Got Wi-Fi?

If you are in retail and your stores aren't set up with free Wi-Fi for your customers you are missing out.

Read on:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/active-in-store-wi-fi-engagements-quickly-escalate-report

Here is a snippet from the piece:

Wi-Fi availability is nearing ubiquity across all retail sectors, representing a significant opportunity for brands, with merchants such as Whole Foods, Kohl’s and Walmart leading the way in terms of time spent connected, according to a Popwifi report released today.

The report, Making Connections: Wi-Fi in the U.S. Retail Sector, found that 11 of the top 20 brands offering quality free Wi-Fi are restaurants or fast food outlets, with BJ’s and Olive Garden topping the list. Additionally, smartphone users in the United States consume more data per minute at Starbucks than at any other brand surveyed.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

BRotD - Entry 0242 Startup Employment Experiences

Best Reading of the Day

I don't recommend books too often in these pages, and this book hasn't even been released yet, but this article about and excerpted from this book is well worth reading.  Even if all you want is a bit of amusing fun you'll enjoy this.

A fellow named Dan Lyons, who has been a writer on the hit HBO comedy show "Silicon Valley", is about to publish a book mostly about his experiences in the startup world when he worked at HubSpot.

Here is the story on Fortune.com:

http://fortune.com/disrupted-excerpt-hubspot-startup-dan-lyons/

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Dogs roam HubSpot’s hallways, because like the kindergarten decor, dogs have become de rigueur for tech startups. At noon, Zack tells me, a group of bros meets in the lobby on the second floor to do push-ups together. Upstairs there is a place where you can drop off your dry cleaning. Sometimes they bring in massage therapists. On the second floor there are shower rooms, which are intended for bike commuters and people who jog at lunchtime, but also have been used as sex cabins when the Friday happy hour gets out of hand.

I have a bit of experience in the world of startups and I've seen some of what Dan describes.  Also I feel validated in the analysis I made of one startup that recruited me recently.

This nameless company saw a few areas of expertise in my background that fill their needs very well in their product area.  So the CPO requested a phone interview and we talked quite a few times via email and phone.  The first flag for me was when he stated they don't allow titles at their little startup company, said the Chief Product Officer before he corrected himself by naming the C-Level folks with titles.  He went on to assure me they are very well funded with at least 2 years runway, before he mentioned how little room they have for the cost of salaries and related they would be at the very bottom of the pay scale for someone with my experience.  The list went on and on, including a lack of an equity plan, as I grew certain I was speaking to more of a confidence man than a CPO I would respect and learn from.

I've seen company founders dangle the carrot of eventual payout and am not particularly enticed by such things, and never was, but please ... offer me something.  I told this CPO to reach out to me when they are better established and don't expect to hear from him again.

The reasons to join a startup or to invest in one should be quite simple: the quality of their offering and the quality of the team.  Startups typically suffer from cash-flow problems regularly so don't expect a great salary but equity is a must.  Titles are cheap and often a key requisite for working at a startup is the need to wear many hats so Director or VP titles should be easy to get in to for folks with good training and experience.  You can do more, learn more, and expand your wings more than at well-established companies so putting in some time at a startup can be very good for careers.  However, too many young people are being taken advantage of, to put it harshly, by founders looking to build more of a pyramid scheme than a company.

Choose wisely.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

PS  Season 3 of "Silicon Valley" starts in April.

Pinterest Advertising

Cool news for CPG brands and maybe not so great for Pinterest users.

http://www.mobilemarketer.com/cms/news/social-networks/22473.html

Here is a snippet from the piece:

Pinterest’s recent move to open its ad platform to all brands has the potential to significantly disrupt budgets this year, especially among marketers seeking to test direct response advertisements and target forward-looking mobile users.

The social network’s new advertising management tools have expanded their reach beyond Pinterest’s primary brand partners, enabling smaller and mid-size companies to bulk-edit their campaigns and use customer database targeting, among other features. Although Pinterest has generally been overshadowed by social behemoths such as Instagram and Facebook, the channel does offer lucrative revenue potential for brands that engage in long-term marketing strategies that will appeal to consumers planning for future home redesigns, parties or wardrobe shopping sprees.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Apple March Event

Hello Tech Fans,

The March Apple event is in the books (with a bit of a disagreement continuing between Apple and the U.S. Government on privacy).  I see nothing that will impact most industries.  The "CareKit" open source software Apple has provided will provide new potential for those looking to create health and wellness apps.

I'm a big fan of the work the folks over at ArsTechnica do so be sure to check out their posts if you want any more information on the items I'm about to cover:

http://arstechnica.com/

Their live blog for the event had been captured in its entirety here:

http://live.arstechnica.com/apples-march-2016-event/

The news.

Smaller iPhone
If you still like the smaller 4" form factor of the iPhone before they got big with the 6 (and really big with the 6 Plus), and you don't need every new feature in the latest phone, and you would prefer to save a few bucks, then the news on the iPhone SE should make you happy.

Smaller iPad Pro
Wait, I thought the point of the iPad Pro was it is really big and can replace your laptop?  So now they have a 9.7" iPad Pro, that absolutely is NOT a fancy version of the 9.7" iPad Air 2.  Right?  Right.  Got it.

iOS 9.3
This will be a nice improvement for home users for one big reason: support for nighttime reading.  The dim settings will now be custom designed to prevent any issues with reading in bed on your iPad just before you (try) to get to sleep.

Anything Else?
Nahh, not really. We don't need to read about more Apple Watch bands do we?  Nope. Nor about how great the Apple TV is?  Didn't think so.

