales, Millennial Media
Jamie Wells, director of global trade marketing for mobile advertising solutions, Microsoft
Jay Emmet, senior vice president, Amdocs, and general manager, OpenMarket
Jason Taylor, vice president of global product strategy, Usablenet
Joy Liuzzo, senior director of marketing and mobile research, InsightExpress

Moderator:
Mickey Alam Khan, editor in chief, Mobile Marketer and Mobile Commerce Daily

9:30 a.m. – 9:45 a.m.
Break

9:45 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.
Morning Keynote: Kenneth Cole
How Mobile is Influencing Kenneth Cole’s Retail Strategy for the Holidays and Beyond
A retailer of hip and trendy apparel and accessories, Kenneth Cole is said to have attributed 1.5 percent of overall revenue to mobile. Not surprisingly, this mobile commerce performance is the result of Kenneth Cole’s integration of mobile within its multichannel efforts that include online, in-store, mail , outdoor and display advertising. The retailer is working hard to ensure that all touch-points are consumer-friendly. In this keynote, find out:

 What role mobile advertising and commerce will play in the upcoming holiday season
 How Kenneth Cole views mobile in the multichannel context
 Which tactics resonate in mobile
 Which mobile channels matter to Kenneth Cole and why
 What other retailers and marketers can learn as they finalize holiday plans including mobile

Speaker:
Tom Davis, vice president of ecommerce, Kenneth Cole

10:15 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
Break

10:30 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.
How Will Consumers Engage with Ads, SMS, Sites and Applications over the Holidays – and why it Matters for Customer Experience
Trends indicate that more consumers will engage with mobile advertisements, Web sites, applications and mobile search functionality this holiday season than in previous years. It is also reflective of ease with which consumers are migrating their online browsing habits to mobile, especially on Apple iPhone and iPad, BlackBerry and Google Android devices. What will a bad experience on mobile mean for the brand in terms of loss of loyalty? Expect this session to discuss:

 How today’s shoppers are being trained to have the same expectations on mobile as they do on the wired Web
 What an inadequate mobile presence will be for brand loyalty, reputation and sales
 What the shopper expects from a mobile experience
 Defining a consumer-friendly, holiday-oriented mobile ad, site and application
 Great customer experiences from previous mobile campaigns, sites and applications
 Mobile data trends and what this portends for marketers and retailers for the upcoming holidays

Speakers:
Patti Freeman Evans, vice president and research director, Forrester Research
Shira Simmonds, president, Ping Mobile
Eric A. Litman, chairman/CEO, Medialets
Jay Highley, president, Pangea Partners
Michael Ahearn, vice president of marketing strategy, iLoop Mobile
Bryce Marshall, director of strategic services, Knotice

Moderator:
Ocean Fine, mobile marketing consultant

11:15 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Break

11:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
How to Allocate Mobile Budgets This Holiday Season
Close to $600 million will be spent this year on mobile advertising, while the comparable numbers for mobile commerce are anyone’s guess. What is clear, though, is that more spending will shift from online to mobile. However, given mobile’s short history, there is little precedent to determine allocation of funds for mobile campaigns or mobile commerce efforts. But the decisions have to be made as more consumers start interacting with ads and buying through smartphones and tablets such as the iPad. Panelists in this session will discuss:

 What is the process to allocate budgets for mobile in terms of marketing, technology, people and commerce and can marketers adapt from other channels
 Can mobile learn from the Internet’s early years in terms of budgets – or is it a bad idea?
 How much to spend on mobile presence development, including ads, sites, applications, SMS campaigns, search, social media and retail store integration
 Invest in mobile branding or direct response – and where to place the dollars
 The formula for an effective mobile media buy
 For mobile commerce – site, application, SMS or all three?

Speakers:
Gretchen Scheiman, partner and associate director for digital dialogue, OgilvyOne Worldwide
Alexandre Mars, CEO, PhoneValley, and Publicis Groupe head of mobile
Paul Gelb, national manager for emerging media, Razorfish
Thom Kennon, vice president of strategy, WPP Group’s Wunderman
Dave Geipel, chief operating officer, QWASI
Gowri Shankar, president/CEO, SinglePoint
Caitlin Remby, East Coast head of sales, Navteq Media Solutions
Joe Meyer, CEO, HopStop

Moderator:
Lindsay Woodworth, director of marketing, 2ergo

12:15 p.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Break

12:30 p.m. – 1 p.m.
Pre-Lunch Keynote: ESPN
ESPN’s Game Plan for the Holidays
The nation’s most popular sports cable network is also one of the most visited properties across mobile channels. ESPN has harnessed the power of its brand and packaged content in just the right way to deliver sports scores, updates and news via the mobile Web, applications, video, television and SMS alerts. The network is one of the few that has an entire team with resources dedicated to monetizing mobile while making the experience for both consumers and advertisers as pleasing as watching games on a regular TV set. This holiday season, ESPN is set to innovate even further. In this session, attendees will learn:

 What ESPN has planned for this holiday season
 The network’s experiences with mobile over the previous holidays
 How ESPN handles its mobile ad sales process
 The integration of mobile with other delivery channels
 Best-practice tips for advertisers and brands, publishers and ad agencies for an effective holiday season

