The survey registration page can be found here.

Early results for the annual survey become available in February, 2009. And please remember, you can only have one vote per company.

Jeffrey Pruitt is EVP, Corporate Partnerships, iCrossing and is also the president of SEMPO.

So I waddled away empty handed and returned three weeks later, unencumbered by babies and ready to trade up. Needless to say it didn’t disappoint - I’m surfing more than ever before, gleefully downloading apps and enjoying the superlative user experience. It’s everything that I’ve been preaching mobile should be all this time: simple, easy-to-use and tailored to my contextual needs courtesy of GPS. But one thing keeps coming to mind as I visit all my regular haunts on the Web - what’s the deal with Flash?

It’s a question that used to come up quite a bit when the first iPhone came out but once people realized they could still view Youtube videos, no one really seemed to care. No users cared, that is. It is still a glaring issue for brands that use Flash on their websites. If you don’t have a mobile website and your site utilizes Flash, you can pretty much kiss your iPhone users goodbye. And while I’m not one for gratuitous use of Flash (I do work at an agency that got its started with search) I find it hard to believe this is just an aesthetic choice on Apple’s part.

When the iPhone first came out, Jobs emphatically stated that the iPhone would never support Flash. The widely misunderstood Flash Lite was no solution - it’s meant for UIs (games, widgets) and not browsers, mobile or otherwise. And Flash proper would perform too slowly, creating a poor user experience. Which is plausible - Apple is about nothing if not user experience. But one could argue that deliberately cutting out one of the most widely-used technologies on the Web could definitely be categorized as poor.

So what gives? Numerous explanations abound. The popular theory is that Apple is jumping on the open source bandwagon in favor of HTML 5. The Webkit 3.0 browser behind Safari is compliant with HTML 5 and includes support for SVG, client-side SQL storage and AAC/MP4 and AVC/h.264, effectively enabling one to achieve all the effects of Flash or Silverlight without the proprietary technology.

This sounds all warm and fuzzy until you realize that that would effectively make the Apple video standard dominant across the mobile (and eventually the wireline) web. Because as the iPhone grows in popularity (it recently surpassed the RAZR as the most popular phone in the US) and more manufacturers adopt the Webkit browser, having a technology that’s not platform agnostic just won’t fly. Which will render Flash, arguably one of Adobe’s most important and lucrative products, essentially unnecessary.

Bad for Adobe but good, good, good for Apple. And come to think about it, good for agencies too if everyone has to redevelop their website to be Flash-free. Rumors abound that Adobe is hurrying to create a Flash player specifically for iPhone but if Jobs’s goal is to own the video and animation standards for the Web, their efforts may be futile.

Rachel Pasqua is Director of Mobile Marketing for iCrossing.

Note: this is not intended to be a “how to use Facebook to develop a social marketing strategy” discussion, but rather the intent is to explore how you could build a business model around your rich user data given what marketers desire in terms of effective marketing and what they’ll pay for (effective marketing= happy marketers who spend more $ on what works).

Your focus is flawed

So, you have one thing right: marketers pay to reach consumers, and the more targeting a platform can offer, the more marketers are willing to spend because of the promise of greater ROI. There is one flaw in your approach, however: you have been entirely focused on monetizing Facebook.com itself.

Now, while it may seem counter-intuitive, you ought to focus on monetizing your rich user data, and not necessarily the site itself. Wait, isn’t that the same thing? What is she saying? Just hear me out: You are not a content platform. You’re a communications utility, and while you’re a platform for UGC, you don’t provide a rich content experience. Users aren’t on your network to experience any kind of particular content–they are there to connect with friends and to essentially store personal data (whether they consciously know this or not).

Although some could argue that explicit and implicit user outputs (all that stuff you see in your newsfeed) IS the new “content,” we still have yet to see that this kind of UGC can be successfully monetized through advertising (translation, ROI for ad spend around UGC tends to be low).

Now, marketers have deployed lots of successful marketing initiatives within Facebook, but a majority of these involve leveraging your free Business Pages to drive conversation and engagement (read: free marketing). You’ve had it in your heads that if you let marketers set up free Business Pages, and draw in communities of brand enthusiasts who “Fan” these Pages, you can then upsell these brands into media buys. But the problem is that while great for engagement initiatives and fostering conversation around a brand (great for marketers!), Facebook is still not an optimal place for ad-spend, no matter how much attention is aggregated there. ROI from your ad spends tend to be relatively low for marketers. Again, it goes back to user intent and behavior.

So what should you do?
Essentially, Facebook is this giant data storage silo. It contains consumer data nearly as valuable as the credit card companies have (the kind of data marketers would pay nearly through the nose to have). It’s user data, not the dot com itself that you should consider your golden ticket.