See you in the summer for more Apple news.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Blaze Pizza and Mobile Payments

I'm a fan of Blaze Pizza, even though I've never set foot in one of their establishments.  The "fast-casual" style for pizza is a compelling business case.  Some friends in Tallahassee, FL have had a chance to try it and give it a thumbs up.

They are moving in to mobile in a big way.  Following the now standard approach blazed by Starbucks they are combining mobile payments with their retail app.

Read on:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/blaze-fires-up-new-app-mixes-payments-and-loyalty

Here is a snippet from the piece:

Build-your-own pizza chain Blaze Fast-Fire’d Pizza is following big-name restaurants with a new mobile application that pairs loyalty with payments, reflecting the growing ubiquity of mobile food strategies.

The pizza chain is hoping to become a big player in mobile commerce and drive sales through its new app that allows customers to order, earn rewards and pay directly within its platform. With other big food retailers such as Starbucks, Dunkin’ Donuts and White Castle adopting mobile ordering, Blaze is hoping to stay update with trending technologies.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Startup Unicorns Coming Back to Earth?

Great little read if you follow the startup world, and as a techie I'm sure you have to be at least a little curious what is going on.

Read more over on Wired:

http://www.wired.com/2016/03/unicorn-reckoning-finally-thank-goodness/

Here is a snippet from the piece:

THREE MONTHS INTO 2016, signs are emerging that the unicorn reckoning is upon us. A new report from Silicon Valley Bank suggests that corporate valuations are coming down; startups are focusing more on profits; and one of tech’s most important metrics—founder optimism—is flagging.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Subscription Box Brands Dominated by Mobile

Are you familiar with the Dollar Shaver Club?  The concepts is simple.  You subscribe to varying level of options and a shaver plus blades is sent to you on a regular basis via subscription service.  Pay more, get more elaborate shavers and blades.

This concept is taking off and is a great example for the direct to consumer approach manufacturer brands need to embrace.

Mobile is dominating in this space and the big names, such as Starbucks and Walmart, are taking notice.  Read on:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/subscription-box-services-dominated-by-mobile-savvy-shoppers-report

Here is a snippet from the piece:

“One key advantage of subscription boxes is that it keeps customers engaged with the brand and often provides a more personalized and curated experience which has the potential to strengthen a customer’s brand loyalty, if it’s done right,” [John Fetto, senior analyst, research and marketing, at Hitwise] said.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Mobile Wallets at POS and Apple Pay

Business Insider has a great little article detailing some data from a new report on retailers and their mobile wallets.

Just to list a few for those who aren't keeping up, mobile wallets include but are not limited to: Apple Pay, Android Pay, Samsung Pay, PayPal, CurrentC by MCX, Walmart Pay and more.

Read on:

http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-pay-leads-samsung-pay-android-pay-google-wallet-2016-3

Here is a snippet from the piece:

Apple Pay has a comfortable lead in the mobile wallets market.

A new report from Piper Jaffray cited by Investors Business Daily reveals that retailers largely prefer Apple Pay over its major competitors Samsung Pay, Android Pay, and Google Wallet.

The report found that 44% of U.S. retailers either currently are using or have expressed interest in installing mobile wallet readers in their brick-and-mortar stores.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Digital in Retail

This is a subject I know a little bit about but it is always great to see other perspectives.  This one is well worth the reading time.

https://econsultancy.com/blog/67596-digital-transformation-in-the-retail-sector-challenges-opportunities/

Here is a snippet from the piece:

The digital consumer has changed the face of retail, putting pressure on brands to adapt to this transformation.

Our new Digital Transformation in Retail Sector report looks at the opportunities and challenges faced by retailers to meet the increasing demands of customers who dictate everything and expect everything to be done in a more convenient way.

The research is based on interviews with senior executives across a range of retailers which included AO.com, Asda, The Body Shop, B&Q, Feelunique.com, Good Hair Day, Pandora, Schuh, Shop Direct, Tesco and Volcom, as well as a number of third parties.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Coupons App With Beacons in Malls

Do you love or hate coupons (there really is no in-between)??

Well now they are much simpler, though you may have to opt-in to notifications as you walk around a mall.  Read on:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/the-coupons-app-brings-beacon-triggered-offers-to-mall-shoppers

Here is a snippet from the piece:

Offer-driven mobile application The Coupons App revealed today that it is leveraging beacon technology to enhance the user experience by delivering location-based alerts inside malls from retailers, brands and restaurants.

The Coupons App, which provides more than 10 million users with deals and coupons from more than 100,000 retailers, has partnered with Mobiquity Networks to deliver offers in more than 475 malls equipped with beacons managed by the marketing firm. As a result, users will receive alerts when they are nearby stores and restaurants where promotions can be redeemed.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Quick Service Restaurant Mobile Ordering Continuing to Grow

Another QSR is doing major work in mobile ordering.

White Castle.

This phenomenon should continue as table stakes at this point.  If your company is a quick service restaurant and you aren't doing this you are not relevant to your customer.

Read more here:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/white-castle-ramps-up-mobile-ordering-efficiency-with-app-redesign

Here is a snippet from the piece:

Fast food chain White Castle is aiming to be a strong competitor in mobile ordering with a revamped application that pairs Apple Pay, order history, favorites and streamlined offer viewing to keep up with contenders.

As mobile apps have become a necessity for retailers, White Castle is hoping to stay competitive by updating its mobile app with a more efficient ordering system.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant