The media is buzzing about this big news – read all about it from our friends at: AdExchanger, AlleyWatch, Bloomberg, BusinessInsider, CANewsLTD, Globes, MarketWatch, MediaPost, Reuters, SiliconAngle, Techmeme.

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It would be a mistake, however, to think that the advent of smart cities is inevitable. The sheer degree of technological integration requires some basic infrastructure that isn’t all there yet. At the core of the smart city vision is data collection, storage, and sharing among countless sources, from utility companies to traffic services. Within that focus is the addition of new data sources coming through sensors that reveal traffic patterns, pedestrian movement, resource consumption, and more. The Internet of Things will require sensors and devices to be powered 24/7, with data transfer capabilities always at the ready.

Under the status quo, this will likely require a gargantuan number of wires to be installed or batteries produced (and replaced) – some estimate we’d need 1 trillion of them in just three years. Installing and maintaining these will be costly, inefficient, and environmentally unsustainable, effectively nullifying the benefits of a smart city in the first place. The devices that make up the backbone of a functioning smart city will have to be powered by another source.

Enter wireless charging. Already, tech companies have begun mainstreaming inductive charging for mobile phones, a form of close-range wireless power. Mid-range charging is also becoming more accessible to the public market. Long-range wireless charging, however, is the only solution that will provide enough power over a great enough distance to beat the challenges faced by wires and batteries. It opens the possibility of blanketing an area with coverage, powering thousands of devices at once.

Long-range charging technology is still in its infant phases. The latest developments either function only in an enclosed metal room, or cover just a few devices at once. But there are plenty of actors in the space who are working on stretching the range and power of the technology, with an eye towards commercialization in the future. Major companies like Apple and Sony, for example, are already patenting power-at-distance concepts for consumer devices. Intentionally or not, these innovators may develop technology that becomes instrumental in making the smart city vision come to life.

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But does the growing supply match the demand? Marketers themselves are rather cautious about embracing the new technology. A recent survey by Yes Lifecycle Marketing found that only 8% of marketers are currently using VR, and 57% say that it does not apply to their organization. The majority still rely on standard mediums like social media and video. Samantha Merlivat, a Forrester analyst, explains that “it has been very difficult to find a brand that has made a compelling use for VR. Planning your brand story around a three-minute video…is not something I would call compelling.” Moreover, data on the consumer side show that sales for VR devices have been lower than forecast, and those who do make the investment are largely concentrated in one consumer group – gamers. The audience for the latest and greatest VR advertising ploys is, for now, quite narrow.

What does this mean for the future of virtual reality? Will it ever achieve scale and become a mainstream marketing tool? This depends on whether VR developers can make a value proposition that the average consumer can buy into. The industry today is cluttered with many different models of content, marked by varying user complexity and a wide range in pricing. In order to achieve widespread adoption, the technology must be offered on platforms that are simple to use and access but still high in quality, with some overarching “pull factor” that drives consumers to actively seek them. Analysts from Greenlight Insights believe that “mainstream adoption [of VR gear] will be accelerated by the development of a ‘killer consumer app,” perhaps from “social networking in virtual reality.” They also suggest that Google’s exploratory work on standalone headsets with built-in computing and communications systems could lead to the watershed device that brings VR to the mass market.

If the technology can reach that inflection point, the innovations of the VR industry will truly represent the new frontier of marketing and advertising. The next several years of VR development will certainly be an exciting time to watch.

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What makes small businesses so unique yet great? From what I’ve seen and experienced, it’s a variety of things. Small businesses have the ability to be nimble, creative and imaginative. I’ve found that many small business employees are quite resourceful and always up for banding together to conquer a new challenge. Small business employees get to wear many hats and get their hands dirty (in the best ways!) in projects spanning the business. For instance, in the morning I may be drafting a pitch for a client, in the afternoon I could be in a new business brainstorm, and then before I leave, I’ll be working on social media posts for our marketing team. Not to mention, these employees get to work closely with nearly everyone because at a small business, it is truly a team effort and mentorship is easy to find. Colleagues to get to know each other better and learn firsthand from the senior-level employees because everyone is in it together. Small businesses truly foster the “team effort” mentality.

