Mobile Marketing Blog

The UK Tax System Explained In Beer

goomzee — Mon, 14 May 2012 20:25:52 +0000

One of our team in Europe shared this with me so I felt compelled to re-post as it’s relevance here in the US, and people enjoy a good real-world demonstration of economics.

THE UK TAX SYSTEM EXPLAINED IN BEER

Suppose that once a week, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten
comes to £100.

If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something
like this..

The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay £1.
The sixth would pay £3.
The seventh would pay £7.
The eighth would pay £12.
The ninth would pay £18.
And the tenth man (the richest) would pay £59.

So, that’s what they decided to do.

The ten men drank in the bar every week and seemed quite happy with the
arrangement until, one day, the owner caused them a little problem. “Since
you are all such good customers,” he said, “I’m going to reduce the cost
of your weekly beer by £20.? Drinks for the ten men would now cost just
£80.

The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes. So the
first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free but what
about the other six men? The paying customers? How could they divide the
£20 windfall so that everyone would get his fair share? They realized that
£20 divided by six is £3.33 but if they subtracted that from everybody’s
share then not only would the first four men still be drinking for free
but the fifth and sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his
beer.

So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fairer to reduce each man’s
bill by a higher percentage. They decided to follow the principle of the
tax system they had been using and he proceeded to work out the amounts he
suggested that each should now pay.

And so, the fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (a 100%
saving).
The sixth man now paid £2 instead of £3 (a 33% saving).
The seventh man now paid £5 instead of £7 (a 28% saving).
The eighth man now paid £9 instead of £12 (a 25% saving).
The ninth man now paid £14 instead of £18 (a 22% saving).
And the tenth man now paid £49 instead of £59 (a 16% saving).
Each of the last six was better off than before with the first four
continuing to drink for free.

But, once outside the bar, the men began to compare their savings. “I only
got £1 out of the £20 saving,” declared the sixth man. He pointed to the
tenth man, “but he got £10″

“Yes, that’s right,” exclaimed the fifth man. “I only saved £1 too. It’s
unfair that he got ten times more benefit than me”

“That’s true” shouted the seventh man. “Why should he get £10 back, when I
only got £2? The wealthy get all the breaks”

“Wait a minute,” yelled the first four men in unison, “we didn’t get
anything at all. This new tax system exploits the poor” The nine men
surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

The next week the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks, so the nine sat
down and had their beers without him. But when it came time to pay the
bill, they discovered something important – they didn’t have enough money
between all of them to pay for even half of the bill.

And that, boys and girls, journalists and government ministers, is how our
tax system works. The people who already pay the highest taxes will
naturally get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much,
attack them for being wealthy and they just might not show up anymore. In
fact, they might start drinking overseas, where the atmosphere is somewhat
friendlier.

David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics.
For those who understand, no explanation is needed.
For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible

Should MLSs Invest In An “App Store”?

goomzee — Thu, 03 May 2012 11:34:41 +0000

It seems this year the MLS industry buzz is “App Store” and I see platform vendors scrambling to provide this shiny new object. I’ve been approached by several asking if my company would participate and I’m always open-minded, but still have to scrutinize where I invest my resources. I’m not convinced the benefit is worth the investment in many situations, so for me the jury is still deliberating.

Yesterday I noticed a post and some comments on the WAV Group blog about this subject and I felt compelled to share some insights and my personal opinion. My comment is awaiting moderation so I thought I would also share it here for those that care to read my rather lengthy response.

MY RESPONSE TO: ( http://waves.wavgroup.com/2012/05/01/explaining-an-mls-app-store )

Gents, I’d like to chime in as we’ve tested this model at Goomzee and there are indeed pros/cons.

I haven’t seen LPSs offering yet but I know the gang are smart, and Rich is great at positioning and user interface design. I’ve seen the Spark platform and they’ve done a great job with documentation and preparation. I’m already working with other independent’s who’ve forged out this model and I have mixed reviews and serious concerns over whether MLSs should even be investing their time in this in lieu of other customer needs. Again, we have something shiny and new, but I don’t think people have really thought through or flushed out their business cases. Perhaps some perspective from someone who’s been there, done that not only in the real estate industry, but also in two other industries, might be useful (my personal experience).

