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Mashable: Latest 18 News Updates - including “More iAds Start Appearing on the iPad”

Posted by Ashim Adhikari on 5:06 AM // 0 comments

Mashable: Latest 18 News Updates - including “More iAds Start Appearing on the iPad”

More iAds Start Appearing on the iPad

Posted: 16 Mar 2011 03:39 AM PDT


In December, Apple rolled out the first iAd for the iPad, but we haven’t seen any followups since – until now. Unilever and the National Collegiate Athletic Association put out an ad, and CNET has confirmed with Apple that more iAds will be coming to the iPad in the weeks to follow.

The ad is featuring three NCAA stars – Earvin “Magic” Johnson, John Thompson III, and Bobby Hurley – and features a trivia game, fulfilling Apple’s promise of more interactive, immersive and attractive ads on the iOS platform.

Apple’s iAd program hasn’t been off to a very good start. Originally, Apple charged upward of $1 million (and up to $10 million) to select advertisers on the platform, but recently the company cut the entry-level price of an iAd to $500,000 due to low demand.

[via CNET]

More About: advertising, apple, iAd, ipad

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Is Netflix the Next HBO?

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 09:26 PM PDT


Netflix is in serious talks to exclusively distribute an original TV series by David Fincher and Kevin Spacey, taking it into uncharted territory that would put it in direct competition with HBO and the other premium cable channels.

The DVD rental and video streaming service is trying to get its hands on a remake of the classic UK political drama House of Cards, starring Kevin Spacey and directed by David Fincher (director of The Social Network). The duo have been shopping the series to channels like HBO, Showtime and AMC, but Netflix is committed to two seasons’ worth of the show (26 episodes), according to Deadline.com. It’s an usual move; most networks require a pilot to be produced before committing to even one season of a TV show.

The news has since been confirmed by WSJ, Reuters and others. It’s unclear how much the deal could be worth; Deadline estimates that Netflix could dish out $100 million for the show, but most sources say the number is much lower.

The deal, if it closes, would mark the first time Netflix has paid for exclusive distribution rights to a major TV show. With talent like Spacey and Fincher, it’s not hard to imagine the House of Cards remake garnering mainstream appeal and attention.

Netflix, the TV Network

The mere fact that Netflix is seriously bidding for an original TV show radically changes the already-shaky dynamic of the entertainment landscape.

Netflix and the studios have a rough relationship; while Netflix provides millions in revenue to the studios, it’s also (rightly) perceived as a rising competitor that siphons subscribers from cable TV and reduces DVD sales, especially as more people turn to on-demand video streaming. Time Warner, the owner of HBO, especially dislikes Netflix.

Still, despite the growing discomfort between the media conglomorates and Netflix, the DVD rental service has never owned its own content; it has licensed movies and TV shows from others in multi-million dollar deals that the networks and studios could justify.

Now it’s clear that Netflix is getting into the original content distribution game. Netflix has essentially showed its hand; it’s evolving from DVD rental service to a full-fledged network, complete with licensed and original content. It’s not hard to imagine people choosing Netflix over an HBO subscription, especially if it has a good stable of shows exclusive to its streaming video platform.

Let’s be clear: Netflix isn’t anywhere close to being competitive to ABC, CBS or the major networks. Its 20 million subscriber base simply doesn’t have the reach of Fox or NBC. However, the pay-for-access cable channels had better watch out, because it may only take a few more original shows for Netflix to make them obsolete.

More About: david fincher, hbo, house of cards, Kevin Spacey, Live Stream, netflix, Opinion, Showtime, time warner

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Is Twitter Dividing the Happy From the Unhappy?

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 07:50 PM PDT


Anyone who thought that social media was going to usher in a utopian era of communication without borders is going to have their faith badly shaken by a new study from Cornell University. On Twitter, it seems, there are already at least two walled-off nations: happy people and unhappy people.

And never the twain shall tweet.

The Cornell study, spotted by New Scientist magazine, tracked 102,000 Twitter users and analyzed the 129 million tweets they sent and received over a six-month period. It examined the words they used using what the authors call “standard techniques from psychology” to rate their sense of self-fulfillment — an important measure, in the burgeoning field of happiness studies, known as Subjective Well-Being or SWB. People with a high SWB were significantly less likely to send or receive tweets from someone with a low SWB, and the same was true in reverse.

In other words, the happy people have formed little Happy Twitter clubs. Meanwhile misery loves company in social media — as much as, if not more than, in real life.

“Beyond demographic features such as age, sex and race, even psychological states such as “loneliness” can be assortative in a social network,” writes the study’s lead author, Johan Bollen. But he admits that even he doesn’t know why that should be the case.

So why is it so? Is it simply human nature, or a function peculiar to short-form virtual communication?

The answer depends on who you ask. Users on the “happy” side of the SWB equation will probably tell you they meant to respond to that depressive tweet from their Debbie Downer friend, but it was such a bummer they couldn’t be bothered. Unhappy tweeters will grumble about the insufferably peppy quality of tweets from those shiny cheerleaders over in the happy corner.

If there are any Twitter API developers looking for a Nobel Prize-worthy challenge, now would be the time to devise an app that could bring the two factions together in a state of semi-contentedness.

More About: hapiness, Happy, study, twitter, unhappy

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Google Revamps Its iPhone App

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 06:05 PM PDT


Google has released a major update to its iPhone app, giving it a new design, new features and even a new name.

Google Search for iPhone, formerly Google Mobile, features a brand-new interface for searching the web and accessing apps. The mobile search interface is now more like the regular Google.com interface. The mobile search app also includes quick access to Voice Search and to Google Googles, which lets users conduct searches via photo.

The biggest update to the Google Search app is a new search toolbar that is accessible by swiping from left to right. Google.com users will immediately recognize this toolbar. It’s almost identical to the left-hand column that appears on all Google Search result pages. Users can access news, image, shopping, video, blog, discussion, social, and place searches from the new search toolbar — thus dramatically improving the usefulness of Google’s iPhone app.

