By Mickey Alam Khan
November 27, 2009
Mobile Marketer’s inaugural Mobile Women to Watch 2010 list celebrates smart women who are expected to make a difference in mobile advertising, marketing and media in 2010.
While we may have missed some who would rather stay out of the limelight, it is fair to say these women – 49 from the United States, three Canada and one from Britain – are achievers who have already left their stamp on mobile marketing. Their dedication to the craft is nonpareil and their commitment admirable.
These marketers have steadfastly withstood several issues bedeviling mobile such as the constant need for client education, inadequate metrics, lack of decent budgets, carrier-centricity, male domination and hype.
Indeed, they have overcome skepticism of the first order to help their male and female colleagues and peers make mobile marketing an undeniable element of the interactive marketing mix. Soldiered on they have. As Heidi Lehmann, CEO of MoxieQ and one of the Mobile Women to Watch, points out, “With most anything new, a common kneejerk reaction of larger companies and even consumers is to look for reasons why something won’t work.”
Mobile marketing has long been a game of perseverance and evangelism. These women are being honored for staying with a medium while it was born and through its coming-of-age party – which is now.
These women now have the brush, oils and canvas to paint bold strokes in 2010.
Through all of this excitement over mobile and its possibilities, this crowd remains levelheaded. “In mobile,” said Allison Mooney, vice president of emerging technologies at Omnicom’s MobileBehavior, “you need to keep an eye on the future and a foot grounded in the present.”
How were these honorees chosen?
A call was sent out to Mobile Marketer readers in a published article. Combined with reader nominations and recommendations from Mobile Marketer’s Giselle Tsirulnik, Dan Butcher, Chris Harnick, Jodie Solomon and this writer, a list was drawn up. Many thanks to them and to art director Rob DiGioia for the hard work.
Whittling down the names was hard. But there was no doubt of the final list. The executives who made the cut were evangelists for the industry, astute observers of evolving consumer behavior at work and home, and advocates for ethical mobile marketing as part of the multichannel media mix.
Above all, they served as admirable role models to other women – and even men – to consider a career in mobile marketing.
These women are poised to make more history in 2010. Get to know them through these pages as they write yet another chapter in mobile marketing’s book.
http://www.mobilemarketer.com/cms/opinion/classic-guides/4747.html
Monday, November 30, 2009
Friday, November 13, 2009
Lately, the question I am most frequently asked is, “Where do you think the next big area of growth is?” My answer is: Mobile Advertising and Delivery of Content. My outlook is based on observations over time and trends overwhelmingly leading towards the Mobile Advertising industry. It can be best described using one word: Evolution.
We have all seen the evolution from print to web, and now, the same evolution is transitioning from web to mobile. The digital advertising ecosystem is continuously evolving and I believe mobile advertising is still in its nascent stage with great growth potential.
My vision for mobile ads is that they will become more engaging, robust, transactional, and interactive with the end-user. Also, with the number of Smartphone users increasing and over 7 Billion apps expected to be downloaded by 2013, I suspect the combination will ultimately fuel growth in mobile advertising.
A significant example of the evolution we are experiencing and the opportunity for growth in this segment was affirmed by Google. Earlier this week, Google announced they were purchasing AdMob for $750 Million in stock; Google’s third largest acquisition to date. Most recently, Google has focused mainly on search ads. AdMob has focused on Web Display Ads and App Display Ads. The acquisition has accelerated Google’s entry into the mobile advertising space and has provided Google with powerful tools to monetize growing mobile traffic.
Certainly, the acquisition along with other recent developments in the mobile handset space have generated attention towards the mobile advertising space. In fact, AdTech, which recently took place in NY, excitedly acknowledged the power of mobile and its role in advertising, marketing, and content. Interestingly, the tone at AdTech: SF, which I attended in late April, was very different. The presence of mobile advertising was minimal; still being conceptualized by many. It was more of an “initiative” at that time, and many companies were still trying to work through the business model. It is evident, that within such a short period of time, the mobile advertising landscape has rapidly evolved and we are now seeing more companies confidently entering the space with alternative solutions that support the mobile ad platform.
One other important note: While Apple has dominated the market with over 100,000 iPhone apps, RIM’s Blackberry platform is still scarce in consumer oriented apps which creates a massive and equally lucrative opportunity.
The recent announcement by Google and the overall movement towards Mobile Advertising and Content will be interesting to follow over the next year and definitely one I plan on keeping my eye on, as this is still a fairly untapped market.
What does Google’s $750M purchase of AdMob mean for mobile advertising?
http://www.mobilemarketer.com/cms/news/ad-networks/4610.html
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
How to Retain and Develop Asian Women Leaders
The transition of women leadership roles need to begin in the Boardroom. C-level executives must begin to recognize the value of diversity throughout the top-level of their organization. The article below illustrates the various challenges Asian women face in becoming leaders and their role as leaders once they get there. As an Asian business woman in previous leadership roles, I can entirely relate to what this article illustrates and discusses.