The pros seem to really only benefit the MLS (and that is questionable actually as you read on), but at the expense of the end user and vendor in most cases. The only real problem solved is centralizing procurement and promotion. For an MLS that prides themselves on customer service, and a vendor that prides themselves on the same, and their brand, it can actually be a very risky proposition so indeed it must be done properly, if that’s possible at all, which I’m not 100% convinced. The real question to ask is whether your customers screaming for you to solve online ordering because it’s too difficult to visit someone’s website and enter credit card information?

Personally I think this model could work for small MLSs with limited staff and outsourced support to vendors because their end-users are already trained on that MLS-vendor relationship. In small quantities, that could work, but in large quantities, it’s a nightmare both for the vendor and the end user, and ultimately the MLS because of frustrated customers (the folks who ultimately pay their bills). I also think this model could benefit vendors, especially new entrants, to help acquire smaller markets that are fragmented that they might not have invested as heavily into multi-year sales cycles, tradeshows, travel, relationships, product, integrations, and brand.

For larger MLS markets that provide their own support, and those vendors invest $millions in multi-year sales cycles and business relationships, product enhancements, integrations, etc., I believe you have a disaster waiting to happen by diluting the very benefit from investing in those long business cycles. Further, I’ve seen firsthand the frustration MLS customers face when getting the “runaround” over who to contact to get their problems solved. One extra step or call and they’re livid and looking for someone to blame or bash online. MLS staff are typically not equipped to handle support for a vast array of products, and have enough on their plate just supporting the MLS system itself. Once customers have questions or issues with a 3rd party product, the MLS staff note the issue, then typically pass it onto the provider. The provider then has to attempt to contact the customer to make them repeat themselves, and often they’re not answering phone or emails at this point so it stretches out days sometimes. At that point, they’re so upset that they start to dislike the provider as an outlet for frustration, risking their brand and any potential referrals.

The #1 support issue I see with one of our products, for example, is logging in, and over 90% of the time, the user input the password incorrectly or improper case, sometimes caused by their phone capitalizing a letter and they didn’t notice. Something as simple as that, which the vendor was not at fault at all could take days to resolve (phone/email tag), could lead to product cancellations, bad reviews in app store, and no potential referrals and all could have been avoided if the end user contacted the provider directly. The support costs for vendors more than doubles because of the extra effort to reach customers after the fact, then troubleshoot and resolve. To make matters worse, most models want vendors to reduce their prices, and give up more of their revenue, and ultimately cost them more in support so if they’re smart, they’ll instead raise their prices to offset and in the end, yet again the end user is punished by having to pay more.

I have firsthand experience both in the real estate/MLS industry, and in my “past life” running my family businesses, and have seen these shortfalls (mainly in customer service and end user confusion) by adding this additional layer of separation between the end customer and the “service provider”. My family’s towing business, for example, was the largest AAA service provider for over 30 years in the Inland Northwest in regards to call volume. My grandfather personally sold AAA memberships right out of the truck for several decades to build up their membership in and around Western Montana. Customers called direct, received excellent service and recommended others, and because the service levels were so high, as our company and market grew AAA saw no reason to introduce additional service providers because the service levels and membership renewals were higher than other markets around the US. In other markets of the same size they’d have 2-3 providers but satisfaction levels were the best in the country so there was no reason to fix what wasn’t broken. This all changed when new leadership got the bright idea to centralize a call center and force all AAA members to call their toll free 800 number.

The first 2 years, customers were so frustrated and upset that memberships declined and many of our customers refused to wait for AAA’s toll free operators and called us back and opted to pay for service instead of the runaround, and submit the invoice to their insurance. This was great for our company initially because they paid us 100% more than AAA’s contracted price, but bad for them because of the hassles. Ultimately, most AAA contractors in the state started de-prioritizing AAA calls over cash calls and the end customer now has to wait longer to get rescued on the side of the road, and many cancelled memberships and now go the cash option.