The new app includes another feature: the ability to pick up where you left off. If you get dragged into a series of phone calls while in the middle of a search, you can simply return to the page you were visiting by tapping the lower half of the page. The app also includes the familiar hotlist of Google’s mobile web apps, from Gmail to Google Earth.

In short, the app is a dramatic improvement from the previous version. It is faster, more intuitive and includes a deeper stable of mobile search features. Our only complaint: given that we’re in the fourth generation of iPhone, Google really should have released this app a long time ago.

More About: Google, Google mobile, google search, iOS, iphone, iphone app

Djay Launches on iPhone, Upgrades on iPad

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 05:12 PM PDT


Djay, the groundbreaking Mac app from Algoriddim featured in a recent iPad commercial, just became available on both sides of the iOS platform — and also got a significant update to its iPad version.

The $9.99 app turns your iPhone 4 or iPhone 3GS into a pair of mixing decks. Load up songs from your iTunes music library, and you can beat sync, scratch and transition between songs like a pro. You can also record your genius mix and export it as a high-quality AIFF file.

Both the iPhone and the iPad versions of djay are surprisingly similar to the $49.99 desktop version of the software, used by professional and amateur DJs alike, and awarded Macworld’s highest rating.

One important feature that both iOS versions lack, however: the ability to lock in the key of a song. Match the BPMs of songs at vastly different tempos, and the one you’re queuing up will start to sound either warbly or a bit baritone.

When djay for the Mac automatically beat-matches songs, it is able to do so without changing the key of either tune. It’s a magical feature that can, in this writer’s experience, make DJ-ing a party almost scarily easy.

Algoriddim’s head of product development, Frederik Seiffert, says that key-locked beat matching is almost impossible on the current iPhone and first-generation iPad’s hardware. “But we might consider doing it for the iPad 2 when we see one,” says Seiffert.

Algoriddim is headquartered in Munich, Germany, where the iPad 2 will not be available until the end of the month.

In the meantime, the company has been no slouch on the iPad front. At the same time as it launched its iPhone app, it also released a free upgrade to the $20 iPad app, with enough new features that it might as well be labeled djay 1.5.

Scratch the spinning disk with two fingers rather than one, and djay will make sure your scratch lasts for a precise number of beats. And at the tap of a few fingers, the app will loop a single measure of the track over and over. Again, it understands the rhythm and will make sure the loop is precise, so you don’t have to (unless you want to). Call it the T-Pain app for DJs.

Gone are the “low memory” messages that plagued the iPad app in its original iteration. I’ve been testing it on the iPad 2, where it runs faster than ever and gives the Mac version a serious run for its money. You can even pre-cue, ie. listen to your next song without disturbing the party, with the help of a couple of connectors from Radio Shack.

Once it adds the ability to lock in keys for songs, there’ll be little that the iPad version lacks. Same goes for the iPhone version — though we’ll probably have to wait until iPhone 5 or 6 for the hardware to allow it.

Still, the iPhone app is best in its class, even without those new iPad features. In short, there’s no excuse for road trips to be badly DJ’d ever again.

More About: apple, DJ, djay, djing software, ipad, iphone, iphone 4, iPhone 5

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Twitter Adds Permanent HTTPS Setting to Improve Security

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 03:54 PM PDT


Twitter has taken a big step towards improving account security with a new setting that permanently enables HTTPS.

HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) allows encrypted communication between networks and users. It creates a secure tunnel through the inherently chaotic web, decreasing the chance that somebody will access a user’s account information on an open Wi-Fi network, for example.

Twitter has offered HTTPS access for some time. But starting today, users can activate HTTPS permanently by going to their settings and selecting “Always use HTTPS.” These users will always be logged into Twitter via HTTPS rather than the traditional HTTP method.

The company notes that its mobile website still can’t force HTTPS permanently. So users currently need to make sure they are logged into https://mobile.twitter.com rather than http://mobile.twitter.com if they want a secure connection. Twitter says it is working on a solution that will make the permanent HTTPS feature work on both its mobile website and Twitter.com.

More About: HTTPS, security, trending, twitter

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Google Acquires Video Processing Startup

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 02:58 PM PDT


Google has acquired digital video technology company Green Parrot Pictures to improve the quality of videos uploaded to its YouTube service, the tech giant announced Tuesday.

Green Parrot Pictures was founded by engineering professor Anil Kokaram of Trinity College, Dublin, who has spent the last six years working with a small team of engineers to develop video quality improvement technology for use in major productions like The Lord of the Rings and Spider-Man.

Google plans to apply the team’s collective talent and innovations to improve the quality of YouTube videos, noting in a blog post that while recent videos of protests in Libya shot using low-quality mobile phones and video cameras were “emotionally captivating,” they were also “jerky, blurry or unsteady,” and thus in need of technology like that developed by Green Parrot Pictures.

“What if there was a technology that could improve the quality of such videos — sharpening the image, reducing visual noise and rendering a higher-quality, steadier video — all while your video is simply being uploaded to the site?” Jeremy Doig, Google’s director of video technology, mused. “Their technology helps make videos look better while at the same time using less bandwidth and improving playback speed,” he added.

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Google To Test In-Store Mobile Payment System [REPORT]

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 02:08 PM PDT

NFC Transmit Image

Google is planning to test a service that allows store customers to pay for their purchases at the cash register using their mobile phones.

Unnamed sources familiar with the project told Bloomberg that Google’s payment method will be tested at thousands of stores in San Francisco and New York within four months.

The checkout option, these sources told Bloomberg, will work with near field communication (NFC)-enabled phones. NFC allows a device, usually a mobile phone, to collect data from another device or NFC tag at close range. In many ways, it's like a contactless payment card that is integrated into a phone (in fact, contactless payment cards use the same technology).

With Google’s reported system, customers would touch their phones to a tag in order to check out at special cash registers that the sources said Google will buy for test stores.

While most phones have yet to be equipped with NFC technology, its journey to the mainstream has started. Samsung’s Nexus S, the first NFC-enabled Android phone, went on sale December 16, 2010. Nokia has announced that all of its smartphones in 2011 will support NFC, and Apple recently hired a NFC expert (although it debunked rumors that the iPhone 5 would incorporate NFC earlier Tuesday). Turning the technology into a mobile payment vehicle is high on the list of NFC proponents’ priorities.

