Uber’s Dirty Tricks; Twitter Saves Lost Bunny, Furniture Industry Gets Hip

Beyond Social Media Show, Episode 33

• What brand is king of the @reply on Twitter?   –  According to a study by Simply Measured it’s Pizza Hut 
• Spoof Cards – This is a cool app that allows you to play sounds in the background of your call that create a picture of where you’d like the person with whom you are talking to believe you are.  For example, late for work and need a traffic excuse, use the traffic sounds as you call in to explain your alibi.    B.L. Ochman doesn’t like to potential skirting of Federal regulations with this app.
• Uber Car  – Dirty tricks are part of competition for riders in New York City.  Valleywag reports the details of Uber occupying the time of its competitor Gett drivers.  Example of behaving badly.

Best Digital Cases

• Las Vegas Market – Follow on Twitter #LVMKT  and Albert Maruggi is loving what the leading sponsor of furniture shows in the United States is doing with social media.   Furniture is a mature industry that had been hit hard by recent recessions and global labor markets, but they are coming back by tapping designers, and visual social platforms like Pinterest.  
•  B.L. OCHMAN is now CEO of MaximumPlus Workshops for GooglePlus Success http://www.maximum-plus.com specializing in G+ training for agencies and associations
• Leaking Super Bowl Ads – it’s a practice that is increasing.  Maruggi says it extends the life of the ad and may create more conversation when it airs during the Super Bowl, BL has a different take.
• Meanwhile, Fox who is airing the Super Bowl asked SodaStream to remove mention of Coke and Pepsi in an ad scheduled to run during the halftime sponsored by Pepsi.   Hhhmmm, how quick we forget the Pepsi Challenge.

• Twitter helps reunite child and her lost stuffed bunny 
• Cold temperatures affected more than 40  million Americans along the east coast, and tens of millions more throughout the Midwest, but what about millions of dogs and cats, what did they do to stay warm?  

Shiny New Stuff

• Augmented Reality Meets QR Codes in this new application

• The next evolution of Google Glass application is on at the Super Bowl.   CBS to stream Super Bowl via a sideline reporter’s Google Glass perspective
• Google and optical insurance provider VSP strike a deal to provide some coverage for lens and frames  –
• Talk about wearable tech, a Japanese  lingerie company, Ravijour,  has technology placed on a bra which allows the undergarment to “unlock” when it detects true love.  It claims certain physical metrics including heart rate are detected by its corresponding smartphone app which advances the relationship.

Daily Numbers Headline

• What’s the best driver of eCommerce transactions on a mobile device?  The Daily Numbers says email according to a study by the SeeWhy Conversion Academy

The Beyond Social Media Show covers the best and worst campaigns in social media, plus shiny new objects you’ll want and stats you need. It’s presented each week as a 1/2- hour live GooglePlus Hangout on Air. Co-hosts are:
B.L. OCHMAN Twitter,What’s Next Blog, YouTube, GooglePlus
DAVID ERICKSON Twitter, e-Strategy Blog YouTube
ALBERT MARUGGI Twitter Provident Partners, Social Media For Hospitality, YouTube