Some service providers in other cities even dropped support for AAA altogether, and only service cash customers direct to ensure they receive high marks of customer service, more revenue per customer, and referrals given they maintain their business relationship. This relationship is key to long-term business success, especially in local markets. We only kept AAA because we treated it like a loss leader, and our drivers were “outside salespeople” selling the services of our other businesses, namely our auto repair shop. When local repair shops and dealerships saw a decline in their business (newer, long-lasting cars), however, they purchase towing equipment and promote towing direct to customers so they increase top-line revenue, and ensure they keep their customer relationship.

At this point, there’s was no incentive for our company to support AAA and they later introduced 2 other local providers and diluted the benefit, so it is no longer top priority to provide the same service levels for less money and a customer we have no relationship with. The issue was that extra layer of abstraction between the end customer, and the service provider, severed that relationship and results in substandard customer service and wait times to get issues resolved. But I digress so back to the MLS and real estate industry.

I might compare this model to the franchises’ approved vendor programs. They try to collect fees from vendors, and often require attendance to one or more conferences (committing $20-50K annually each in booth, travel, payroll, etc.). We were approached by the top brands and truly considered these years ago and marched down that path, only to learn that it was merely a revenue source for franchises and their agents knew it. Upon researching, I found that the agents put little, if any, stock into the directories (I asked them personally at many trade shows and all stated the same). I decided not to invest in that model and it was the best decision I ever made. It works to reach some new entrants, but most I found spend so much to get in the business they cannot afford to keep going so start dropping services as fast as they sign up and skate by on life support and credit cards or part time jobs until they get some listings and closings. Really vendors only prosper with that model as a “pay to play” strategy to gain opportunities to pitch the franchise for some enterprise solution (i.e. Market Leader, Wolfnet, etc.). At that point it’s a drop in the bucket for the $30-50K/year you have to invest to win multi-million-dollar contracts, but for most it’s a losing proposition and just means for the franchise to fill some booths at a retreat or trade show. There are no guarantees they will promote you, provide you mailing lists and whitelist your domain from spam filters, or offer any exclusivity of any kind so very one-sided.

I do still see that bandwagon affect, and organizations rushing to make decisions without truly analyzing their organizational goals, and the affects of their decisions only to have to back peddle and clean up the mess later. If you take a consultative approach to making business decisions, the first is to define the business case, your organizational objectives, and the measurements (or KPIs) to determine if your actions met your expectations. The bottom line is to ask yourself “what problem am I trying to solve?” and most importantly “are my customers asking me to solve this problem?”. I admit, I really wanted to make Social Media work for my company and even invested in prototypes and research but then the cold hard question of how that will benefit my customers forced me to abandon it. The harsh reality is that few models prosper from Social Media as sexy as it is. In the real estate industry the agents agree to cooperate at the listing level, but compete on nearly every other level, so if something is great they’re less inclined to “skill up the competition.” If I’d not really asked what problem I was solving and what the true benefit was, I’d have wasted more time and $tens to hundreds of thousands in engineering.

To me, an app store for small MLSs could work to solve the problem that they don’t have the staff or processes to efficiently select, negotiate, or promote 3rd party solutions to their members but if you dig deep, there still must be a selection/vetting process to avoid recommending substandard products to customers. If that is the case, they really only save on promotion, but must look at what you currently invest in promotion. For smaller MLSs, it could be a quarterly lunch and learn where they invite speakers (who typically sponsor lunch anyway), and a logo in a monthly newsletter or on a partner page on their website. The investment they make is so small, there’s little actual gain so again what problem do they solve?

One could argue that non-dues revenue stream is the justification to kick off this process, but many vendors already offer the revenue share model to MLS. In this case the only incentive is control and transparency, but that can be solved contractually (and typically is) by requiring the right for audits. Another rule of thumb is don’t do business with people you don’t trust and that typically solves all fears/concerns over control. If the revenue expectations are truly so great that it makes sense to kick off organization change of this type, I’d say instead invest more time and effort in supporting and promoting the companies they are already working with and get higher return, plus partners willing to work harder for them because there are incentives to do so.

