Who's Going Mobile?

With new developments in the mobile market happening almost continuously, I thought it was worthwhile to visit some of the recent highlights. Currently a number of businesses are taking notice of direct marketing offers via text messages to cell phones and BlackBerries. Along similar lines as the door hangers that have been employed by pizza shops for years, these unsolicited text ads could be considered intrusive and annoying. Also like the old door hangers though, they could prove to be an effective method of reaching customers with promotional offers and spark an increase in sales. Mobile Google Ads: Don't think for a moment that Google is going to let the mobile web pass them by, or their AdWords revenue stream for that matter. Recently that they have been testing a mobile ad system in Japan as well as working on Toshiba has developed a mobile phone enabled technology that allows the user to take a snapshot of a UPC symbol, or a product's bar code, and search the web for product reviews. Once fully operational, Toshiba hopes to provide consumers with the ability to instantly see whether the buzz is positive or negative for just about anything you might buy including toys, appliances, electronics and food products. The Pre-Packaged Mobile Web: Webaroo program. When the laptop is connected to the Internet it will cache the current version of the sites that are bookmarked as well as the first 20 search results from Google to be available at a later time offline. When offline, the user is able to navigate these sites as well as perform searches within these results, AdWords and all. The SEO slant? Your site will need to be holding a top-20 position in Google for your keywords if you want to be available to Webaroo users. AOL Makes a Mobile Move: Not to be left behind, is hoping to take mobile search beyond the world of web pages designed to render on tiny cell phone screens and offers something closer to the original page design, reformatted for your device. Without a doubt, the mobile searchers of the world will appreciate a more attractive mobile web space. Mobile Profits Continue to Rise: As would be expected, in the face of several aggressive moves towards the world of mobile, the major Del.icio.us") | Yahoo! My Web