Facebook recently announced the rollout of a payments service which will be embedded within its popular Messenger app, leveraging its already-vast user base. This move was obviously a long time in coming, and it follows on the heels of Google Wallet, Apple Pay, and, most similarly, Snapchat’s Snapcash feature. I am certain that, down the line, Facebook … Continue reading Facebook Messenger, Now with Payments
The new Macbook took me by surprise: I didn’t expect it to come back, or at least not in its current incarnation. More specifically, I expected it to replace the Macbook Air on the lighter (and cheaper) end of Apple’s computer offerings. But given its $1,299 price tag, I think Apple will hold off for … Continue reading Pricing The New Macbook
Apple is running much-heralded ad campaign, showcasing the iPhone 6’s powerful camera in advance of the release of its new Photos app. This campaign fits with Apple’s larger advertising motif of demonstrating not so much its products, but what you can do with its products: Contrast this with the Android’s advertising equivalent of “speeds and feeds” — … Continue reading Shot on iPhone
So, House of Cards has clearly struck a nerve in the Twitter advertising world. It’s actually a little clever. Is @Frank_Underwood the man for the job? #HouseOfCardsSeason3 https://t.co/wvblf8aPKy — Monster (@Monster) February 27, 2015 Welcome back, Frank. See you in 10 hours, Twitter. #HouseOfCards #bingewatching #GoCommando pic.twitter.com/S1qzKd3Syd — Cottonelle (@cottonelle) February 27, 2015 Just knock … Continue reading Twitter Advertising Goes HoC
I’m always fascinated by firms that capitalize upon practical inefficiencies and piggyback on existing products or services. In both public and private realms, middleman firms pop up to smooth out the rough edges of transactions. Two recent examples: Tax prep software and parcel shipping apps. The recent kerfuffle over TurboTax’s price increase highlighted its dominant position in … Continue reading Exploiting the Usability Gap
I’m due for a new phone, and, like any Apple-head without a contract, I spent a long time traversing the internet in search of an unlocked iPhone 6. I spent a while on Amazon and an inordinate amount of time on eBay. Amazon is a cleaner purchasing process, and eBay, for better or worse, offers a bit … Continue reading Swappa
I’ve always been fascinated by the intersection of business, especially technology, with liberal arts such as literature and philosophy. Despite the emergence – and necessity – of STEM studies, it is clear that the study of liberal arts informs everything from product design to supply chain management to marketing. Steve Jobs phrased the dynamic particularly well at the 2011 iPad 2 Introduction: There … Continue reading The Necessity of Liberal Arts
Canon launched their “Bring It” campaign a few months ago, as part of the larger goal of, well, bringing SLRs to the consumer market, but for the purpose of shooting serious video, not just pictures. Based on the content featured in the ad, it seems as though Canon is trying to go nose-to-nose with GoPro on … Continue reading Bringing It
Wow, a lot of interest in shares of Advance Auto Parts and Appel Pete Corp. Or just stocks that sound like AAPL. Continue reading iWatching the Stock Market
At the closing bell on Friday, Facebook edged up to just over $77/share, putting its market cap at some $200 billion. It’s an incredible run-up, clocking a nearly 90% gain in one year. I think Facebook’s success, at least on a stock market level, is due to a few things: 1. Obvious exuberance in the … Continue reading You Know What’s Cool? $200 Billion
Silicon Spatula 