I believe 2010 (pronounced “twenty-ten”) will be an unusual and exciting year. It’s a year that – for us – will require us to be nimble, mobile and efficient. They are our “three words for 2010.” You may as well make them your words as well.

Nimble, because the world of marketing and communicating messages is changing rapidly. Like fast. Really fast. Faster than ever. As I’ve noted in earlier posts, traditional media is being strangled as the cost of printing and running a newspaper or magazine continues to increase.

The smart media groups all have an online presence. What that means for you (and for us) is that we must pay heed to all online content. Why? Because that’s where your customers are also getting their messages. Most of our clients have gotten on board with two popular social networks – Facebook and Twitter. And so have traditional media. Most publications in the last six months have added Facebook and Twitter pages. And almost every newspaper has a blogger or bloggers of their own. And they tweet. And post to Facebook. They had to be nimble to survive. They realized that their customers (readers) were all online. Or on their smartphones. Being nimble in 2010 means being willing to change the way you disseminate messages. It means understanding that your customers might learn about your event or news on Facebook instead of in the newspaper. It means having a mindset that realizes that every customer of yours on Facebook and Twitter is the media, a third-party endorser or not. Unsure how to proceed? Ask us, we’re running over 40 Facebook pages for our clients and tweeting on behalf of another 15.

Having a website is not enough these days. It needs to be a mobile website – one that loads quickly for a smartphone. Your old website is now a holding site for your newsletter sign-up, as a place to join your Facebook page, or, to follow your news on Twitter. The next thing you will hear about is having your own iPhone app. We are pleased to have been the creators of the first one on Long Island for a restaurant: Vittorio’s Restaurant & Wine Bar in Amityville. Check it out. It keeps diners informed of the restaurant’s latest news and happenings, and offers video and photos. It’s awesome if we do say so ourselves. And by the end of January, we’ll have our own. You will be able to read this blog post on it and follow the feed of @WordHamptonPR on Twitter. Smartphones are hand-held computers. They have applications for Facebook and Twitter so that the new media – your customers – can say what a great time they are having at your restaurant – in real time. Like now.

Because time is money, we all have to be efficient. And the good news is that technology brings less cost. Yes, it costs time (labor) to create a proper Facebook or Twitter page and to create and add content. But it’s a heckuva lot cheaper than that full-page ad or a direct mail campaign or a television spot. As your marketing partners, we knew we had to learn about new media, social networks and become more technologically savvy. We saw, inherently, the opportunities to disseminate a PR message was a no-brainer on Facebook. Or Twitter. That it would be an incredibly efficient (and efficacious) way to share article links from the media, photos, and … strategically created news. We can post something on Facebook, Twitter and a website in minutes while sending that same information to traditional media. Soon, we will drop the term “traditional” (in the interest of being efficient) and simply refer to all receivers of your message as media. One thing about WordHampton PR, we are one efficient company. Always have been. Always will be.

Next post I will introduce you to the rise of text message marketing (check out LIFoodies) and a new geo-social app, foursquare. Both of these will be hot subjects as 2010 unfolds. Too much information, you cry? How will I implement these new tools? By being nimble, mobile and efficient.

In 2010, it will be all about your mobile phone. That was the prediction made by one of the trend-trackers that I follow back in Spring.

Yup, the next trend that will affect you will be from those pushing “mobile marketing.” You may have already seen or heard the commercial for KGB KGB - or 542 542. “Got a question? Text it to 542 542 (kgb kgb) and a kgb Special Agent will send the answer to your phone.”
Hold that thought; there’s more.

By now, the word “app” – short for application – has probably already been added to Merriam Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary (yes, they have their own “dictionary app”). Apps are icons that one can click on a smart phone (Blackberry or iPhone) that are designed to help the user perform a particular task. It is estimated that there are over 100,000 apps for the iPhone alone – everything from OpenTable, Facebook, The Weather Channel, and CNN to apps of the more unusual nature. For instance, there are apps that turn your phone into a flashlight; apps for those trying to find a nearby 12-Step meeting or an app whereby one could buy a movie ticket (Fandango) from one‘s phone.

Mobile marketing is coming at us – and in this office – at a rapid pace. In the last month, three different technology companies offering mobile solutions to reach new or existing customers have approached us. Here’s a run down:

1) There’s a company out there that for $500 - $1,000 will provide you with a template to create your OWN app for you. One of our clients signed on and we’re happy to help with a consult.

2) There’s another company that creates mobile websites - sites that are easily opened on one’s smartphone and in some cases can provide a Google map to your location (great if you own a restaurant or store). This company can also market your message via texts (just like an e-blast, now you can do text blasts) – in fact we are partnering with them via Long Island Restaurant Week. They offer: real-time alerts, notifications, and reminders; coupons and deals; programs; sweepstakes, contests and trivia games; voting and polling instructional, or important corporate communication. Wow.

3) There’s a group that will make a promotional video of your business and host it on an application that accommodates browsers, iPhones, Blackberries and other smartphones. Think of it as YouTube specifically for restaurants. (This one is in its infancy.)

If you were in business back in the mid-90s, then you remember the pleadings by those early web developers for all of us to have a web page. Remember that push? These days a business isn’t a viable business if it doesn’t have a website. Cell phones became the rage in the mid-90s too. They were big and clunky compared to today’s sleek models, but you could take your phone with you. Imagine that? And you could send a message via text. Pretty cool.

Let’s recap: every business has a website. Every consumer has a cell phone. These cell phones function like computers; many can view websites. But they can now view websites more quickly and more easily if the company has a mobile website.

So it’s no surprise that cell phones have come into their own as vehicles of marketing messages. Most mobile marketing solutions are opt-in/opt-out. The good news is if a customer has signed on, they want to receive your message.

And if you have an iPhone, you can: send/receive texts and emails; surf the web quickly (really quickly); make and receive calls. And click on that restaurant app to see what’s on the menu tonight and then make a rezzie on OpenTable because you were notified via text that said restaurant is offering a special Porterhouse for Two and be lead there via Google Map.

Ta-dah! Welcome to 2010.