One of the other justifications for this model I’ve seen is central access or SSO integration, which again leads me to believe this might work for smaller markets but not for larger multi-regional markets. Most vendors, like my company, have already integrated with the MLS systems in these larger markets, and must customize their systems to handle the unique rules as result of mergers and combined boards and legacy data designs and processes.

In looking at the pros/cons, especially as a vendor who is testing this model already, I can say for certain that the end-user suffers regardless just by sheer confusion, runaround and frustration, plus more change which is tough as we all know. I would strongly encourage MLS executives to first define a business case before jumping on any bandwagons. Ask yourself whether your customers are demanding that you make signing up for products online easier, and how important that is compared to all their other needs, and ultimately what problem you’re solving and the risk vs. reward.

As a vendor, I personally am on the fence with this model, but always keep an open mind and try anything once (or twice or thrice because I’m a stubborn and optimistic entrepreneur). Ultimately, the only justification as a vendor I can see for this model is to pick up smaller fragmented markets for marginal revenue opportunity, but I’d first design my product and service expectation levels to more of a self-service model to avoid risking my brand and setting proper customer expectations up front. If the product is not designed for self-service, watch out!

As enticing as additional margin revenue opportunity is (with no guarantees of course), I also have little/no interest in diluting the significant ($millions) investment I’ve already made in existing markets, knowing the significant disincentives that lay ahead. The level of customization required to effectively support these costs a lot of money and resources. MLSs should not recklessly discard the investments they’ve asked companies to make to date, only to ask for even more investment with no incentives (exclusivity, higher margins, more promotion). Instead of incentives from the programs I’ve seen, I actually see the opposite: asking for larger cut into margins, lower prices, no exclusivity, no personal customer relationships, risk brand reputation because of frustrated and confused end-users, no control over cash flows (waiting for commission checks), and no way to solve billing or cancellation issues and instead giving end users the runaround.

My biased (but honest for those that know me) advice is to think long and hard on what problem you truly solve and ultimately whether the end-users are asking you for it. Also think about what incentives you offer the service provider to subscribe to such a model, because ultimately they are whom you rely on to maintain your reputation with your customers. If it’s not truly a win-win relationship, all suffer or your customers are left picking up the scraps. You could spend more time and energy supporting your partners and making them successful instead of constantly chasing that shiny new object for fear of getting left behind. Your stakeholders will not fault you for bolstering customer satisfaction, revenue, and a stable and successful partner relationship.

Goomzee and ReachFactor Partner to Help Agents Win More Profitable Business, Faster

asmith — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 18:46:20 +0000

Goomzee, the leading provider of mobile IDX, search and at-property lead capture solutions servicing over 200,000 agents, has selected real estate agent reputation platform ReachFactor to help agents improve their online reputation and visibility and turn millions of in market prospects into highly profitable customers.

Under the terms of the agreement all of Goomzee’s agents will have free access to ReachFactor’s reputation utility. When an agent opts-in, Goomzee will automatically populate reputation data into ReachFactor and pull an agent’s ratings into its mobile market suite. An agent’s contact and lead forms will be enhanced with the agent’s ratings as well. All agents using ReachFactor will see “Goomzee” as a new publishing channel to which they can automatically sync their bona fide reputation.

“The empirical evidence we’ve gathered for over a year now shows that consumers who find agents after looking at our reputation data form quicker, more loyal bonds with agents than consumers who discovered the same agents via traditional marketing tactics,” says Suresh Srinivasan, ReachFactor’s CEO. “Partnering with a market leader like Goomzee makes sense because we have thousands of overlapping customers and Goomzee’s services are proven to generate high quality leads. We can deliver an instant win to every agent using the services.”

Agents using Goomzee report that 20 to 50 percent of all follow-ups with prospects result in a meeting with 100 percent customer satisfaction and lead accuracy. By embedding an agent’s reputation into the entire consumer experience, agents can subtly influence the consumer’s perception of them even before meeting. The result is that agents will have earned trust and loyalty from the get go, reducing the likelihood that the consumer will shop around.

“Consumers expect star-type ratings on businesses of all types before they make a final decision,” says Mike Sparr, Goomzee’s CEO and Founder. “It was clear to us that integrating ReachFactor’s comprehensive ratings statistics into our public-facing products would help our agents instantly establish loyal bonds with the leads we deliver each day. We wanted to embrace the reputation platform we think will set the industry standard.”

