Even though 4G ad campaigns are touting faster speeds, 4G will not be “mass market” ready until the next few years. So why worry about it now? Because now is your only chance to take the high ground before the 4G tidal wave hits shore.

4G, the next evolution of wireless infrastructure, will offer ultra-broadband (gigabit) speeds (about 10 times faster than 3G). It’s important to note, that beyond being a mobile technology, 4G will be IP-friendly. The long-term vision shared by industry, academics and policy makers alike is that 4G will enable ubiquitous computing. This means that your home networking hub will talk to your TV, to your phone, to your gaming console, to your household appliances, even to your plants. While some of this is already happening, 4G will simply bring it to scale.

So how do we prepare for a world where everything is connected and bolted to the internet? We take the high ground, which is and will continue to be meaningful data. Consumers crave it. They can’t get enough of it. And judging from movements like Operation Chokehold, they’re willing to fight for it. So fight with them. Give your audience now the kind of data that entertains or provides utility. Help them choke up their 3G network; make your brand be part of today’s bandwidth problem.

The problem with 3G networks is that they are sagging under consumer demand for data. Take AT&T, for example, the first carrier of the iPhone. Analysis of AT&T’s data growth reveals that iPhone users, compared to “other cellphone users”, spend 25% less time ‘talking’ and 21% more time accessing music, games and the internet at large. This behavioral change caused AT&T to endure massive growing pains, a whopping 4,932 percent data growth in just the past three years.

While not everyone has an iPhone today, most soon will. By 2013 over 1 billion people will have smartphones which means that one billion people will be spend more time consuming data. Remember the school of thought that consumers would spend less time watching TV and more time watching video online? Studies have proven that we actually just consumed more video content overall. The same will likely ring true for the mobile internet when it overtakes the desktop internet by 2013. Regardless of device, we’ll stream more music, play more real-time games and spend more time social networking. But most of all, we’ll inhale video likes it air. Cisco predicts that by 2013, video will account for 90% of all consumer IP traffic and 64% of total mobile IP traffic.

So while those in the media debate 4G’s speed or lack thereof initially, let them squabble. Take 4G seriously now, pump out meaningful data online and make it accessible to a range of devices. Take the high ground while you have a chance, because by 2013 4G will be mass market ready. The only question is, will you? See you on the high ground…

#theTrendWatch

A responsibility revolution is underway.

“We are entering a period of social change…we are recalibrating our sense of what it means to be a citizen, not just through voting or volunteering but also through commerce: by what we buy.” – TIME magazine

Here at The TrendWatch, we’ve been digging around, exploring what’s fueling this social change. In search for answers, we revisited the 1970’s when corporate social responsibility (CSR) began. Around this time, we stumbled upon the following cultural insight and basis for our theory:

“Never doubt that a few, thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead, cultural anthropologist

What’s driving today’s responsibility revolution is that a few committed citizens are using social technology to coordinate responsible consumer behavior. And what’s game changing is how their approach triggers responsible consumer & corporate behavior at the point of purchase where the battle of good vs bad is ultimately won.

Here are a few good trends, started by a few committed citizens, to watch:

Disrupting the incentives:
Carrot Mob is a method of activism that leverages consumer power to make the most socially-responsible business practices also the most profitable choices. Businesses compete with one another to see who can do the most good, and then a big mob of consumers buys products in order to reward whichever business made the strongest commitment to improve the world. It’s the opposite of a boycott.

Shifting the balance of information and power:
Developed by a professor at UC Berkeley, Good Guide sifts through the health, environmental, and social profiles of everyday products and the companies that manufacture them, distilling hundreds of pieces of data into a simple 10-point rating system accessible on goodguide.com and a bar-code-scanning iPhone app (note: Fast Company recognized Good Guide as one of the 50 most innovative companies).

Making it easy to buy good:
At first use, the Good Guide app is pretty cool, but we wondered if it would be practical for ‘bustling moms,’ the prized target of CPG brands? Would they whip out their iPhones and scan packages of cookie dough with a screaming baby in tow? Maybe some would, but most likely not enough for the tool to reach critical mass. So we were happy to discover that Good Guide is expanding its scope. In a smart move, they recently partnered with Alice.com, a startup designed to make sure bustling moms never run out of essential goods. What makes Alice unique is that she helps moms find the best price, applies available coupons automatically, offers free shipping and makes it easy to find and buy the ‘good goods’ thanks to the integration of the Good Guide rating system. The partnership between Alice and the Good Guide may only be the beginning. Imagine if companies like Amazon jump on board?

The bottom line is that as more consumers embrace social technology, it will only get easier to purchase ‘good’ consistently and so much harder for brands to produce bad. Could responsible consumer behavior (RCB) be the new CSR? Either way, the responsible revolution is forcing the next evolution of business.

#thetrendwatch

We’ve all done it. We’ve worried about which profile pic to upload and show the world. So what makes us decide between the pic that shows off a little boob and the pic that features a furry friend?

Up until now, most of us have relied on instincts to decide what’s hot and what’s not. But can we trust our instincts? Are the profile pics we’re using working hardest for us?

According to OKcupid, the self-proclaimed world’s best dating site, “much of the conventional wisdom about profile pictures has been wrong.”

So what works? What will get potential mates, customers, etc. to not only check out our profiles, but to start a conversation with us?

If your profile is female:
- The ‘Myspace Shot’, “taken by holding a camera above your head and being just so darn coy” is the single most effective photo context, better than ‘straight up boobs’, ‘on the bed’ and definitely better than ‘posing with an animal’.
- ‘The Cleavage Shot’ is very successful, drawing 49% more contacts than average.
- Although ‘The Cleavage Shot’ will yield more contacts, a pic that shows you ‘Doing Something Interesting’ is more likely to lead to an actual conversation.

If your profile is male:
- The photo context ‘posing with an animal’ is just as effective as ‘showing off muscles’; surprisingly the aforementioned photo contexts are the most effective (much more potent than the ‘travel photo’ that I’ve been using on Facebook).
- It’s better to look away from the camera and not smile. As OKcupid points out, “maybe women want a little mystery. What is he looking at? Slashdot? Or Engadget?”
- ‘No shirt’ is much more effective than wearing clothes. However, if you’re shy about showing off the 6-pack, or you drink too many 6 packs to go shirtless, it’s better to wear normal clothes than fancy ones.

Now before you rush off to change any profile pics, take a moment and consider the larger brand lesson that Okcupid is offering. If you have some data, flaunt it. Because the data you reveal just might attract more eyeballs than the most carefully crafted image.

P.S. for more analysis on profile pics, visit OKcupid’s blog.

The connections we make socially, however we make them, can be invaluable. But in case you need some hard-hitting #s, here’s the latest vid from Socialnomics…

What strikes you most about the video?  Love the quote from Erik Qualman himself…

“Why are we trying to measure social media like a traditional channel anyway?  Social media touches every facet of business and is more of an extension of good business ethics”.

VW is scoring a hit with The fun theory.  Or as the swedes call it Rolighetsteorin.

While not as fun as the videos, the Future Humanity Institute at Oxford has 31 laws of Fun. Some of the laws are bizarre, but so is sometimes the business of fun. Enjoy.