In February, Google CEO Eric Schmidt told The New York Times that the company would work to extend offers to advertisers using NFC chips. The service he had in mind at that point would provide ads and offers for items at the point of sale.

Google declined to comment on this article.

More About: Google, mobile payments, nfc

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Better Homes & Gardens Comes to the iPad [PICS]

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 01:26 PM PDT


The April issue of Better Homes and Gardens arrived on the iPad Tuesday, the first the magazine has released for the device.

The $3.99 issue [iTunes link] reflects much of the best of iPad magazine design, with crisp, colorful layouts packed with scrolling galleries and text, and discreet buttons that can be tapped to furnish additional information, such as recipes, about photographed subjects.

Among the highlights is a room makeover with charismatic designer Elaine Griffin, complete with video and pages of photographs that can be tapped to pull up additional information. I also enjoyed a brief story on spring home palettes, which allows users, in one frame, to sample five different paint colors in a single room.

I was disappointed by the complete lack of sharing options, especially given how comparatively late the magazine has arrived on the device compared to others in the category, such as Martha Stewart Living, which remains one of the most beautiful and user-friendly magazines on the iPad to date. A video of Jaime Oliver, which appears to be more of an ad for Better Homes and Gardens‘s website than an interview, could have been left out as well.

Despite those flaws, we think readers of the magazine will be pleased with the experience on the iPad. If you try it out for yourself, please let us know in the comments what you think.

In addition to Better Homes and Gardens, publisher Meredith Corp also released Parents and Fitness magazines for the iPad Tuesday. The publisher plans to offer subscriptions to Android tablet owners in the near future.

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5 Digital Marketing Trends to Watch

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 01:09 PM PDT


The Digital Marketing Series is supported by HubSpot, which offers inbound marketing software that helps small and medium sized businesses get found on the Internet by the right prospects and converts more of them into leads and customers. Learn more.

If this year's SXSWi conference is any indication, the foremost digital marketing trends of 2011 will be central to one theme: user presence.

Too often, businesses over-engineer their marketing efforts in an attempt to capture the attention of their audiences' minds and wallets. But audiences are smart, and they’re immune to these efforts.

We no longer seek out information — we expect information to be seamlessly integrated into our everyday lives. Picking up on that trend, small businesses plan to increase spending on inbound marketing in 2011, according to recent reports. These efforts will include established initiatives such as Facebook campaigns and location-based advertising, but businesses will also experiment with a handful of new (and not so new) strategies. Here are five digital marketing trends to watch as the year unfolds.

1. Group Messaging

Group messaging has undoubtedly become this year's location-based service. The clear front-runners are Beluga and GroupMe, both of which offer users a way to communicate in small, personalized groups of friends. So, how does this tie into marketing strategies?

What more can you ask for as a business than to have groups of customers already populated and organized by interest, age and location? The data that these groups provide is invaluable.

Much like location-based marketing campaigns in 2010, marketers will be anxious to find ways to integrate messaging and purchase points into groups. As Beluga co-founder Lucy Zhang explained on a SXSWi panel this past weekend, the primary use case for group messaging this winter has been to organize ski trips. Imagine the marketability of those groups looking for ski gear, lodging and restaurants.

2. Reputation Engines

Somewhere along the way, professional networks have begun to exist upon a foundation of trivial metrics. Our everyday lives have become inundated by these reputation engines: mayorships on Foursquare, the velocity of one's HurricaneParty, number of followers on Twitter, etc.

Several recent companies such as BranchOut, Honestly.com (formerly Unvarnished) and Hashable, have attempted to bridge the gap between real-world reputation and online marks, but it is unclear whether or not these companies will successfully convey the appropriate balance.

Marketers would be wise to turn to a keen eye toward these networks because they represent the base of influence, both online and offline. Whether or not the algorithms are perfect, each social network exists to harness the power of relationships forged in real life — and serves as a prime audience for marketing.

3. QR Codes

Ok, so QR codes really aren't new. Businesses have been generating QR codes for marketing purposes for several years now. But I have a confession to make — I simply do not understand the success of QR codes.

The technology itself is rather trivial and has been around for more than a decade, even though QR codes penetrated the mainstream market pretty recently. For example, on a recent shopping trip to Sephora, I noticed the use of QR codes to collect additional information about products around the store. Considering I am admittedly secluded within the tech industry, I was anxious to know just how successful a somewhat "nerdy" marketing gimmick could be on the average, everyday consumer. So, I quickly asked a nearby sales clerk, "How many shoppers do you generally see scanning your QR codes each day?" Her response: "What is a QR code?"

Now, it's obviously not fair to judge an entire strategy on a single participant, but this is where my own confusion lies. QR codes are everywhere. And yet, it's as though consumers simply decided not to question them. Has this been your experience?

Regardless of how many scans a QR code will garner, it certainly appears that we will see an increasing use of them in 2011.

4. Startups for Startups

A few months ago, a startup received more than 10,000 signups within two days, without ever disclosing what it even does. And thanks to LaunchRock, companies can now create a no-fuss landing page for their business in a matter of minutes, thus initiating the single-most meta business model I have seen this year. These companies collect user contact information, promising access to their beta if they agree to publicize their own sign-up.

Which begs the question, how much information is really necessary to market to an audience? Not much it seems.

Users are hungry to be early adopters. Even mainstream users are becoming increasingly savvy to the newest thing -– tech is sexy again, and smart marketers know this. In 2011, I expect to see similar efforts that reflect this startups for startups meme. Everyone wants a piece of the startup pie and schemes like Launchrock are certainly a great way to gain attention and gather data.

5. Q&A Sites

Quora, a Q&A site launched in 2009, has mostly attracted the attention of the technology and media industries, but it will likely inspire mainstream marketers soon. The site, along with some of its competitors, has become a useful marketing tool. The Q&A space is quickly heating up, with influential organizations like TED and Facebook getting into the space.