About Goomzee
Goomzee provides mobile technology tools that allow real estate agents to deliver property information to a buyer’s cell phone while they are standing at the property or on the go and helps convert more leads into sales. With the company’s industry-leading product suite, Realty Connect, Text Message and QR Code marketing, and Mobile Property Pages, are automatically generated and reusable. The suite also includes Mobile MLS and Branded Mobile IDX features. Goomzee’s products seamlessly integrate with MLS property listing databases to provide accurate, relevant information for the real estate professional and their clients. To learn more visit us online at http://www.goomzee.com or contact us toll free at 1-855-GOOMZEE.

About ReachFactor
ReachFactor is a patents-pending reputation platform for use by real estate agents and organizations to foster better consumer engagement and more loyal consumer relationships. Prospective home buyers and sellers who browse data collated by ReachFactor can rely on a comprehensive, nationwide database of verified facts about real estate agents so they can quickly make the right selection. ReachFactor is one of AGBeat’s 60 Genius Brands to watch in 2012. To learn more visit reachfactor.com or call toll free 1-877-470-7794.

Connecticut Statewide MLS Agents Go Mobile With Goomzee

goomzee — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 21:00:47 +0000

Missoula, MT – November 8, 2011 – Goomzee, a leading provider of mobile technology tools for REALTORS®, announced today the availability of their service to agents throughout the state of Connecticut, and data integration with Connecticut Statewide Multiple Listing Service (CTMLS). As result of this collaboration, Connecticut’s real estate professionals will soon be able to offer potential home buyers access to listing information, pricing and photos on their cell phones to improve the home shopping experience, and offer enhanced customer service.

“We strive to make the best solutions accessible to real estate professionals and support our members,” says Cameron Paine, CEO of Connecticut Statewide Multiple Listing Service. “I’m excited to help make Goomzee’s mobile technology tools readily accessible for Connecticut REALTORS® and help them meet the needs of today’s on-the-go home buyers.”

Goomzee’s mobile marketing tools include text message call capture, QR code and branded mobile IDX. The service allows agents to place codes on signs at the property and consumers can text in, or scan a QR code, and instantly receive home information, pricing and even photos on their cell phone. The agent is notified of buyer interest and can follow up to provide more responsive customer service. According to the company, over 200,000 real estate professionals in the United States already have a Goomzee account, growing from 100,000 agents this same time last year.

“Mobile technology is critical to meet the needs of today’s consumers, and more professionals are recognizing the importance of our lead capture tools that solve common problems and increase agent’s sales efficiency,” claims Mike Sparr, Goomzee’s CEO and founder. “CTMLS continues to push the technical envelope to offer solutions that benefit their customers, and we look forward to helping them fulfill that mission.”

Mobile technology continues to grow in importance in the real estate industry. According to Pew Research Centers, 92% of smart phone subscribers cite text messaging as the most important feature of their mobile device, and Internet browsing has grown to 84%. Goomzee’s mobile technology suite delivers a complete mobile offering for real estate agents, brokers, franchises and MLSs that reaches the most mobile devices including standard phones, smart phones and tablets.

ABOUT GOOMZEE
Goomzee provides mobile technology tools that allow real estate agents to deliver property information to a buyer’s cell phone while they are standing at the property or on the go and helps convert more leads into sales. With the company’s industry-leading product suite, Realty Connect, Text Message and QR Code marketing, and Mobile Property Pages, are automatically generated and reusable. The suite also includes Mobile MLS and Branded Mobile IDX features. Goomzee’s products seamlessly integrate with MLS property listing databases to provide accurate, relevant information for the real estate professional and their clients. To learn more, visit us online at http://www.goomzee.com or contact us toll free at 1-855-GOOMZEE.

ABOUT CTMLS
Founded in 2006 by the Connecticut Association of REALTORS, Inc., the Connecticut Statewide Multiple Listing Service provides the highest quality, most comprehensive MLS information to REALTOR® members in every town and every county in Connecticut. To learn more about Connecticut Statewide Multiple Listing Service please visit us online at http://ctmls.ctreal.com.