Now, before anyone starts jumping up and down about the notion of “monetizing user data”– I’m not advocating that private user data be mass-harvested and sold ad hoc to marketers. Rather, what I am suggesting is that with the dawn of Facebook Connect, there may be a viable, ethical way to leverage this user data.

With Facebook Connect, you can essentially create a content network (and note the launch partners, major media companies) that could also support an ad-network. So now, with a Facebook Connect-enabled content/ad network, you have the holy grail of targeted advertising: contextually relevant content experience AND the kind of granular targetability based on user graph data that made the initial promise of social networks so huge for marketers. Basically, participating FBC sites could not only sell targeted ad inventory based on their content, but based on Facebook’s (opt-in) user data as well. This would not only give marketers what they want in terms of targeting, but you would get a cut of the ad revenue for being the arbiters of that valuable graph data.

Of course, even without a potential FBC ad-network, Facebook Connect helps brands and publishers provide a socially enhanced experience for their customers with a lower barrier to adoption than current one-off branded social networks. Not to mention, FBC enables the potential to drive a lot of new traffic to their site as a result of opt-in user actions (including purchases) being broadcast through the Facebook network.

There is also the opportunity for e-tailers to capitalize on social graph data as part of their merchandising model. The benefit of graph data to the e-tailer includes the implicit endorsement of products by your users whose purchases are broadcast to their Facebook friends (again, only if the user opts-in to have their actions published), driving significant traffic, tapping into the power of consumer advocacy, and providing a more socially enhanced and user-friendly experience. Given the significant value this kind of data offers, you could leverage some kind of rev-share program for supplying this graph data to e-tailers (but again, users would have to opt-in!).

Create a value exchange!
Now, this brings me to one last point that my dear friend and brilliant colleague Ben Bose has suggested be baked into all of this– a value exchange for the end user. If it’s consumers’ graph data that is benefiting both supplier/marketer and Facebook, then it should also work for the benefit of the consumer. Perhaps users may be assigned “influence” scores based on their network, and the degree of influence they have over that network. These influence scores could earn them rewards– not unlike our credit card rewards. Of course, some services already have types of user rewards, including ThisNext and imeem, but this is something that could be propagated to a much larger degree with initiatives like Facebook Connect.

Yes, there are many counterpoints to these ideas, including the argument that open Web enthusiasts (myself included) would pose around the idea of Facebook (or MySpace) being proprietors of graph data versus users themselves. But rather than examining the differences between FBC and true data portability, this was a look at possibilities for Facebook Connect as a means to increase Facebook revenue.

Cheers,

Alisa

[via]

Alisa Hansen is senior analyst, social media for iCrossing.

No, this is not another lament by someone who is nostalgic for disconnected days. Just the opposite. I love being connected, but it struck me that while with today’s search engines I expect, make that demand, that I can instantly find any information I need, searching for people has become much more complicated.

While on a call not too long ago, an email come in from a colleague (”can we discuss?”). I glanced at the email and triaged it for follow up. A few minutes later, my conversation was interrupted by that annoying trill telling me he wanted to bust in on my call. I ignored it. Then my cell phone rang. This was followed by an IM (”you there?”). By this time I knew it was only a matter of seconds before my phone blipped notifying me that I received a text message. It did.

Following this incident, I did a quick inventory and realized that people who want to contact me have no less than 9 options at their disposal-all of the above plus home phone, personal email, Twitter and Facebook (which I am considering dropping since being friended by my 17-year-old niece. I really didn’t need that peek into her world-but that is another post).

When trying to connect with someone these days, you face a number of questions. Are they “unavailable” or simply “out of range?” Which channel should I start with first? Do I know them well enough to start with their mobile? At what point do I cross the line from “persistent” to “stalker”? Could they just want to be left alone? It is getting to be too much.

My colleague Alisa Hansen, iCrossing’s resident Social Media Goddess, recently pinged me to let me know that the best way to connect with her quickly is through Gmail chat.

Alisa, you are awesome, but until Google invents a real-time people search function, please check your email.

Dana Mellecker is director of PR for iCrossing

Or get a play-by-play on the the event itself, as reviewed by Philip Buxton.

My name is Alisa Leonard. I recently married and my husband’s last name is Hansen. I’m quite attached to my maiden name, but was not entirely sold on not taking his name. So I decided on Alisa Leonard Hansen. Here at iCrossing I’m Alisa Hansen. We’re a large company and I joined right when I got married. So everyone knows the new name of Alisa Hansen.

What does this have to do with anything? Well…

Google “Alisa Leonard” and I exist on the internet and blogosphere.

Google “Alisa Leonard Hansen” and I exist, but to somewhat of a lesser degree (I went ahead and changed all my social net names to “Alisa Leonard-Hansen”)

But Google “Alisa Hansen” the results that come up are not me at all. I don’t exist as that.