The most important piece of advice - don't be afraid to confidently speak up. I hope you find this article written in BusinessWeek helpful...
How to Retain and Develop Asian Women Leaders
Women need to put their footprint on the corporation and a handprint on their work. Training must stress speaking up and being assertive
By Jane Horan
Business leaders should be acutely aware of the seminal shift taking place in the global corporate balance of power. In the next 40 years, more than 1 billion people will relocate from rural areas of India and China, creating 59 megacities with populations of 5 million or more. To harness this talent migration—and serve these customers—multinational corporations need a radical shift in thinking about leadership—their own and their competitors'.
Continue to read the full article:
http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/nov2009/ca2009116_283918.htm
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
To Be A Leader...You Must Believe In Yourself
Build Your Self Confidence Like a Leader
2:38 PM Friday October 30, 2009
What can I do to build my confidence in my capabilities as a leader?
You won't get to the top without self-confidence; to build it, you have to believe in yourself. Don't worry about being perfect — put up a brave front and do the best you can. That's it in a nutshell. Here's a little more background for you.
Last year, as I often do, I taught a seminar for MBA students at the University of California at Berkeley's Haas School of Business. A second-year student approached me and told me he'd read my book What Got You Here Won't Get You There. "In the book you talk about classic challenges faced by your clients," he said. "I noticed that you never discuss self-confidence problems. How do you deal with your client's self-confidence problems?"
This question really made me think. I rarely encounter self-confidence problems in my work with CEOs and potential CEOs. It is almost impossible to make it to the top level in a multibillion-dollar corporation if you do not believe in yourself. On the other hand, I am frequently asked to speak at business schools, and I have noticed that students in my seminars often want to talk about it.
This is such an important topic. I thought I would share a few suggestions about how you can build your self-confidence. I also hope you, my readers, will offer your own suggestions.
1. Don't worry about being perfect. There are never right or wrong answers to complex business decisions. The best that you can do as a leader is to gather all of the information that you can (in a timely manner), do a cost-benefit analysis of potential options, use your best judgment — and then go for it.
2. Learn to live with failure. Great salespeople are the ones who get rejected the most often. They just ask for the order more than the other salespeople. You are going to make mistakes. You are human. Learn from these mistakes and move on.
3. After you make the final decision — commit! Don't continually second-guess yourself. Great leaders communicate with a sense of belief in what they are doing and with positive expectations toward the achievement of their vision.
4. Show courage on the outside — even if you don't always feel it on the inside. Everyone is afraid sometimes. If you are a leader, your direct reports will read your every expression. If you show a lack of courage, you will begin to damage your direct reports' self-confidence.
5. Find happiness and contentment in your work. Life is short. My extensive research indicates that we are all going to die anyway. Do your best. Follow your heart. When you win, celebrate. When you lose, just start over the next day.
The Heated Debate at VGS
I want to first start off by recognizing Charles Hudson and the extraordinary VGS event he orchestrated last Friday. Panels focused on emerging market opportunities within the virtual goods and economies space. Speakers included some of the most insightful and successful leaders within the industry. It was certainly a packed day complete with knowledgeable exchange amongst speakers and attendees.
The conference ended a bit different though...well...very different. The Virtual Goods Summit this year, needless to say, ended with a big bang and left people throughout the industry questioning the ethics of companies such as OfferPal. The debate between TechCrunch editor Michael Arrington and OfferPal CEO Anu Shukla sparked a great deal of interest and drove an enormous amount of attention to the typically “behind the scenes” ad offer industry which provides an alternative form of monetization for social game companies such as Zynga, Playdom, and many others.
The following article written by Dean Takahashi at Venture Beat summarizes the debate and the discussions surrounding it.
I have also included some interesting data collected and provided by Peanut Labs (I am an Advisor at PL).
Sunday, November 1, 2009
One of the Most Powerful Women in Business
As you all know, I am a very strong advocate of women entrepreneurship and leadership. Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook remarkably exemplifies both. I have been following Sheryl Sandberg for a few years now and am continuously amazed by her ability to take companies like Google and Facebook and fuel growth by finding new ways to capitalize their business models. She was named one of Time Magazine's top 25 most influential people on the web in 2008 and is an extraordinary example of woman leadership.
She recently spoke at Web 2.0 and her insightful interview with TechCrunch is something I thought would be notable to share. I see Sheryl as a visionary leader of Facebook and driving the company to a dynamically higher level whether it is through its deep mobile initiatives or perhaps even a strategic partnership with Google. One thing is for certain; Sheryl Sandberg will continue to be instrumental in the evolution and growth of Facebook and will also continue to be one of the most influential women leaders of our time.
