IanSchafer.com

Drop.io Launches Twitter Support, Gets Awesomer.

I confess. I love Drop.io. I use it often for secure large file transfers.

But I think I'm going to be using it a whole lot more now -- and for more reasons.

While I've historically been using the service to send those large files, it can also be a great way to share, distribute, and collaboratively edit media files.

And with added Twitter support, there are tons of ways to input files into a Drop.io drop box.

According to Drop.io:

* Have something to say? Call it in
* Take a mobile photo? MMS it in
* Want to share a link? Click your bookmarklet
* Finish a podcast? Upload it to your drop
* Share a video or song? Embed or Upload it
* Share some office documents? Email them in
* Distribute files among your team? Setup a dropbox widget
* Need to share some hard copies? Fax it in

What this essentially is, is collaborative file/media storage and sharing with the added bonus of broadcasting their content.

And I love it.

My drop.io is http://www.drop.io/ianschafer.

I'm looking forward to using it. For business, of course.

Heck, I might even share this post with you using it.

Question o ’ The Day: Martha Stewart Edition.

Should MarthaStewart.com be running this ad? Does it harm the user experience or even the brand itself?

The Next UGC Boom Is Coming. Starting Next Month.

You think there's a lot of user generated content out there?

B-b-b-baby, you just ain't seen nothin' yet.

Yes, I just used BTO to reference UGC.

In August, Kodak will be releasing a pocket video camera (the Zi6) that shoots in 720p HD, has a rechargeable battery, and plugs directly (via a built-in connector) into your computer's USB port.

From the product site:

Life moves fast. Grab it in HD. Take stunning HD videos (720p at 60 fps)
Easy upload to YouTube™ with built-in USB
Record hours of video—up to 32 GB worth
View on any HDTV with the included cables
Edit and share videos with the included software CD
Rechargeable batteries and charger included

Photo courtesy of Gizmodo.

Sure, FlipVideo has had their camera out for a while. I have one. I love it.

But Kodak's is 720p with 32gb and optical zoom. For $180. The same price as Flip's (non-HD) Mino.

This is a game-changer. With the Kodak brand attached to it, mainstream consumers will be attracted to the friendly, safe name. This camera (and eventually, others like it) will introduce a whole new group of consumers (later-adopters) to recording, uploading, and sharing of online video.

The product site mentions easy upload to YouTube. At first I was surprised that Kodak wouldn't want those videos uploaded to KodakGallery.com, the former Ofoto. But Kodak isn't exactly likely looking to create a video property -- they have their hands full with the photo prints business. But it does make you wonder if Kodak has it in them to figure out a way to monetize videos in other, more 'physical product', ways.

This very well might represent one of the hottest gifts this holiday season. If the number of FlipVideo cameras I got as corporate gifts last year are any indication, this will be finding its way into many a stocking in December.

Be sure to read Gizmodo's review here.

My only criticism is, what's with the Zi6 name? Why not take a page out of many other successful CE products like, well, iPod, Xbox, Cybershot, and many others? It's not like it's a BMW, it's a video camera, for cryin' out loud.

But be on the lookout for this camera. You might be seeing it everywhere.

Recap: Creating a Successful Social Media Website.

I recently participated in a KickApps webinar called Creating a Successful Social Media Website along with the brilliant Stephen Merrill, the GM of Budget Travel.

It was a great discussion, very well attended, and if you missed it, you can check out the recap here, watch an archived video of the session (registration required), or download the slides here.

If you've been thinking about building your own community, or extending one's reach, this one's for you.

High School Musical Fails to Deliver. Sign of the Audience-Aging Apocalypse?

According to The Hollywood Reporter, last night, ABC aired a reality show called High School Musical: Get in the Picture, where amateurs are given the chance to appear in the next big High School Musical film.

Ratings were flat. So flat, that it got a 3-share, finishing in fourth place behind Dateline, Big Brother, and Family Guy.

In fact, it was ABC's second-lowest premiere ratings of the summer.

Damn. If High School Musical can't draw viewers, what does that mean for television's ability to deliver audiences for advertisers -- especially younger audiences? TV's audience aging just keeps rearing its ugly head.

The Top Ten Missed iPhone Opportunities — So Far.

I've had an iPhone 3G since Friday, and while I do love it, it boggles my mind that so much potential is going unrealized. I've identified the top ten missed opportunities around the iPhone (as I see them). Hopefully the folks I've identified as 'missing out' will take note and do what they should.

10. No news is bad news -- for sports.

There is no application for getting sports news and headlines. How is that possible? Not a single sports news entity has produced a native app for the iPhone to deliver news directly to the handset. That means out of ESPN, CBS Sports, Fox, Sporting News, and Sports Illustrated, not a single one delivers news and headlines to the phone. The GPS aspect of the phone could make an app like this indispensable for the die-hard sports fan. Shame on the major sports networks/news organizations.