Mile High Mobile; Over 15,000 Denver REALTORS Go Mobile With Goomzee

Mike Sparr — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 04:38:37 +0000

Missoula, MT – October 4, 2011 - Goomzee, the leading mobile technology solution provider for real estate professionals nationwide, announced today their agreement with Metrolist, Colorado’s largest multiple listing service (MLS), to provide mobile property search and at-property lead capture tools to Colorado REALTORS®. As part of the agreement, Goomzee will offer Metrolist subscribers its Mobile MLS technology, in addition to its industry-leading text message and QR code marketing suite, Realty Connect®. Denver area home buyers will soon be able to access listing information, pricing and photos on their mobile phones while efficiently connecting with area real estate professionals.

“We’re excited to offer Goomzee’s mobile technology in the new Metrolist Marketplace, an online one-stop-shop coming soon,” says Patricia Bybee, President and CEO. “Mobile technology is a must-have to reach today’s tech-savvy homebuyers and we look forward to making this available.”

“I’m excited to work with Metrolist and their 16,000 real estate professionals in the Denver area,” states Mike Sparr, Goomzee’s CEO and founder. “As more MLS’s help their agents go mobile, it’s exciting they continue to select Goomzee as their preferred mobile technology partner. We now service many of the largest MLS markets in America, and as a Montana-based company, this partnership is even more exciting since Metrolist is one of the largest solution providers in the Rockies.”

ABOUT METROLIST
Metrolist is the largest MLS in the state of Colorado, supporting the largest network of REALTORS® with the most comprehensive database of real property listings. Realtor owned since 1984, Metrolist provides leading technology solutions to real estate agents and brokers to better serve buyers and sellers. More information about Metrolist is available at www.metrolist.com.

WestUSA Realty Provides Goomzee Mobile Tools To Over 1,000 Arizona Agents

Mike Sparr — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 05:56:35 +0000

September 12, 2011 – Phoenix, AZ – WestUSA Realty announced today they have selected Goomzee as their mobile technology solution provider company wide. WestUSA listings will soon display text message and QR codes on property signs allowing consumers to receive property information, pricing and photos instantly while agents connect with buyers more efficiently.

“At WestUSA we pride ourselves on providing relevant technology tools to agents to streamline their business and customer interaction. Mobile technology is a natural progression as more home buyers expect access to information anytime, anywhere and we felt it was important to provide Goomzee’s mobile marketing tools to our agents,” explains Dan McCarthy, Vice President for WestUSA. “Quite simply, Goomzee gets it, and that is why we chose their solution for our agents and look forward to working with them to roll the service out.”

“I’m thrilled that WestUSA selected Goomzee as their mobile solution provider and they recognized the true value in services we provide,” says Goomzee CEO and Founder, Mike Sparr. “Goomzee’s innovative approach to mobile marketing allows it to deliver some of the highest lead conversion rates in the industry. Agents are reporting from 20 to 50 percent of all follow ups result in a meeting with 100 percent customer satisfaction and lead accuracy, solving the common fake contact issues from Internet lead solutions. More companies and brokerages are taking advantage of our mobile tools and broker solutions and I look forward to working with WestUSA.”

WestUSA Realty recently pioneered another new concept in the industry, the Walk-in brokerages popping up inside select Walmart stores. They have a relationship with Walmart, the nation’s largest retailer and have already opened 10 retail locations throughout Arizona and others in bordering states such as Colorado and Utah. Goomzee’s mobile technology tools will be provided for all WestUSA agents in their traditional brokerages and walk-in locations.

ABOUT WESTUSA REALTY
West USA Realty Inc. first opened in 1986 in Phoenix, Arizona and operates under the parent company of WW Franchise LLC. The company has five valley-wide metropolitan Maricopa County, Arizona offices and several franchises within and outside of Arizona. West USA Realty offices are located currently in the State of Arizona, Mexico and California. To learn more, visit us online at http://www.westusa.com or contact us toll free at 1-800-WESTUSA.