Speaker:
John Zehr, senior vice president and general manager, ESPN Mobile

1 p.m. – 2 p.m.
Networking Lunch Break

2 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
Are Publishers and Broadcasters Providing an Advertiser-Friendly Environment for the Holidays?
Mobile advertising’s growth is only as good as the platforms that run the ads. Given the mountain of evidence, major media brands are leaving no stone unturned to offer advertisers a package comprising mobile sites, applications, SMS alerts and social media integration. The goal is to deliver a seamless branding experience across all channels. Attendees will learn:

 How publishers and broadcasters are creating optimal contextual experiences for advertisers to run their holiday-oriented display, search and rich media campaigns
 What kind of offers are likely to resonate over the holidays
 Key best-practice tips for creative across all mobile platforms and operating systems including Apple iPhone and iPad, Google’s Android, Research In Motion’s BlackBerry, Nokia’s Symbian and others
 Campaign performance tracking, measurement and analysis
 How to make an effective media buy on mobile

Speakers:
Cameron Clayton, vice president of mobile, The Weather Channel
Craig Etheridge, vice president of mobile advertising sales, Gannett Digital/USA Today
Katie Juhl, manager of mobile, National Geographic Global Media
Scott Drake, vice president of CNBC Digital Technology and Products
Craig Kirkland, director of mobile products, CNN
Laura McEwen, vice president and publisher, Conde Nast’s Self Magazine

Moderator:
Dan Butcher, associate editor, Mobile Marketer and Mobile Commerce Daily

2:45 p.m. – 3 p.m.
Break

3 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Post-Lunch Keynote
How Pepsi Incorporates Mobile for Audience Engagement
Pepsi has won wide acclaim for its interactive marketing going back to the mid-1990s. In the years since, the beverage-to-foods giant has made tremendous strides in the use of interactive marketing for audience engagement and to drive traffic online, to stores and to partners. Now, with the mobile Web and applications as well as SMS, Pepsi is taking audience engagement to new levels – again, to become the choice of a new generation. In this keynote session, attendees will learn:

 How Pepsi approaches mobile in the multichannel content, especially digital marketing
 The company’s treatment of mobile advertising and marketing during the holidays and whether it is preferential
 How 2010 may have parallels to 1996 – when Pepsi launched its first Web site, PepsiWorld
 The success so far of its mobile initiatives and overall expectations
 Highlights of mobile campaign work
 How consumer packaged goods companies can embrace mobile

Speaker:
John Vail, director of digital production and promotions in the digital engagement group, Pepsi-Cola North America

3:30 p.m. – 3:45 p.m.
Break

3:45 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Best-Practice Tips: What Works and What Doesn’t Work for Holiday Mobile Marketing and Commerce
For many marketers and retailers, holiday 2010 will be their first or second season incorporating mobile into multichannel plans. It pays to heed lessons learned from the Internet’s early days of what to do and what not to do. For example, SMS is governed by special rules in terms of opt-ins and list usage. Also, a banner ad that clicks through to a regular Web landing page and not one that is mobile-optimized may result in a lost sale or wasted branding impression. In this session, attendees will learn from the experts the key dos and don’ts to avoid any consumer or regulatory run-ins over the holidays, including:

 The one unexpected thing that may happen over the holidays
 Working with wireless carriers for effective mobile advertising and marketing
 How to avoid site and application spikes and crashes during Black Friday, Cyber Monday and key shopping periods
 How to deploy an effective SMS campaign for the holidays, including appropriate copy, measurement and database marketing
 Key elements in a user-friendly mobile site and application: design, search, functionality and frictionless shopping and transactions
 Creative and offers that encourage click-throughs to mobile-optimized landing pages
 Back-end issues with mobile commerce: order-taking, inventory management and warehouse connectivity to mobile commerce and ecommerce engines

Speakers:
Stephanie Bauer Marshall, associate director for mobile advertising and marketing, Verizon Wireless
Eric Harber, president, Hipcricket
Pete Langlois, director of mobile product innovation and strategy, Neustar
Jennifer Okula, vice president of data innovation, Safecount
Annette Tonti, CEO, MoFuse
Brian Murphy, mobile ad sales, Google

Moderator:
Marci Troutman, CEO, Siteminis

4:30 p.m. – 4:45 p.m.
Break

4:45 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.
Afternoon Keynote
Waterford Wedgwood Royal Doulton
A Luxury Brand’s Expectations for Mobile
A luxury brand survives not just on quality or exclusivity but also the way it is marketed to the target audience to stoke desire. Marketing is key to portraying the brand’s values. So is the mobile medium ideal for marketing or commerce decisions? Find out what the maker of Waterford Crystal and Wedgwood and Royal Doulton china expects from mobile as part of the multichannel mix. In this keynote, attendees will learn:

 Can mobile really represent a luxury brand’s values
 What role can mobile play in a luxury brand’s marketing and retail efforts for the holidays and beyond
 Which makes more sense – mobile site, application, SMS or all three
 How mobile needs to closely integrate with the brand’s multichannel efforts
 What are luxury brands’ biggest issues with other channels and how mobile and online can help
 The mobile holiday wish list

Speaker:
Leisa Glispy, director of global ecommerce, Waterford Wedgwood Royal Doulton

Moderator:
Mickey Alam Khan,