Evoz Baby Monitoring Service Covered in TechCrunch

TechCrunch posted a great article on new Stage Two client Evoz today. Robin Wauters, an expecting father himself, got a live demo of the Evoz baby monitoring service from Avishai Shoham, the founder of the firm. Robin’s thoughts?

“The verdict? It’s freaking amazing.”

Quoting from TechCrunch:

Imagine if you had an iPhone or iPod touch to spare, and that you’d simply install it in a charger in your young child’s room like you would any baby monitor.

Now imagine that an always-on application installed on the device would let you call in from anywhere in the world to hear how your baby is sleeping (or exactly how hard he or she is crying, or if you’re lucky, laughing or playing). Imagine that you could also opt to receive ‘quiet’ alerts by SMS or email whenever your kid cries for longer than, say, 5 minutes, so you can give the babysitter a quick call to see what’s up after e.g. a meeting or dinner . . . Evoz lets you do all that, and more.

As both Stage Two founders are recent parents themselves, they know the value of a state of the art baby monitoring service. “I have wanted digital baby monitoring since I had my first kid,” said Jeremy Toeman. “RF baby monitors have been outdated since the 70’s. I’m already using this in my house with my newborn.”

We are proud to work with Avishai and the entire Evoz team.

Parents with children under 18 months old and 2 iOS devices are encouraged to sign up for the Beta here.

The Ultimate Xoom Ad

After seeing this commercial for the Motorola Xoom (in which a man picks up a tablet and literally takes off in a space ship), I was struck by a number of thoughts.

The first was, “Man, I love spaceships.”

The second thought was, “They seem to be targeting young men.”

The third thought was, “And they are doing a rather poor job.”

My last thought was more of a daydream that I will share with you all here – to the best of my ability. It was something along the lines of “How could Motorola make the ultimate Xoom ad? What other cool things could they put in a Xoom commercial to attract the coveted 18 – 34 year old male demographic? ” Here is what I came up with.

- Beer

Cold, refreshing Motorola Xoom.

- These Shoes

Those are shoes. That's right, shoes.

- A Fairy Princess Wedding

Err . . . no.

- Explosions (The Bigger The Better)

KAPOW!

- Bacon Wrapped Bacon

It's BACON!

- Robocop on a Unicorn

Nothing screams "buy a tablet" like the robotic energy of this image.

- Dinosaurs with Lasers

Armored, laser-fighting dinos would be ultimate.

The above Xoom video focuses too much attention on the tablet’s technical specifications. Motorola should be telling people less about spaceships and more about the benefits of the device. Outside of the tech world (where most tablet customers live) users don’t really care about the Xoom’s dual-core “gyroscope” or one-point-twenty-one gigawatts of processing power. They want to know what the device does that helps them in real world situations. Look at Apple’s iPad commercial. There isn’t a single spec in it- not one. The entire video shows different applications for the tablet that people can imagine themselves doing. So, Motorola – either deliver a Xoom ad that shows people all the interesting and fun things your tablet does, or make with the Dino-lasers.

If you have any ideas for Ultimate Xoom ads, let us know in the comments.

Is a Tweet Worth More Than A Facebook Like?

Social Media Today has an interesting post up that looks at the monetary value of a Tweet vs. a Facebook like.

It is interesting to see these social media studies assign monetary value to online actions. It is clear that brand awareness and brand loyalty are bolstered through social interactions online.

For more information, the Social Action Value Study can be found here: http://www.chompon.com/chompon_social_action_value.pdf

Apple: Doin’ It Right

Apple is now the most valuable tech company on the planet. In fact, the Cupertino firm is worth $100 billion more than Microsoft and Google, its next closest competitors. According to TechCrunch, Apple is “a little over $90 billion away from becoming the overall most valuable public company in the world.”

Impressive, especially when one considers that the company was six weeks away from filing for bankruptcy not so long ago. So what is the secret behind Apple’s turnaround?

I have long maintained that there are no real secrets to Apple’s success. The company creates simple, stable products that people want to use. They engage in brilliant marketing and advertising campaigns to promote consumer electronics that are well designed. Nokia CEO Stephen Elop mentions Apple’s success in his infamous “burning platform” memo.

Apple demonstrated that if designed well, consumers would buy a high-priced phone with a great experience and developers would build applications. They changed the game, and today, Apple owns the high-end range [of smart phones] . . . The first iPhone shipped in 2007, and we still don’t have a product that is close to their experience.