Q&A sites provide a platform where users can engage in simple dialogue pertaining to any question — businesses have the ability to seed questions, interject into negative discussions, establish credibility and respond to competitor questions.

Much like a company blog that is built to drive conversation around a particular brand and industry, businesses will continue to find avenues to market to targeted audiences, such as those found within each Quora topic.

Conclusion

Marketing strategy in 2011 evolves directly from the location-based marketing of 2010. We have found that messages are most successfully communicated to audiences that have already coalesced around common bonds.

What do you think? Will you be more likely to engage with brands that market through the aforementioned channels?

Series Supported by HubSpot

The Digital Marketing Series is supported by HubSpot, which offers inbound marketing software that helps small and medium sized businesses get found on the Internet by the right prospects and converts more of them into leads and customers. HubSpot’s software platform includes tools that allow professional marketers and small business owners to manage SEO, blogging, social media, landing pages, e-mail, lead intelligence and marketing analytics. Learn more.

Image courtesy of Flickr, Stephan Geyer, saxarocks

More About: Beluga, branchout, Digital Marketing Series, foursquare, groupme, hashable, honestly, hurricane party, launchrock, QR Codes, quora, unvarnished

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HOW TO: Get the Most Out of Subcontracting With Freelancers

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 12:45 PM PDT


Shane Pearlman tweets about his misadventures in running a 100% freelance driven agency at @justlikeair.

Every person on a career path has a dream. Musicians want Grammys, startups want acquisitions and surfers want world titles. When I chat with freelancers, the most common aspiration I hear is, “I want to partner up with other freelancers to take on a bigger project and build a company.” When running an agency in today’s new economic model, you are bound to end up using independent contractors in your business. If that is in your plan, how do you get started successfully? How do you transition from a one-person shop to a team using other freelancers?

When Does it Make Sense?

When should you use a subcontractor? The answer is in the definition: A person who offers his or her time and skill over a limited engagement in exchange for compensation to multiple parties. Either you are too busy and need help (time), want to take projects outside your specialty (skill) or need to adjust your team to improve work cycles (limited engagement).

Time

How do you know when it is time to subcontract (or raise your rate)? The answer is simple: when you are extremely busy. You are turning down 50% of legitimate opportunities and are booked solid on great projects for months with a reasonable to high rate for your niche. Simply put, you have projects for people to work on and are personally out of time.

Skill

Bigger projects typically address more complex problems and require a wider range of skills. While you might be a master designer, have serious HTML/CSS chops or have people banging down your door for SEO lessons, there’s likely something you can’t or don’t want to do. Some of the best subcontracting relationships are between people with complementary skills. Designer + developer + content creator = a higher quality complete web product. Figure out where you are most effective, and keep that for yourself. Then find good contractors to tackle the rest.

Work Load

One of the greatest differences between a contractor and an employee is control. You can tell an employee when and where they need to be available. Of course, you have to pay for an employee’s time, even when they aren’t producing. Nothing is more painful than paying people to play Angry Birds during those valleys between projects. If you have work that is intermittent, seasonal or temporary, then freelancers are a great fit.

During our sales process, I warn our clients, “We are terrible at on-call support.” If you call me and need something immediately, I’ll ping our network. If someone happens to be available, great, we’ll do it. But, we work exclusively with freelancers, which means we can’t tell them when to be available. It is not typically an issue with advanced notice, but there are projects we turn down because our business model simply can’t provide a win for the customer.

Perspective

Sometimes, you simply get stuck. If you are lucky, the problem is small and you can tap your community for an answer (co-workers, Twitter, Facebook, Quora). Other times, you need an expert who hasn’t been staring at the same issue for the last three months. Bringing in fresh blood for a quick infusion of new ideas can be a huge help.

Freelance Isn’t Free

None of the factors above point to cheaper labor. While a well-managed team of contractors could save you money (since in theory you pay for productivity rather than presence), it is not a plan you should count on. Look for value beyond cost. We rescue many outsourced projects from companies that went with the cheap option, thinking it would save them short term dollars, when all it caused was long-term headaches.

Picking Your Team

When I first started subcontracting, I was a full-time web technician. All I wanted to do was offload tasks to someone else in order to have more time. It didn’t work out well. I quickly learned that delegating is not the same as abdicating. I spent a good part of the day interfacing with the customer and managing the subcontractor’s work. When that was done, I took the rest of the night to do my own work. It was brutal, and this is a very common story. Successful subcontracting requires the right mindset, the right team and the right systems.

Manage Expectations

The team starts with you. After all, you are now both a contractor and a customer all on the same project (a bit strange, isn’t it?). Start with a clear plan of what you want done and how you will measure the success of the project. Add some clear deliverables (what is due) and milestones (when it is due). Have a clear budget in mind ahead of time. What you can’t do is simply hand the project off and forget it. Or “hand it off” and still do it all yourself.

Where Do You Find Good People?

Some of the best people we’ve found come from interaction with the content we contribute to major blogs and our own site. If someone consistently comments in a positive manner on our content, then it’s likely they share our perspective. I look at every link from people who comment in an interesting manner to see if I can find a portfolio that makes me excited.

We are quite active in open source projects, and they are some of the best recruiting hotbeds for developers. You see people’s work, how they communicate with a team and, for us specifically, how they handle being distributed.

We use a number of job boards including jobs.freelanceswitch.com, authenticjobs.com, and tech-specific places like jobs.wordpress.net. We also ask clients and friends for referrals and have had great luck. While we haven’t scored big through Twitter and Facebook yet, I expect it’s only a matter of time before it pays off.

Finally, my personal favorite is our “Hobo Technique,” which is great for conferences, mixers and other events. Make a sign with exactly what you want from people. We all know you didn’t go to the networking mixer just to make new friends. You have a business agenda. Having your needs clearly stated allows people to instantly decide if they are interested, and it serves as an excellent conversation starter.

If you get a lot of responses, how do you sort them? We’ve had as many as 300 responses to some of our project postings. It can be overwhelming. We make three piles: delighted, satisfied and unsatisfied. Then we focus on delighted and ignore the rest.