QR Technology Approaching Ubiquity in U.S.

asmith — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 18:21:15 +0000

In June we discussed Making Room in Your Ecosystem for QR Codes. At that time the good folks at ScanLife had released a report analyzing QR code implementation and interaction rates throughout 2010. In a nutshell, the findings illustrated how QR technology in the U.S. is on the rise but still not quite to the state of omnipresence.

As we round the corner on the second half of 2011, let’s go to ScanLife’s latest report for a radically different snapshot of QR code adoption.

In mid-2010 ScanLife was only recording 10 QR code scans per minute. As of this report, they are currently logging one scan per second. As you can see from the graph above, QR code adoption started slow but has grown exponentially since July 2010. As U.S. handset companies begin to incorporate QR technology into their base models, expect the ‘per second scan rate’ to only increase.

Another golden nugget gleaned from the report is the increased usage among mainstream Americans, detailed in the image above. As expected the 25 – 34 year old age group leads the charge, followed closely by 35 – 44 year olds. The first-time homebuyer bracket (25 -34 years of age) has traditionally preferred to interact on mobile devices, so it’s a pleasant surprise to see that the 35 – 44 year old age group is:

1.) so close to the younger age group in number of scans, and

2.) scanning at a higher percentage/rate than the younger age group. At the current rate this will result in a surplus of tech-savvy homebuyers spread across more age groups than ever before.

—-

The report also contains some interesting stats regarding mobile OS market share, scan rates per city and country, and an interesting comparison between 1D and 2D barcode scanning. Click here for ScanLife’s Q2 2011 Trend Report.

- Austin Smith, Goomzee Community Manager

Accenture Executive Joins Goomzee Management Team

goomzee — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 22:23:58 +0000

July 19, 2011 – Missoula, MT – Goomzee Corporation, a leading mobile technology startup servicing real estate professionals in the U.S., announced today that former Accenture executive, Cereta Wills-Brown, has joined Goomzee’s management team as a senior project manager. Mrs. Wills-Brown will be leading Goomzee’s software engineering team, and professional services deployments and integration projects as the company continues to grow its U.S. market footprint. She will be based out of Goomzee’s Missoula, Montana office.

“It’s exciting to be involved at this stage of the company. The tremendous positive feedback we’ve already received from our MLS partners on rollout execution and responsiveness of our engineering team energizes us to achieve more,” stated Mrs. Wills-Brown.

Mike Sparr, Goomzee’s CEO and Founder, added “Cereta has over a decade of experience managing and leading teams for some of the world’s largest companies. We’re thrilled to bolster our team with someone of her expertise.”

Goomzee currently supports over 185,000 REALTORs with it’s mobile technology products that include mobile MLS search, branded mobile IDX websites, text message marketing, and lead-generating QR code marketing tools. Many of America’s largest REALTOR associations and multiple listing services have chosen Goomzee as their mobile solution partner to provide their subscribers with mobile technology solutions. By adding Cereta Wills-Brown to the Goomzee team, the company will continue to deliver it’s flawless market rollout track record and further increase it’s responsiveness to ever-changing mobile and web technology.

About Goomzee
Goomzee provides mobile technology tools that allow real estate agents to deliver property information to a buyer’s cell phone while they are standing at the property or on the go and helps convert more leads into sales. With the company’s industry-leading product suite, Realty Connect, Text Message and QR Code marketing, and Mobile Property Pages, are automatically generated and reusable. The suite also includes Mobile MLS and Branded Mobile IDX features. Goomzee’s products seamlessly integrate with MLS property listing databases to provide accurate, relevant information for the real estate professional and their clients. To learn more, visit us online at http://www.goomzee.com or contact us toll free at (877) 324-1796.

Have No Fear, The Mobile Tsunami Is Here!

asmith — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 18:43:31 +0000

What an exciting world we live in today! Every direction you turn, business professionals and consumers alike are cutting landlines and trading their desktop computers for tablets and smartphones. Even my grandfather, a 75-year-old Italian immigrant and Korean War veteran, is now using his iPhone to send me pictures of his rose garden. I never thought the day would come…

But it has, and not just for me but for everyone! The “mobile shift” that we discussed in hushed tones last year, possibly in fear of it turning tail and crossing the Atlantic from whence it came, is now an undeniable paradigm switch that Nielsen has labeled a “Mobile Tsunami”.