The focus on experience is telling here. Apple’s emphasis on design and usability creates products that are both stylish and enjoyable to use. There is a “cool factor” and a “fun factor” embedded in all of Apple’s devices. Simply stated, Apple designs, builds, markets and delivers technology that people love to use. The positive emotions users feel when using Apple technology results in increased and repeat sales.

These Applications Will Boost Productivity, Reduce Stress

Jeremy Toeman recently authored a guest post on the SimpleProductivity Blog that examines ways technology can increase productivity and reduce stress. Quoting from the article:

Managing your time effectively can greatly increase your productivity and remove unneeded anxiety in your life. There are amazing tech tools out there that will improve your productivity and save you time.

Too often people get overwhelmed or upset with the gadgets in their lives. I believe that great technology can help people live a simpler, more beneficial life.

The piece then looks at several applications that can save you time and help organize your life. From Evernote to Stage Two’s own creation NudgeMail, there are a variety of lifehacks available to you for free.

We want to thank SimpleProductivity Blog for helping us evangelize amazing tech to a new audience.

Fortune: How Steve Jobs Gets Things Done

We ran across this interesting Fortune article today that examines how Apple CEO Steve Jobs gets things done.

He doesn’t just develop new products; he changes games. The iPod, iPhone, and iPad, along with iTunes, have created massive disruptions, forcing players in the music and telecom industries—among others—to change their business models.

The piece is well worth a read. It examines how Jobs is able to create successful consumer tech again and again during his “second act” at Apple. While there are a number of factors at play here, the article pays particular attention to how Jobs focuses on product design and User Experience.

He views a product as an experience, not just an object. He can visualize what it will look and feel like, and can then execute it to near perfection. He makes advanced technology friendly to consumers based on his uncommon talent for connecting it to user experience. He has an innate feel for design, convenience, simplicity, and elegance in the product.

Fortune also points to his ability to manage people, make critical decisions and identify new opportunities as contributing factors to Apple’s meteoric rise in the past 12 years.

Steve Jobs didn’t invent phones, MP3 Players or Tablet PCs; he made them simple to use and desirable by focusing on how hardware and software design relate to the user experience. Steve Jobs gets things done by demanding the best from his people and building technologies that people desire.

The 10 Commandments of Tech PR

It seems like only yesterday that Moses came down from the mountain with 15 10 Commandments for righteous living.

Like Moses, we have received 10 unbreakable laws. Unlike Moses, our list only covers Tech PR and Social Media Best Practices. These rules will give you moral clarity whether you are working with enterprise level technologies or lifestyle electronics; cloud computing or home networking; gadgets or accessories.

Without further preamble, we present the 10 Commandments of Tech PR.

1. Thou Shalt Not Spam

If your “pitches” are mass emails to outdated and/or irrelevant media lists then they are not outreach. They are spam. Be sure to keep your media lists current and tailor them to best meet the needs of your client. Unless you are pitching a maritime gadget, you probably shouldn’t contact Sport Fishing Magazine.

2. Thou Shall Only Pitch News

Don’t pitch a story because your client said to. Don’t pitch a story in order to tell the client you pitched a story. Don’t pitch a story you know is forgettable. Don’t pitch a story that looks like an ad. Don’t pitch a story that looks like the intern wrote it. It sounds simple, but many tech PR professionals forget this Commandment. Only Pitch News.

3. Thou Shalt Be Aware of Current Trends

Read everything you can get your hands on. Understand how your client relates to current media and technology trends and pitch accordingly.

4. Thou Shalt Not Pitch Products You Don’t Believe In.

It is best to work for companies whose work you believe in. When you represent amazing products, you can speak with integrity and authority.

Great products make great PR.

When Tech PR people are passionate about the products and services they pitch, the result is usually better outreach, more coverage and increased buzz.

If you are pitching a bad product that you don’t care about, it will probably show in your work. Even if you create “professional” releases for sub-par products, word will get out that you and your firm work with second tier clients. That is a reputation no PR professional wants to have.

5. Honor the Exclusive and Embargoed Release

Never leak your own rumors anonymously to the internet just to drum up interest in your client. If you ensure your pitches are newsworthy, relevant, interesting and aligned with current trends, the buzz will take care of itself.

6. Thou Shalt Not Pitch Products You Don’t Understand

If you don’t know how the gadget works or what the device does you should not be pitching it. If you look at the specs and can’t grok what they mean, then you should not be pitching that product. If you don’t have a deep understanding of the technology you are pitching, you need to stop pitching that technology.

7. Thou Shalt Not Guarantee Coverage

It’s impossible to guarantee coverage. Don’t do it.