9. Dear Mr. Fantasy, give me an app.

And speaking of sports, how can there be no application from any of the major fantasy sports sites for fantasy news, or team management? With such a huge (and revenue-generating) market for this stuff, the absence of this blows my mind.

8. Standing on the site-lines.

It boggles my mind that some of the most popular sites are not optimized for use on the iPhone. This is a pretty easy thing to do, yet after almost a year on the market, and contributing a significant percentage of mobile web traffic, and with mobile web traffic, in general, increasing (in January, ESPN.com had more visitors to its mobile website than its regular website), many sites by default deliver a general WAP site (meant for tiny flip/candy bar phones) when visited from the mobile Safari browser. Worse yet, a visitor will see the regular website -- and if it utilizes Flash, looks completely broken. Knowing how relatively easy it is to develop (via HTML/CSS), there's no excuse.

7. Directile dysfunction.

Any app that can potentially utilize the iPhone's native GPS to enhance the user experience, but doesn't, gets a big 'shame on you'. Hopefully, MySpace and Facebook will find a way to do this without messing with our privacy (also pointed out by Techcrunch here).

6. Blaggards.

No Wordpress iPhone app at (the app store) launch was pretty lame. As a matter of fact, any blogging platform without an app to administer blogs is missing out on a golden opportunity to get folks to post on-the-go.

5. Ama-gone?

Where is Amazon.com for the iPhone? The biggest online retailer with no way to shop securely via an app the iPhone? Wow. eBay beat them to the punch.

4. Ticket to nowhere.

The concert business is in the crapper, yes. But wouldn't it be great to have an app that knows the music you have on your phone and points you in the right direction to where/when those artists will be on tour? And then buy those tickets? Ticketmaster? Hello?

3. Lack of black.

Why can't we buy a black version of the classic iPhone headset/headphones? With a piece of hardware this 'hot', it would be nice to get a little less conspicuous with the headphones. For safety's sake. This one's all on you, Apple.

2. Media blackout.

It's surprising that practically no media properties have yet to make an iPhone app available. The only companies that seem to have paid attention are some news organizations and Comedy Central on behalf of South Park (via RealNetworks).

1. Dateless in Cupertino.

Wow. No apps for singles/daters. Surprised Match.com, eHarmony, Lavalife, etc. weren't all over this. It seems like such a logical step -- and one heckuva way to take advantage of the phone's GPS capabilities.

So there you have it. It's certainly possible that there will be apps/products to come that will fill the vacancies created by these opportunities, but they're not here yet. I'll be eagerly awaiting their arrival though. Except for the dating apps. Sorry, ladies. Happily married.

What do YOU think is missing so far?

The Permanency of Conversations on the Internet.

Here's a simple reminder that conversations on the Internet are permanent.

If you're even remotely familiar with basic HTML this will be very cool to you.

But it should serve to remind you that what you say, what you pay your agency to say, and what your customers say, are there for good. So choose wisely.

What Apps Do I Have On My iPhone?

In case you were wondering what Apps a guy like me has on his iPhone 3G (for the record, I waited on line Friday evening for 4.5 hours -- my wife loved that), here's my list, and why:


Facebook

It goes without saying that if you ever manage your Facebook account, that you should have this app on your iPhone. But there's a big feature missing -- why can't I accept friend requests (or even be notified that I have any)? FREE


MLB.com At Bat

May very well be the app I'll use the most -- at least from April through October. It's a great way to check out scores around the league -- but the killer app of the app is video highlights while the games are in progress. The app's not free, but oh so worth it. $4.99


Whrrl

My pick for the ultimate winner in the location-based social networking/bar-hopping sweepstakes. Version 1 of the app is pretty good (better than Loopt), but from what I hear, version 2 will be killer. FREE


AIM

Pretty solid app version of the popular instant messenger. But the fact that they kept the annoying sounds in there earn demerits. Regardless, it's quick and useful. FREE


Super Monkey Ball

From what I hear, this remake from Sega is the best game for the iPhone out there. It makes full use of the iPhone accelerometer, so you control it by tilting the phone. It's fantastic, and the hours I'll spend playing it on the subway will make the price worth it. $9.99


Twitterrific

Honestly? This version of the popular Twitter client is probably even better than the desktop version. I love it. FREE


ShoZu

This is a cool little app that allows you to send pictures directly to services like Flickr, Facebook, Photobucket, and Twitter. I'm currently experimenting a bit with it, but it seems to work pretty well and will no doubt come in handy -- at least until Flickr comes out with a free uploading tool for the iPhone. FREE