Try Before You Buy

We have a $200 budget to try a person out on a small task. If that is a nice experience, we offer a slightly larger gig (if we have something available). Kick butt again, and we’ll line up a solid project. It’s kind of like dating. They key is to build patterns for failure into your subcontracting process. New unknown people shouldn’t get large, long-term contracts until you are ready to commit to each other.

Personality Often Matters More Than Talent

In 2010, we tried 43 contractors, 15 of which received multiple contracts. So why did people fail? A few weren’t good enough at their specialty, but most got the boot because their personality and communication styles were a poor fit. A third of our contenders were simply no fun to work with. They didn’t engage the team or the project. They weren’t helpful. The majority, however, simply weren’t accountable. They were very talented but did not have the maturity to communicate expectation effectively.

Unfortunately, this is one of the biggest complaints in the industry. Companies are afraid to trust contractors because they get let down all of the time. Want to make a lot of money in any field? Be dependable. When you find an accountable person, pay them well and hold on tight.

Craft the Deal

You’ve had a few dates, and now it’s time to make it official. The more work you can do upfront to set expectations, the more likely you will get to live happily ever after. The key is to get it in writing.

It Doesn’t Matter What It Says if They Don’t Understand

Have you read the iTunes user license agreement? I tried once and gave up.

A contract exists to document an agreement. If I have no idea what it says, do we genuinely have an agreement? The best way to avoid a conflict is clear communication. So let me make a plea: Please, please write your contracts in plain language. Then have your lawyer review it to ensure that it’s legally viable.

The Contracts

You will want two contracts with your freelancers. A Master Services Agreement (MSA) and a Statement of Work (SOW). The MSA lays the groundwork for your relationship. The SOW defines exactly what you expect them to deliver. Both are important.

In our MSA, we put a couple of legal requirements set by groups like the IRS (you are a legit contractor), a few cultural things (you are a nice person), some relationship things (what can you share, who owns the materials) and what happens if things go kaboom. We built everything into it. We used to send four different files (contract, tax docs, NDA, proof of business). Now we send one single PDF. It is a delight to work with compared with our prior setup.

In our SOW, we work together with the subcontractor to put in the specific project deliverables (what), milestones (when) and budget (how much). We also discuss what happens after the project is done (support and warranty).

Manage the Relationship

Two years ago at a Freelancecamp, my colleague attended a session about how to land and keep long-term clients. We spent a while following that conference, discussing how long-term clients were like a marriage. I’ve been finding that building teams of long-term contractors has a lot in common with personal relationships as well.

The Setup

I can usually tell you if a project will succeed or fail at the kickoff meeting. I recently heard an excellent talk on agile project management where the speaker asked us, “If I sat down every member on your team and asked them to write out exactly what success would look like on your project, could they answer? Would they respond consistently across the team?”

Does your subcontractor have a solid understanding of the project beyond what they are being tasked with? Do they know how they are being measured and how their own success with you is being defined?

The Systems

It’s likely that the person you just subcontracted is a technician, which means that unless you hired a project manager, you are the project manager. The most important tool in your belt is the regular checkup, often called a “scrum.” I talk to everyone on my team on a regular basis and ask:

  • What did you do since we last spoke?
  • What are you doing next?
  • Anything I need to know about?
  • Do you need a longer meeting to hash anything out?

Lather, rinse and repeat. I don’t leave a meeting without everyone knowing the next time we will connect.

You will also need some very specific tools to tackle a wide range of challenges. Setups may vary, depending on the size and distribution of your subcontractors, but our process generally works like this:

  • Get them signed up on our project management system (ours is a modified version of Redmine).
  • Make sure they have a profile pic (it is nice to see their face when they post on stuff).
  • Get an instant messaging program or Skype (I use Adium, so it doesn’t matter what platform they prefer.)
  • You need some sort of version control. We use SVN for code and Dropbox for non-code (PSDs, DOCs, etc.).
  • A conference call system if you have more than two people. We use Skype, iPhone merge calling, and freeconferencecall.com.
  • For collaboration, I like join.me and Skype for screen sharing, and Jing or Skitch for annotating and screen casts.
  • Get their socials and follow them. The best way to know what’s going on in their lives is through Facebook and Twitter, and since there’s no water cooler in your virtual office, making personal connections online is essential.

Don’t Be The Client You Hate

We all have those clients — two months late on payment, missed the last three meetings, never replies to e-mails, asks you to do “just one more thing,” and frustrates you to tears. So, knowing full well what great clients look like, what a perfect opportunity to be one.

When It Fails

When something doesn’t work the way you were expecting, take notes on it. Then ask yourself: Could I have managed this better? Ultimately though, your relationship with someone is based on agreements. If they can’t fulfill those agreements, you need to move on. By taking clear notes on those agreements and how things played out, you can remove the emotion from the equation. That’s they key to an amicable separation.

From Freelance to Agency

The advantages of running an agency built entirely of subcontractors is huge. We have access to top notch talent that we typically could not afford on a full-time basis. Our costs are directly in line with our income. As we make more, we spend more on our team. In the valleys between project cycles, our talent costs dip accordingly. Since we are fully distributed, the world is our recruiting ground (although we strongly focus on North American time zones and culture).

The cons can be just as huge. We compete for our teams’ attention with other customers and projects. We have no idea whether someone will be available in the future. If we need a huge push to accomplish something super-human, contractors are less likely to “take one for the team” as they are not quite as invested.

There are a lot of factors to weigh here, but hopefully this gives you a clearer picture of the ins and outs of subcontracting with freelancers. Are you a freelancer or a project manager? Share your best tips for a smooth workflow in the comments.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, alvarez

Interested in more Business resources? Check out Mashable Explore, a new way to discover information on your favorite Mashable topics.

More About: freelance, freelance work, freelancers, subcontracting, Web Development

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Apple Delays iPad 2 Launch in Japan

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 11:28 AM PDT


Apple will hold off the release of the iPad 2 in Japan, as the country continues to deal with the aftermath of last week’s earthquake and tsunami.

The international release of the tablet is set for March 25, but Apple told All Things Digital that for now the country and the company’s staff in Japan should focus on more important issues.

