Key Trends Driving Social Media
Mood:  cheeky
Topic: Trends
We've gotten back from the Blogon Conference in Berkeley California. We demoed Lycos BlogBuilder as well as a new social networking product, Lycos Circles. In addition, we had done some market research on what will drive social networking, blogging, and personal publishing. It was from a large sample of 2,000 members of Tripod and Angelfire. Key findings are as follows:

68% of web site builders/bloggers own digital cameras
24% own camcorders
25% own web enabled cell phones
34% post wireless content to their websites or blogs

The key finding overall was that website builders (and bloggers) use consumer electronics to create content, and have high speed access to post to their sites and blogs.

Here's a copy in PDF format: Lycos Web Pub whitepaper

MobileLime (m-commerce platform)
Mood:  vegas lucky
Topic: New Product
If you've ever visited the Angora Cafe in Brighton, Toscanini's Ice Cream in Cambridge, or La Luna Cafe in Central Square, Cambridge, you can pay via MobileLime. MobileLime is a loyalty card combined with a nmobile payment system. Most of the vendors who take it are cafes or restaurants, but apparently they have also signed up Economy Hardware (great urban chain of hardware stores). La Luna offers:

10% OFF first purchase
10% OFF all purchases when you prepay over $10
(i.e. prepay $20, receive $22 credit)
10% OFF any purchase over $20
$6 OFF next purchase when total spending reaches $50
Buy 10 coffees, get 1 coffee FREE

Movieworks in Brookline MA offers
Rent two movies and receive a coupon for a free movie rental. Offer is subject to change.


Seapoint Ventures and Ignition Partners (both in Seattle) have invested in this startup. The Boston Globe did a story on it last Saturday July 3, 2004.

Lycos Tripod Launches Moblogging
Mood:  caffeinated
Topic: New Product
Tripod launched a mobile blogging product, an extension to BlogBuilder which lets you post from a mobile device - from a PDA to camera phone to pager. As part of the marketing release, I set up my own mo-blog with some real-life blogging. Check it out here: 2004 Summer Moblog

Additionally, we've been invited to speak at BlogOn Event this year in CA in July. We're presenting the new BlogBuilder, plus a couple of surprise new products.

Great Restaurant Guide
Mood:  party time!
Topic: Marketing Tools
One of the most difficult things to do well in marketing is to present a lot of information quickly and easily and help a customer make a decision about a purchase. Yet it's also pretty fundamental to success. Tufts Life Dining Menus, which is non-profit and run by Tufts University students in the Boston area, is pretty incredible. Read More...

Interesting Application: Txt2Flirt
Mood:  accident prone
Topic: New Product
The Boston Phoenix has been promoting a service called Txt2flrt.

It enables you to meet people through your mobile. It's a mobile marketing platform based somewhere in Boston. Read More...

There are various similar applications, Textjam, which lets you communicate with drivers in the car next to you (their license plate is linked to their mobile), SMS dating from TextandMeet,or even Saw-You,
where you can create your own character to download to your mobile, and you can browse others' characters.

Welcome to my online marketing blog
Mood:  caffeinated
Welcome to my marketing blog. I am a senior marketing manager at Lycos for search and web publishing products. I am working together with MITX which Lycos is a corporate sponsor to create an online marketing event in the fall. We'll focus on introducing people in New England who do online marketing, preferably people in different industries who are responsible on online marketing, whether through email, the web, or mobile devices. Our goal is to build relationships and share practical ideas which work. Please contact me or Sara Ring for more information on this marketing event.