Pandora

Works just like the web version. Works amazingly with a WiFi connection, and even sounds good over a 3G connection. Great interface. The biggest issue I have is that it doesn't operate in the background. But playing it through the iPhone internal speakers even sounds good. FREE


PhoneSaber

This thing will never get old. It makes the iPhone sound like a light saber when you swing it around. Silly. Stupid, even. But free. FREE


Remote

This app allows you to control iTunes and AppleTV (which I don't have) remotely. It works amazingly, and really shows off the potential of this amazing device. I can connect my laptop to my speakers, and DJ throughout my one-bedroom apartment which is for sale if you're interested from my couch. Not practical for apartment living, but once I become an adult and live in a house, priceless. I'll save a thousand bucks by not buying a Sonos system. FREE


BoxOffice

Simple app, really. Movie showtimes + Rotten Tomatoes reviews. Handy. FREE


NYTimes

Still questioning this one. It could be much better. It's supposed to allow you to read the NY Times offline. Decent interface, but wish it would sync up with my account, with the same usability. Lets see if it gets improved. FREE


WeatherBug

I'm a weather geek. I love looking at dopplers and extended, detailed forecasts. This app's for me. Props for not installing adware like the desktop version. FREE


Google

Simple Google search without having to load Google via Safari. It'll save 3 seconds. Think of the increased productivity I'll gain! FREE


Yelp

App version of the site. Good utility. Replaces a google search for business for me. FREE


Last.fm

App version of - yep you guessed it - Last.fm. I can log into my account, and it works. It's personal preference here, so we'll see which one wins out in the long run -- this, or Pandora. FREE


NetNewsWire

RSS reader that syncs up with the web service provided by NewsGator. It syncs up with the online account, which is a big plus. I actually don't even use NewsGator to read RSS -- I use Netvibes -- but I exported my feeds to NetNewsWire so I can read them easily through the app. FREE


Urbanspoon

Living in NYC (at least for now, did I mention my apartment was for sale? seriously, let me know if you're interested) I constantly find myself in a situation where I need to find a place to eat. This helps to make finding a good restaurant in the area that I'm standing in easy. FREE

So there you have it. My apps. For now. Many of these apps use the internal GPS to enhance the experience -- and I like that it asks me if I want to enable that feature first. I'm loving this phone. It syncs very well with our corporate Exchange server, and I find typing on it more accurate than I did on my previous phone -- a BlackBerry pearl.

With over 1 million sold in the first 72 hours, there is no doubt in my mind that marketers need to pay attention to this device, and develop things (web-based or handset-based) customized for it. Deep Focus is an iPhone app developer (our first one is coming soon), and we're currently prepping some iPhone web app launches. Stay tuned...

My First Webinar: A Blueprint For a Successful Social Media Website

I'll be co-hosting a Webinar with the fine folks at KickApps on July 23rd at 2PM ET/11AM PT. Here are the sordid details:

On July 23rd at 2PM ET/11AM PT, we’ll be hosting a webinar where we’ll share tips and best practices for creating and running a successful social media website. If you’re in the process of putting together your social media website or are looking for ideas to take your website to the ‘next level,’ this webinar is for you.

Topics we’ll be covering:
1.Designing your social media strategy and experience
2.Leading and managing your online community
3.Programming your website’s social media experience
4.Social marketing for growth

We’ll be joined by a couple of special guests who are leading minds in their respective fields:

Ian Schafer is the CEO of Deep Focus, one of most innovative marketers around whose award winning agency has developed numerous social media marketing campaigns for brands like HBO (Flight of the Conchords) and Vitamin Water. Ian will share some ideas and thoughts around putting together a social media strategy and marketing a social media website.

Stephen Merrill is the general manager of BudgetTravel.com. Stephen recently launched My Budget Travel, inspired by the magazine’s daring, user-generated June 2008 10th Anniversary issue that showcases a reader-submitted cover photograph, and feature-length articles written entirely by readers. The KickApps powered social media section of the website gives readers and travel enthusiasts the opportunity to share their fondest travel experiences and adventures, and discover new ones. Stephen will talk about how to integrate social media and user-generated content successfully with editorial programming.

Sign up for the webinar at: http://www.visualwebcaster.com/event.asp?id=49150.
Once you’ve registered, just click on the link above to attend the webinar. If you need to use another machine, just re-register. We’ll send you a reminder a day prior to the event.

If you've been thinking about whether or not to build a social media website (or a social network itself) rather than advertise within a MySpace, Facebook, or Bebo, this one's for you.

Video of My Panel at the Conversational Marketing Summit.

Missed me at Federated Media's Conversational Marketing Summit?

Check out video of my panel here.

Video of the rest of the panels can be seen here.