"We are delaying the launch of the iPad 2 in Japan while the country and our teams focus on recovering from the recent disaster," a spokesperson said. "Our hearts go out to the people of Japan, including our employees and their families, who have been impacted by this terrible tragedy."

Apple has not announced a new launch date.

The devastation caused by the earthquake and tsunami will also likely affect the country’s technology industry, including production of parts for the iPad. For instance, Toshiba makes NAND Flash memory chips that are used in Apple products, including the iPad. Toshiba’s plant has closed because of damage, with no date yet for reopening.

[via All Things Digital]

More About: apple, iPad 2, japan

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iPad 2 Shortages Hit Web & Retail Stores

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 10:27 AM PDT


If you want an iPad 2, prepare to wait awhile. Strong demand online and in retail stores has led to sellouts in most locations and extended online delays for all models.

Online orders originally promised delivery in two to three days. Hours before units even became available for purchase in retail stores, the estimated shipping time surged from two to three weeks, and then to three to four weeks. As of Tuesday morning, the online Apple Store is showing a four- to five-week backlog for online orders.

In retail stores, units are few and far between, with most stores selling out. This includes retail partners like Best Buy, Walmart, Verizon and AT&T. The one exception seems to be Apple’s Austin pop-up store.

Although Apple’s temporary storefront is still drawing in the SXSW crowds, stock is being replenished — at least for the time being — on a daily basis.

After selling out of iPad 2 units Sunday, crowds gathered to wait in line before the store opened at noon Monday. At 4:45 p.m., I stepped into the store after a brief wait (only a limited number of customers are allowed inside at a time) and was able to pick up a 64 GB Wi-Fi-only iPad.

At this time, nearly five hours after opening, the store only had 64 GB units in stock, but both colors and the 3G options for Verizon and AT&T were available.

Friends in Atlanta have reported a far different experience. Best Buy stores are sold out, contrary to what the e-mail blast sent to customers said, and no one seems to know when they will be getting more in stock. The same is true for the four Apple retail store locations.

With the original iPad, the strong demand for the device forced Apple to delay its international rollout. Online availability continued to be tight through the summer. In late July, I ordered an iPad 3G that took three weeks to ship.

If the launch is any indication, Apple might be facing the same situation with the iPad 2. Apple’s channel inventory for the original iPad was below company targets until late in the middle of the first quarter (November 2010 for Apple). Reports indicate that the company has made significant investments in shoring up production of the second-generation product, however, the addition of a white color and a 3G offering for both AT&T and Verizon might mean that it will take some time for the right units to get to the right stores.

If you’re really hankering for an iPad 2 and have a few days to spare — head to Austin — I hear there’s some big music event taking place.

[via 9to5Mac]

More About: apple, iPad 2, ipad sales, trending

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Group Messaging Faceoff: 4 Services Compared

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 09:22 AM PDT


The SXSW Faceoff Series is supported by Pepsi MAX. Come check out the Pepsi MAX Lot at 3rd Street and San Jacinto Boulevard! Follow @PepsiMAX on Twitter for the daily schedule of huge concerts, happy hours, BBQs, games and giveaways! And, well, lots of free soda.

The most scrappy startup battle at SXSW this year is undoubtedly in the group messaging space. In the weeks leading up to the conference, established players launched new features into the arena while a swarm of new players crept out from the woodwork.

Leading the front of the pack, at least chronologically, is group texting app GroupMe. The startup launched in August as a simple way to text a group of people simultaneously and raised a $10.6 million in Series B funding in January to put toward that mission. On March 1, the startup used some of that funding to launch features for sharing current locations and photos within groups as well as using push notifications instead of SMS messages to chat. Two days before the start of SXSW, the startup released another round of features that included the ability to join groups, see connections and evaluate data connections.

Fast Society, another SMS-based service, also launched its fair share of features in the weeks leading up the conference. The app — which unlike GroupMe originally allowed users to set a time frame for their conversation — launched a new Android app and an updated iPhone app on the day before GroupMe announced its final round of pre-SXSW features. The update includes photo-sharing and location-sharing features as well as an option to switch to in-app messaging.

Group messaging app Beluga, which allows users to send instant group messages, photos and location information across multiple platforms (you know, like in a “pod”), didn’t need to release new features before SXSW to incite buzz after Facebook acquired it this March. It did, however, add a Facebook sign-on (surprise!), added a mute mode and improved its UI before the conference.

IM app Kik also joined the group messaging race when it announced a new group messaging feature last week along with an $8 million round of funding. Back in October when the app launched, it was downloaded more than 2 million times within three weeks. In addition to allowing instant messages between groups, it also added a photo-sharing feature.

As the top runners continue to add features, they are starting to look more and more alike. At this point, all four apps allow users to share photos, chat within the app without being charged for text messages, and three of the four enable location sharing. Other startup group messaging apps like PingChat, TextPlus, GroupedIn and Mogwee are also difficult to distinguish.

There are, however, a number of other startups that are eager to put a unique spin on the concept: Yobongo will connect you with strangers nearby for a chat and HurricaneParty is group chat centered around organizing a party.

Which of these companies, if any, will distinguish itself from the crowded competition to become the go-to group messaging app? Tell us in this week’s Web Faceoff poll.



Series Supported by Pepsi MAX

The SXSW Faceoff Series is supported by Pepsi MAX. Come check out the Pepsi MAX Lot at 3rd Street and San Jacinto Boulevard! Follow @PepsiMAX on Twitter for the daily schedule of huge concerts, happy hours, BBQs, games and giveaways! And, well, lots of free soda.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, Neustockimages

More About: Beluga, fast-society, group messaging, groupme, Kik, SXSW Faceoff Series, web faceoff

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Only 58% of Tweets Come From Official Twitter Apps [REPORT]

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 08:55 AM PDT

Only 58% of tweets come from official Twitter clients, according to new data from Sysomos, shedding some light on Twitter platform chief Ryan Sarver’s assertion last week that “90% of all active Twitter users use official Twitter apps on a monthly basis.”