8. Thou Shall Speak English

You would think that speaking in technical jargon would only occur in the enterprise space. You would be wrong. Speak English. Avoid Specs and Jargon at all costs. No one cares that the processing power of your pocket popcorn popper increased 20%. People care about benefits, not features. Do not blog like a calculator. Be sure to use spell check and make sure your work has perfect punctuation.

9. Thou Shall Not Bear False Witness Against Your Client

Never lie to the press. Ever. Not even a little bit. It is immoral. It is also bad for your clients and your own reputation. When people know that your word is your bond, they will grow to trust and respect your  pitches. Ethical business is good business.

10. Thou Shall Be Creative

Most tech press releases go unread. Don’t be afraid to get creative when reaching out to the media. Instead of a press release, how about hosting an event? The secret to coverage isn’t free booze – it’s positioning great technology in creative and relevant ways.

If you have any more Tech PR Commandments, be sure to inscribe them in the comments section below.

CES By The Numbers

The following numbers were compiled during Stage Two’s journey to CES this year.

Number of Clients Named Finalists for iLounge’s Best of Show CES 2011: 1

Broadcast Interviews Held: 7

Number of Clubs We Talked Our Way In: 6

Number of S2 Clients Named Mashable Awards Finalists: 1

Number of Articles Published Mentioning S2 Clients: 199 (and counting)

Number of Stage Two Clients Featured in this Wall Street Journal Article: 2

Alcoholic Beverages Consumed: 94

Times Clients Appeared Live on G4 TV: 1

Press Briefings Conducted: 343

International Articles Posted: 7

USA Today Video Interviews Delivered: 2

Number of Cigars Smoked: 4

Number of Tweets Sent: 296

Total Hours of Media Training Provided To Clients: 53

Client Mentions in Rolling Stone: 1

Impressions Delivered: Millions

Number of Miles Walked: 129

Times We Ate Reese’s instead of Dinner: 3

Number of Colds Caught: 1.5

Ars Technica Articles Published: 1

Number of Business Cards Collected: 384

Number of Filets ordered: 1

Wall Street Journal Covers Orbotix, Pogoplug at CES

Special shout outs to two Stage Two clients – Orbotix and Pogoplug – who feature prominently in a new Wall Street Journal article from CES.  Lizette Chapman writes a strong piece that focuses on tech start ups showcasing their products at the Las Vegas trade show. Quoting at length from the article:

[Orbotix] like so many of the 3,000 others exhibiting here, is launching – at no small expense to his company or his investors.

“This is the show. Everyone’s here,” said Paul Berberian, CEO of Orbotix Inc., a Boulder, Colo.-based company that makes a robotic orb that you control with your iPhone.

[SNIP]

Not too far away, Cloud Engines Inc. CEO Daniel Putterman also had chosen CES to launch his company’s new product. Founded in 2007 and employing 40, the San Francisco-based company is exhibiting its personal cloud device, Pogoplug, at Sony’s booth and at ShowStoppers, a press and analyst schmoozefest.

“We could have spent millions of dollars to have a booth here, depending on size and location,” he said, barely audible amid the noise emanating from the blogger’s lounge in the Las Vegas Convention Center’s South Hall. Putterman said his company, which raised a $15 million Series B round from the Foundry Group, Softbank Capital and Morgan Stanley Alternative Investment Partners in December, will ultimately spend in the tens of thousands.

“We’re a small company, so when we spend money on marketing and education, we want to make sure it’s worth it.”

Congrats to Orbotix and Pogoplug for rising above the noise at CES this year!

Microsoft Kinect: A Usability Review

We recently ran across this well written piece over at Alertbox that looks at the ten foot gestural UI of the Kinect.

Kinect, the XBOX peripheral that lets users control games with their bodies, breaks new ground in ten foot usability.

Despite having few established usability standards (this makes sense for a new product) the article points out the many strong points of the device. Quoting from the piece:

Kinect has many great design elements that clearly show that the team (a) knows usability, (b) did user testing, and (c) had management support to prioritize usability improvements, even when they required extra development work.

This makes sense; the only reason for Kinect to exist in the first place is as a casual game system that’s easy to pick up. It’s not for hardcore gamers who are willing to suffer through contorted combos of button-pushes to make their game characters do moves. Kinect is targeted at the much broader masses, which requires strong usability. (Indeed, the game sold 4 M units during the first 6 weeks after launch.)

The article then compares the 10 foot usability with the iPad’s 2′ usability.

While Gestural UI is not a viable path for corporations, governments or NPO’s, the piece concludes that the device makes a strong showing in game usability.