Three for Thursday - December 31

Have you noticed the continued integration of your digital and physical worlds? Brands want to make it easier for you to do business with them or to purchase their products so they're embedding those products or at least easy to purchase links in your digital world. You don't have to google anything, it's just right there and it's in perfect context. So the ad doesn't feel like an ad.

OnStar-MapQuest Integration
My car has OnStar but honestly, I've never activated it. With the in dash GPS system, there is little need for anything the service offers. But then I see this the other day on a MapQuest map for a store in my town:

  

and I think to myself... wow, that's cool. All of a sudden, OnStar seems more relevant to me. Maybe even something I might think about accessing again, especially if I was going out of town. Likewise, it makes me give a second thought to using MapQuest vs Google Maps as my default map search program.

Ford-iTunes Integration

 

Ford is the first carmaker to offer tagging-enabled HD radio sets pre-installed in some models beginning in 2010.This means that if you have one of these systems in your Ford, you'll be able to tag songs you're hearing on the radio for purchase later on iTunes. Sort of like Shazam but it's always on. Very cool integration and understanding about how consumers are discovering music via radio and using products like Shazam to remember the song for purchase later. Ford's just decided to make it easy on you.

Wall Shopping
An agency (yes, an agency not a software company) has invented Off The Wall. This application lets retailers push relevant (we hope) products right into your Facebook wall stream. You can see it, review it, and if you like it, buy the product without ever leaving your Facebook wall. It works via your Status Update, so it's easy for any company no matter how big or small to use and because it's a Status Update, folks can actually comment on it just like any other update. So if let's say a local restaurant pushes out a special menu to their fans, folks can comment on how they were just there last night and the food was great, etc. The update can also be shared, liked, etc. I haven't played with this one yet but it looks pretty turnkey so you can be I will be playing with it in the future for a few clients.

 

Well that's it for this Thursday's edition... what'cha think? Good stuff? Any cool ideas about how you could leverage any of this technology? Let me know. And remember, if you see anything out there I should share here, let me know.