While that 90% figure might very well be true, it doesn’t accurately reflect the popularity of third-party Twitter clients. Of the 25 million tweets sampled since Twitter released its API on March 11, 42% came from non-official apps, Sysomos finds.


The most popular third-party apps were TweetDeck, accounting for 5.5% of all tweets and 13.1% of all tweets from non-official apps, followed by UberSocial and Echofone, all of which are owned by UberMedia.

TweetDeck founder Iain Dodsworth was unable to confirm the findings, as the startup “no longer tracks [its] ecosystem share by the number of tweets sent,” he explained over e-mail. “Instead we focus on our active user number and various levels of engagement within TweetDeck, all of which show strong growth especially over the past six months,” he said.

So while it may be true that Twitter users log on to Twitter.com or the official Twitter application for iPhone a few times per month, third-party clients are still very popular, especially, as tweet percentages suggest, among the service’s heaviest users.

Nevertheless, Twitter has made it clear that it does not want developers to make Twitter clients any longer, citing the importance of providing a consistent user experience across all platforms. Whether Twitter will be able to improve its apps enough to draw users away from third-party clients organically, or will have to take stricter measures to eliminate the competition, remains to be seen.

Do you still use third-party apps to access Twitter, or do you prefer Twitter’s official suite of apps for desktop and mobile devices?

More About: echofone, trending, tweetdeck, twitter, UberMedia, ubersocial

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Can Charity Marketing Really Sell Cars?

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 08:37 AM PDT


Big corporations are waking up to social good in ways that make the most of the web. Well-publicized product launches, not typically where you’d expect to see social good crop up, are starting to include charitable collaborations. The companies get the benefit of good publicity for giving to causes, and the causes benefit from donations and the opportunity to use the launch to garner publicity for themselves.

The launch of the 2012 Ford Focus is one such campaign. The “Start More Than a Car” campaign involves consumers from across the world, each with their own cause, a $400,000+ charity fund, and a social media presence spanning many platforms — all pulled into one Facebook Page.

In late 2010, Ford put out a call for so-called “socially vibrant” people (read: outgoing and influential people who have a presence on social media) with a passion for a global cause to submit a video entry to the competition. The participants, whose causes related to the environment, education or hunger, had to explain why they should be among the first to experience the new Focus and why their charity of choice is a worthy cause for a $10,000 donation. It’s not what you’d necessarily expect from the launch of a family hatchback.

“We’re used to supermarkets, FMCG brands and even banks conveying charitable messages. So why does it feel so different when a car brand does it? I think the clever part of the Ford campaign is that it didn’t name its alliance to one particular charity. It asked the consumer to make that leap themselves,” says Garreth Carter, new media consultant at Automotive PR, specialists in motor industry-related public relations and marketing.

“The charitable community traditionally views car companies as having an inherently evil edge (along with oil companies and fatty fast food outlets). So by throwing the affiliation back to the consumer, Ford managed to remove the heavy hand of forced partnerships between brand and charity. A cynical ploy or new dawn? That’s not for me to say, but by undertaking this campaign, Ford has at least thrown [itself] into that debate.”

In February 2011, Ford whittled down the finalists to 40 people, who represent causes from 13 countries. Ford then invited the finalists to an event in Spain, where rather than give a sales pitch about the new car, Ford held a “test drive” event that highlighted the car’s tech features in a light-hearted and engaging way. Ford also loaned each finalist a new Focus for six weeks to have them blog, tweet, film and otherwise share their driving experience with the public.

Ford’s angle in all this, of course, is that it wants to get the new Focus into the hands of influential, socially-connected consumers who will spread the word about the new car within their social circle. So confident is Ford that its hatchback will perform under everyday conditions that the company has provided iPads and cameras to help winners capture their experience.

So will this work? We spoke to two competition winners to find out.

Winner: The Jubilee Project

The Jubilee Project, a non-profit production group that makes videos for a good cause, created the winning video entry above for City Year, a charity that helps kids stay in school.

The non-profit’s founder, Jason Y. Lee, said the $10,000 donation from Ford “will have a tremendous impact on the work [City Year does] for education in urban communities. This money will translate directly into more volunteers, better resources and an overall improved education for children around the nation. In America, a child drops out of school every 26 seconds. Even if this money ensures one less child gives up on school we believe it’s worth it.”

So it’s clear the charities will benefit from the deal, but will Ford? Will winners actually talk up the car while they have it on loan? We asked Lee if he plans to spread the word about the Focus when he returns to New York. His answer: “We’re brainstorming several ideas for our new Focus, from holding a concert or gala to hosting an online video contest which encourages others to get involved as well. … I’m sure there will be no shortage of friends who will want to borrow it.”

Winner: Givology

focus image

Catherine Gao, a student at the University of Pennsylvania and chief development officer of Givology, a non-profit that helps fund education projects through crowdsourced micro payments, has concrete plans for her six-week loan that make use of the car’s technology features like the Wi-Fi hotspot.

“We plan to use the Ford Focus on a three-city road trip covering the cities of Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and New York,” Gao said, indicating she plans to piggyback on the publicity Ford is creating for the campaign to promote her cause.

“At each location, we are hoping to launch our ’6 Weeks Campaign’ by having industry leaders in the education space give a 60 second lecture on various themes related to giving, education, social entrepreneurship, etc.,” she said.

“We hope to circulate these videos online and to raise awareness for the issues involving education. To highlight the new Focus features such as the Wi-Fi hotspot, we are planning donor registration drives around the car in these cities as well. We hope to get people on the streets to sign up on the Givology website by hosting these registration drives.”

So has the “Start More Than a Car” campaign made a difference to how Lee and Gao view Ford as a company?

“This entire experience has helped to shape my view of Ford as an innovative company that hopes to change its industry through new and green initiatives,” Gao said. “The emphasis on ‘more than a car’ was also very clear in their outreach. … This has allowed me to see Ford as a company that values connection and integration with society and to put their brand name to good use in promoting wonderful social causes.”

So far, Ford has forged positive associations among the influencers chosen to attend their launch event.

