STOP PRESS!!!
Since I wrote this blog, my frustration and objections are now resolved, you CAN now hear what I really thought about location based services on video...
ORIGINAL POST....
Location based services. Buzz words. You hear them a lot right now. But what do they mean?
Simply put then, if I know where you are, can I offer you something that uses that knowledge in real-time?
If your mobile phone tells me your location co-ordinates...
- if I am Google I can show you a map of where you are and what is nearby
- if I am a restaurant booking app on your iPhone (e.g. bookatable) I can show you restaurants nearby
- if I am Foursquare I can present local restaurants and bars that you can "check-in" to and see who else of your friends are there
Three very simple examples then. But what of the future?
What are the implications for consumers and for marketeers?
At a recent plustechnology event run by London lawyers, Olswang, I committed my comments on this topic to video.
A company called Knowledge Peers were videoing peoples thoughts. Today I received an email with a link to a short video on my observations that targeted marketing can be welcomed by consumers rather than seen as obtrusive, and that location-based technologies help with accurate targeting.
Can I share it? No!
I really don't get it. I mean, I REALLY don't get it. What the? Uh?
Knowledge Peers is a members only site. I tried to send a share this link to a friend, they first had to sign in to Knowledge Peers. Fail. They STILL couldn't view the video. Doh - that sign up was for standard membership. Apparently I have full membership and that's why I can view it. Double Fail.
Look, if you want to build a community site, it needs to be viral, self-sustaining. You need to drive USAGE first, then monetise when you actually HAVE a community.
It's all upside down. I should be able to embed the video in this blog post, email it to friends. If they get value from the content, maybe they will sign up and subscribe.
The content on Knowledge Peers is pretty good. I mean, it's like a YouTube for business. But walling it in is route to oblivion.
So much for trying to share my thoughts on location based services with you. Sorry!