Click here to read the interview:
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Take Action..Make a Difference
A fantastic article just released today on Time.com highlights new ways to make a difference and become socially responsible. One in particular, that I have supported, is Kiva.org. It allows us to empower entrepreneurs from all around the world through micro-lending. Through this, we are helping people change their lives. Socially responsible sites have made it so much easier for us all to contribute and participate in making the lives of others better. A little goes a long way...
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
They Grew Their Own Empire On Twitter-Way To Go Ladies!
25 Influential Business Women in San Francisco/Silicon Valley You Should Follow on Twitter
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
A Fascinating Segment on NPR: Games and Science Meet
E.O. Wilson And Will Wright: Ant Lovers Unite!
An Open Mic Discussion Of Life And Games
Ants make some people cringe — but for E. O. Wilson and Will Wright, they provide never-ending fascination.
Biologist E. O. Wilson, professor emeritus at Harvard University, is a two-time Pulitzer-winning ant expert who helped develop theories of island biogeography, chemical ecology, and sociobiology. A leader in the modern environmental movement, Wilson has devoted his life to understanding how all forms of life are connected.
Computer game mastermind Will Wright has read every one of Wilson's books. He credits Wilson for inspiring him to develop SimAnt, one of the games he created along with The Sims — the most successful computer game in history — and more recently Spore, in which players create virtual single-cell organisms and evolve those organisms into more complex forms of life.
Where Games And Science Meet
Always fascinated with biology and evolution, Wright had many scientific questions for Wilson when the two spoke for Open Mic — but, Wilson had other ideas.
"I came into the interview with all these questions I wanted to ask him about evolution," Wright said, "but his first response was, 'Oh, I thought we were going to talk about games!'"
Wright wasn't completely surprised. One of Wilson's goals has been to "unify science with disciplines such as the humanities," Wright said. "He is one of the few scientists who really has the guts to do that."
o the first question he asked Wilson was if he saw a role for games in the educational process.
"I'll go to an even more radical position," Wilson said. "I think games are the future in education. We're going through a rapid transition now. We're about to leave print and textbooks behind."
Rethinking The Way We Teach Children
Wilson imagines students taking visits through the virtual world to different ecosystems. "That could be a rain forest," he said, "a tundra — or a Jurassic forest."
Wilson said that for the most part, we are teaching children the wrong way. According to the biologist, "When children went out in Paleolithic times, they went with adults and they learned everything they needed to learn by participating in the process."
That's the way the human mind is programmed to learn, Wilson said.
But he believes that today, virtual reality can be a steppingstone to the real world. It can motivate a child to exploration.
Wilson had a very different experience growing up. He explored the real world — and its creatures and plants — from a very young age. He credits his permissive parents and the schools he attended for allowing him to "disappear" into the forest.
Courtesy EA/Maxis StudioWill Wright's SimAnt game uses complex rules of society-building and community space.
"No one knew what I was doing," he said.
Courtesy EA/Maxis Studio
Will Wright's SimAnt game uses complex rules of society-building and community space.
(continued).......
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112203095
Monday, August 31, 2009
Economics 101: Supply, Demand, and Usefulness
It is the actions of players that define the economic conditions of a virtual world. Therefore, limited or hard to obtain supply of virtual items lead to an increased demand for those items, ultimately stimulating the virtual economy and its respective currency. In game-play, the "usefulness" of the virtual item is also factored into the value of the currency.
trackback
There is certainly a tremdous demand for dressing up avatars, obtaining a sword, getting to the next level, dressing up my furry friend...I am always fascinated at how the game industry has been able to successfully create and grow its own economy which, I must say, at this point, seems to be growing at a more robust, valuable, and healthier rate than our own US economy.
Recent data estimates the market size for virtual goods in the US by 2013 to be $2.5 billion.
$2.5bn market size estimated for virtual goods in the US by 2013 August 30, 2009
Posted by jeremyliew in virtual goods.trackback
Last month Piper Jaffray published a research report titled “Pay to Play: Paid Internet Services”, which included their analysis of the paid social networking, virtual goods, online dating, domain registration and paid online content (primarily video and music) industries. Included was the following market size estimates for virtual goods in the US and for the rest of the world (encompassing games, virtual gifts on social networks, and potential virtual goods on portals such as Yahoo.)
Mickey Now Owns Spidey! Truly the Happiest Place On Earth...
by Robin Wauters on August 31, 2009
Based on the closing price of Disney stock on Friday, August 28, the total transaction value is $50 per Marvel share or approximately $4 billion.
Under the deal, which has been approved by the boards of both companies, Disney will acquire ownership of Marvel including its portfolio of over 5,000 Marvel characters. That portfolio includes many familiar names like Iron Man, Spider-Man, X-Men, Captain America, Fantastic Four and Thor.