Ford’s Perspective

Mashable was invited to the test drive event in Madrid, and we spoke to Brock Winger, who works on the global marketing sales and service operations team for Ford, about why the car company incorporated a social good element into their product launch.

“If you look at our values and our mission statement, the company is centered around having a really strong business and great products and trying to always build a better world in the communities that we live in,” Winger said. “This is just another way to combine the ‘one Ford’ mission and the one global car, our first truly global car, with that better world. We’re trying to bring people together and improve the communities we live in.”

While that may feel like a standard “PR response,” early returns indicate that Ford’s plan to engage influencers around social good topics of their choosing could pay dividends. Although the ultimate success of the campaign can’t be judged — from a business point of view — until sales figures are in, there’s a lot to appreciate from an engagement perspective.

Before Ford revealed its Global Drive plans, the Ford Focus Facebook Page had around 25,000 “Likes.” Today, that figure stands at more than 200,000 — a dramatic increase in just six months. Likes are an important metric for Ford’s marketing department. Further, it appears that many of the finalists who attended the event in Madrid plan to use their influence to promote the car alongside their chosen cause.

So, Will it Work?

We spoke to David Connor, European director of 3BL Media and founder of Coethica to get his take, as a corporate social responsibility expert, on the campaign.

“Ford gives millions of dollars away every year to good causes both directly and through its own community fund. This is tightly managed through a strategic request and application process, so my question is, why give $400,000 away to promote a test drive?” asks Connor.

“Whilst it’s heartening to see the company make such a generous donation, especially in tougher times for the motor industry, it does appear to be an extravagant departure from policy from a business perspective. It may be good for the charities involved but I’m not sure about Ford’s thinking.”

Do you expect to see social good incorporated into more product launches? Will this marketing experiment prove successful? Have your say in the comments below.

Disclosure: Ford is a Mashable sponsor. The author’s trip to Madrid for the Ford Focus test drive event was paid for by Ford.

More Social Good Resources from Mashable:

- HOW TO: Run a Global Charity Event From Your Laptop
- Group Buying for Social Good: 7 Sites Using Daily Deals to Give Back
- 4 Social Trends Impacting the Future of Online Fundraising
- 5 Facebook Giving Campaign Success Stories
- 4 Innovative Social Good Campaigns for Education

More About: charities, facebook, ford, ford focus, MARKETING, social good, social media

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HTC Thunderbolt Available March 17 [REPORT]

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 08:10 AM PDT


HTC Thunderbolt, the first LTE-supporting smartphone on Verizon’s network, will be available starting March 17 for $199.99 with a two-year contract, according to online retailer Wirefly.

Without a contract, the device will cost $669.99.

Wirefly’s site showcases several photos of the device, as well as a full list of specifications: 4.3-inch touchscreen, 8-megapixel camera with LED flash on the back and another 1.3-megapixel camera on the front, 8 GB of built-in memory and 32 GB of additional memory on a microSD card, and a single core 1 GHz Snapdragon CPU.

As far as Android smartphones go, the HTC Thunderbolt is not a groundbreaking device, but its support for LTE makes it special. LTE (Long Term Evolution) is the widely adopted 4G-ready mobile network standard that will enable previously unattainable data transfer speeds (up to theoretical peak download rates of 326.4 Mbit/s) on mobile phones.

[via Computerworld]

More About: 4G, android, htc, htc thunderbolt, LTE, Mobile 2.0, smartphone, verizon

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Doodle Jump Hits 10M Downloads; Promises iPad Version, Toys & More

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 06:57 AM PDT


One of the most popular iPhone games of all time, Doodle Jump, celebrates its second birthday Tuesday. The company announced it reached an important milestone — 10 million iOS and Android downloads — and a lot of important plans for the future.

The game is created and maintained by a small company called Lima Sky, founded by two brothers based in NYC, Igor and Marko Pusenjak. Just like many other popular mobile games, Doodle Jump is very simple: You tilt your iPhone (the game is also available for Android, BlackBerry and Symbian platforms) and try to propel your character as high as possible by pushing off platforms.

Doodle Jump quickly became a huge success, appearing on many official top lists; Apple placed it second on the top iPhone paid apps list, and 10th on the top-grossing iPhone apps list.

Following in the footsteps of Angry Birds, another immensely popular mobile game, the makers of Doodle Jump plan to expand the game to more platforms and even outside the realm of mobile gaming. According to mobile marketing agency Appular, Doodle Jump will soon be coming to the iPad. (The tablet-specific version of the game has been in the works since summer 2010.)

A version of Doodle Jump for Xbox Kinect is also planned, and a Doodle Jump line of toys and comic book are also in the works.

Have you tried Doodle Jump? Do you think it can be successful on platforms other than smartphones? Please share your opinions in the comments.

More About: android, Doodle Jump, game, iOS, ipad, Mobile 2.0, mobile game, smartphone, Symbian

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The 5 Biggest Stories in Tech, Business & Media This Morning

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 06:50 AM PDT

Social Media News

Welcome to this morning's edition of "First To Know," a series in which we keep you in the know on what's happening in the digital world. We're keeping our eyes on three particular stories of interest today.

Microsoft Will Not Release Any More Zune Devices

Microsoft is not planning on releasing any more Zune devices, the company’s answer to the iPod, according to reports. Instead, Microsoft plans to focus on Zune software for smartphones.

iPad 2 Now Shipping in 4-5 Weeks

Due to apparently high demand, shipments for iPad 2 orders are now delayed four to five weeks, up from the original shipping estimate of three to five days.

Google Refreshes Street View

Google has updated the website where it showcases its Street View service, now highlighting places of interest, the locations of Street View vehicles and more.

Microsoft Launches Internet Explorer 9

After months of beta testing and 40 million beta downloads, Microsoft has released the final version of Internet Explorer 9 to the masses.

More Consumers Now Getting News Online Than From Newspapers

More people get their news from the web than from newspapers, and more ad dollars are now going to online outlets than to newspapers as well, according to a new study from Poynter.

Further News

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, DNY59

More About: first to know series, Google, internet explorer, iPad 2, microsoft, zune

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