Below are some of the latest mobile statistics that reflect just how drastically cell phones have permeated today’s America. Since outrunning a tsunami is borderline impossible, just sit back and let the waves of progress wash over you…

- USA cell phone penetration currently at 96%

Up from 13% penetration in 1995

- 37% of all mobile subscribers have smartphones

- 40% of smartphone users have downloaded a QR code reader

- 49% of smartphone users who have seen a QR code have scanned it

- Average data usage is up almost 200% across the nation

230MB/month in 1^st Quarter of 2010, 435MB/month in 1^st Quarter of 2011

- Average data usage per user has increased 89% in last 12 months

582MB/month average for Android users, 492MB/month average for iPhone users

- Cost per unit of data had dropped 46% despite increased consumption

Dropped from 14 cents per unit of data to 8 cents

Mobile statistic aggregators are also reporting fluctuations in more areas of the mobile industry than just data usage:

- Foursquare now has as many users as Bolivia has citizens (10 Million)

- 12% of U.S. internet population (ages 8-64) own a tablet

- 35% of new tablet owners report using their PC significantly less, or not at all

- 32% of laptop owners reported the same

- 96% of small business owners report that they would not be able to remain relevant without using mobile technologies

Feeling refreshed yet?!

(Data points above were collected from independent aggregators, not affiliated in any way with Goomzee. For citations or other bibliography-related inquiries, please email: asmith (at) goomzee (dot) com.)

- Austin Smith, Goomzee Community Manager

Three Key Elements of Marketing

goomzee — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 01:25:32 +0000

This evening I attended a business function and one of the guest speakers was a renowned author, consultant and professor specializing in high-tech marketing named Jakki Mohr. She had 15 minutes to educate the audience on marketing, arguably a topic that can rarely be addressed in hours let alone 15 minutes. I was surprised she was able to really break down marketing into three key elements, all of which are required to achieve business success, in her “15 minutes of fame.”

Mohr noted that most businesspeople think of marketing only in the advertising sense, or the desired outcome, but often neglect the foundation that begins well before the latter stages. As an entrepreneur many times over, I can attest to the importance of them firsthand and will try to share the breakdown below.

1. Define And Know Your Customer
Although this is known by most, Jakki went so far as to challenge businesses to truly isolate who it is they are marketing to, and ignore the others despite temptation. She noted a common mistake businesses make is the fear to leave money on the table and desire to serve and sell to everyone – a fatal mistake in her words. This rings true and many businesses would be better served identifying their best customer, then becoming experts in identifying and solving those people’s problems and establishing thought leadership, relationships, and brand.

2. Identify Your Value Proposition
The only way someone is going to purchase your product or service is if it delivers value to them, and you can articulate what that value is. Mohr noted that most the entrepreneurs in the room were selling to other businesses and there are only two value propositions they will make a purchase decision on, saving money or making more money. If you cannot clearly describe and ideally prove how you are doing one or the other, or both, then you are wasting your time and money in advertising. Mohr’s advice to businesses was before you spend a dime on advertising, make sure you have #1 and #2 clearly defined.

3. Execution
Execution is quite simply delivering on the promises of #1 and #2. If you establish yourself as the leader in customer service, but you partner with companies that provide poor service, you are not delivering on the promises you’re brand messaging are stating. As such, this can diminish your brand and credibility and lead to wasted investment and lost business.

Jakki went on to note that after these first three key elements of marketing are executed, the practice of measuring the effectiveness of your marketing becomes very important. You need to determine what factors drive your business and measure whether your marketing efforts meet your objectives. She joked that some of her students told her they decided to go into marketing because they were bad with numbers and she just shook her head – the numbers are very important so make sure you have a plan, goals, and way to measure how you are performing and spending your hard-earned money.

The last point of the evening was that most businesses should plan to invest in marketing, and it should be a relative percentage of their budget to what they spend in building their product or service. There are no exact ratios and the best advice is to research other companies and find industry averages with businesses similar to yours to determine if you’re investing the proper amount.