Says Disney CEO Robert A. Iger in a statement: “We believe that adding Marvel to Disney’s unique portfolio of brands provides significant opportunities for long-term growth and value creation.”
Ike Perlmutter, Marvel’s CEO, added: “Disney is the perfect home for Marvel’s fantastic library of characters given its proven ability to expand content creation and licensing businesses. This is an unparalleled opportunity for Marvel to build upon its vibrant brand and character properties by accessing Disney’s tremendous global organization and infrastructure around the world.”
Mr. Perlmutter will oversee the Marvel properties, and will work directly with Disney’s global lines of business to build and further integrate Marvel’s properties.
Marvel stock is surging following the news, up 10+ points at the time of writing (+27%), whileDisney’s is down a little (-0,5%).
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Peanut Labs Signs Exclusive Agreement with Frogster
Runes of Magic offers surveys for diamonds
by Colin Brennan 
Filed under: At a glance, Fantasy, Business models, Culture, News items, Free-to-play, Runes of Magic
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
King.com partners with Lifetime to reach out to its large female audience
King.com and Lifetime team up on games
The deal is another sign of the convergence of media companies with games. The recession and changing consumer habits have taken a toll on traditional entertainment business models. Everyone from music labels to TV networks is diving into games as a haven. A couple of weeks ago, casual game site Big Fish Games said it would provide original games to Time Warner’s People.com web site.
The match between King.com and Lifetime Digital is a good one because the majority of King.com’s 17.5 million monthly unique visitors are women. Right now, about 3.6 million women visit Lifetime’s online properties, which include myLifetime.com, DressUpChallenge.com, LMN.tv, LifetimeMoms.com and MothersClick.com.
“This deal helps the TV networks do a better job of retaining the audience as it shifts online,” said Robert Norton, managing direct of King.com North America.
The deal will also bring a lot of attention to King.com’s games. That’s important because its chief rival,Worldwinner, also has an alliance with a TV show network, GSN, a big cable network built around TV game shows.
Lifetime Networks, which is owned by Disney and Hearst Corp., already has hundreds of downloadable and online games for women. Real Networks provides the downloadable games on an exclusive basis. Lifetime Digital ranks among the top 25 online casual game destinations already. One of Lifetime’s game properties is Roiworld.com, a fashion site that combines social networking and games.
But partnering with King.com is a step up. London-based King.com was founded in 2004 and now serves more than 400 million games a month. It is a provider of skill-based games, where players can play in tournaments for prizes or money. It’s not gambling, however, because the games are not defined as games of chance. King.com has more than 150 different skill and social games.
King.com’s game portals include King.com and MyGame.com. King.com’s games are also available on sites such as Yahoo, MSN, AOL, Real Networks and a number of other media sites. Some of its big titles include TV-show-based games such as Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and The Biggest Loser.
Lifetime Digital hopes the skill-based games will add deeper engagement for its online fans, said Clayton Rose, senior vice president of digital properties at Lifetime Digital. King.com has 86 employees and has raised money from Index Ventures and Apax Partners. King.com recently expanded to make iPhone and Facebook games.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Reflecting on the Women In Games International Leadership Development Forum
Last week, I had the opportunity to speak on a panel at the Women In Games International Leadership Development Forum. The panel consisted of a strong and experienced group of women including Ariella Lehrer, CEO of Legacy Interactive, Brittney Buchan, Senior Manager of Business Development at Real Games, and was moderated by Brenda Bailey, Co-Founder of Deep Fried Entertainment.
I was pleasantly surprised at the large turnout of not just women but also, the large number of men that attended the one-day forum. As we all gathered at the Triple Door in Downtown Seattle, we weren’t quite sure what to expect or how the day would unfold. What we did know, however, was that we were invited to represent women in the games industry and to share our experiences as leaders in this space...and that’s exactly what we did!
Each panel shared insightful and valuable knowledge ranging from game design for women audiences, building communities, pitching your game to publishers, and much more. Every speaker brought a unique perspective to each discussion. The unified message throughout the afternoon was know your audience, design to create a superior experience, and most importantly...the term “women gamer” needs to be broken down into more specific categories and demographics. In other words, game developers need to move away from broadly grouping women into one general classification...”the female gamer”.
When I reflect back on what I personally gained from this event, I have to say that I felt inspired to contribute more to the game space and to be able to share my experience and knowledge with others to fuel the overall growth of our industry.
As women, we need to take a more active role of leadership and provide mentorship, support, and collaboration to advance the development of our industry and to represent the women audience in games.
I want to especially thank all the organizers who orchestrated a fantastic event. You all did an amazing job!
Most importantly...I walked away with lasting friendships.
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