Is this the most ridiculous post ever? Probs. But Google identity is becoming (if not already) sort of THE most important reference you can have…So, what do I do? Well, for starters, you will begin seeing a lot more posts like this under the name Alisa Hansen. How do you come up in Google?

Alisa Hansen is senior analyst, social media for iCrossing.

Alisa Hansen is senior analyst, social media for iCrossing.

Granted, for the geekier ones out there, there are many counterpoints to the merits, implementation and future of data portability. Many believe that the end state of data portability will, for all intents and purposes, be data ubiquity and VRM. This deck, is not a “the future is VRM,” nor does it touch on the differences between Facebook Connect and the potential alternative of decentralized, ubiquitous social graph data.

Alisa Hansen is senior analyst, social media for iCrossing.

At first glance, the conference seemed like every other with the standard trays of fruit and people mingling around trying to discreetly look at your badge to judge if you’re worthy to talk to. But I quickly realized that the conference had energy and a buzz unlike many I’ve recently attended. The two words that come to mind are ones not traditionally associated with health care – dynamic and renegade. Renegade is likely a result of the opening morning unveiling the world premier of a short Documentary “The Great American Health 2.0 Motorcycle Tour,” where David Kibbe, a Senior Advisor to the AAFP traveled the U.S. on a motorcycle asking various companies a simple questions “Are You Heath 2.0?” Resounding “yeses” were echoed from the CVS Minute Clinic in Chattanooga, TN to Hello Health in Brooklyn, NY. Dynamic because the two days comprised of company after company unveiling a new product, new service, new model or just new news designed to benefit the manufacturer, health care provider, patient or caregiver extending far beyond the recent buzz of Digital Health Records. It was generally clear to understand the need these companies were trying to fill, but not necessarily clear to understand the business models or the differences.

Some interesting players which stuck out in my mind:

ISIS - a small Oakland, CA based not for profit that is delivering SMS mobile marketing programs to at-risk youth populations. They started with HIV/AIDS prevention referrals to low income youth in San Francisco and have expended to South America and Europe where mobile penetration and use is enormous.

American Well – a company founded by two physician brothers who believe there is a significant opportunity in Telemedicine. This is the actual delivery of clinical services via the Web. American Well has created a new marketplace where individuals can locate and connect with a physician online and have an actual medical appointment. American Well has a Web-based system with patient and provider functionality that seems to handle every detail from determining which kind of physician to see to co-pay determination to physician compensation. It’s ideal for the estimated 20% of physician visits that don’t require physical interaction, in addition to being helpful for individuals who live in remote locations.

Perhaps the most prominent thoughts in my mind after an intense two days are:
1. How long will it take those outside the conference to get comfortable with the new offerings?
2. When will the consolidation begin?

Who will be left standing when the dust settles? I don’t know, but I’ll be watching.

Candice Smith is VP, Managing Director of Life and Wellness, iCrossing

PRODUCT: Guess what, brands? In the social Web your product is now any “asset” you have that the user community finds useful, unique and valuable. Sure consumers still love receiving a free product sample. But this is a very myopic view. Instead, assets could be behind-the-scenes footage or an engineer describing the “making of ____” story. Or a useful tool or widget that aids in purchase decision process. Or access to insider or special events. Basically, it’s anything that allows your most passionate fans to build a more intimate relationship with you. You have to think about how to provide service to your fans; and this is not just about your product. In a sense, every company (even product manufacturers) is in the service business now.

PROMOTION: It is no longer about your one-way broadcast out to the world. It is about connecting with and enabling your customers to be your brand ambassadors in their communities. This has increased the importance of and interest in word-of-mouth marketing, especially via blogger outreach.

PLACEMENT: This is key! Where in the online community should your brand engage? We often help brands identify this by mapping their networks. Distribute your content or assets where your target customers are, and be sure it is useful. Assets should be easily shareable and embeddable so your brand advocates can promote your brand for you.

PRICING: Other than social shopping and comparison shopping sites, pricing is not that important. Everyone has known about price transparency online for years. Instead, I would replace price with a more important P:

PARTICIPATION: For brands, this means how you join the dialog online that is happening (with or without you). Many brands talk about “building customer intimacy,” yet they run and hide at the notion of having a true two-way dialog with them online. Ironic, isn’t it? Apparently brands only want to hear positive feedback online. Only after active listening can a brand develop the right strategy to determine how it can participate and not control the conversation. Brands, your voice is only one of many now. But the good news is your customers want to engage with you. According to a recent Forrester report, “63% of consumers say discussion forums created by their favorite brands are more influential than peers or other companies. More than half find any other form of social media content created or hosted by their favorite brands as having a positive or very positive effect on their view of the brand overall.”

Do you have your own P to add?

Edmund Wong is Senior Vice President of Strategy & Planning for iCrossing.