Small businesses also have less red tape and bureaucracy to cut through than massive corporations. With the smaller size comes greater agility to adapt to new trends or try something outside of the businesses’ wheelhouse. Working at a small business is also a good test for employees to see if they would be interested in starting their own business one day because they will get to learn from someone who has accomplished just that. We see and get to work with our fearless leaders, Breakaway’s Managing Partners, Kelly and Pam in New York and Barb in San Francisco, in the office every day.

It’s easy to see the outcomes of your hard work and where it fits into the business’ larger goals. At big companies, employees can get lost in the shuffle, but at a small business, every person at every level plays a role in the company’s success. At Breakaway, we have a “Kudos” wall where we proudly display great kudos our team members have received. Spot bonuses are awarded for great client work.  If you don’t believe me that small businesses breed happy employees, take these stats from an Aflac study that found 94 percent of small business employees are happy in their current jobs and 75 percent are very satisfied working for a small business.

The team’s successes are celebrated collectively, and any failures are looked upon as teachable lessons. Small businesses are a great place for professionals at any stage of their career to learn, grow, succeed and tackle various projects.

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The rise of autonomous vehicles will not only make commuting a breeze but it will also permanently change the global ad industry. With the increased free time self-driving cars give consumers, there is an enormous opportunity for advertisers to attract, retain and engage them with video ads on in-car displays. This new breed of cars is a revolution for automakers, consumers and advertisers alike.

Although the autonomous car seems to have come out of nowhere, it has been almost 100 years in the making. In 1920, Francis W. Davis developed the hydraulic power-steering system, which reduced the physical effort necessary to turn the wheel. While this might seem like a simple and necessary development, it set the driverless car in motion by inspiring cruise control, a feature that has evolved into the ultimate self-driving machine: the autonomous vehicle.

Driverless cars are set to improve the roads by removing any chance of human errors — which account for around 90 percent of motor vehicle crashes—but many don’t think about the opportunities they represent for advertisers. Jim Harrison, global CE of Gain Theory claims that “cars are essentially becoming the next must-have mobile device.” They are going to make it possible to seamlessly bring your living room and office into your “auto room.”

Driverless cars are going to make it possible for consumers to keep up with their daily tasks while commuting.  For those of us always on the go, this has the potential to vastly improve our productivity. For advertisers, having the opportunity to reach drivers during their ride time with little distraction means a greater chance of an interactive audience. Automakers will benefit from both advertisers and consumers as spending in the autonomous-car industry will explode to $43.2 billion globally, receiving profit from not only the car itself but also from the services that will be consumed while not driving.

When it comes to the future of cars, the only question is “what’s next?”

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How did the GIF go from stock quotes to fully animated images?

In the above-linked WIRED article, Klint Finley writes, “But the most important thing about the format was that [GIF creator Steve] Wilhite had the foresight to make it extensible, so that other developers could add custom types of information to GIFs. That enabled the team behind the Netscape browser to create the animated GIF standard in 1995.”

And there we have our answer: The GIF survived, and now thrives, because its creator had the foresight to build adaptability right into it.

Including flexibility in an innovation is an act of admitting you can’t see the future but you think your technology will be of use in it. This approach allows others – or even you, the innovator – to revisit a technology and retool it for modern needs, helping ensure that technology’s survival and aiding its success.

The animated GIF experienced a brief boom before lingering in obscurity throughout much of the late’90s and the ’00s. But the Netscape-modified Wilhite creation soon came roaring back, bolstered by improved Internet connections and a referential culture. The technology met the moment perfectly, thanks to its modifications, and we experienced the glut of GIFs that to some represents communication in the mid-2010s. Today, we have apps with built-in “GIF keyboards,” including Twitter, Slack, Facebook Messenger and Apple’s native iOS messaging app.

No matter what you want to express, these days there is almost certainly a GIF for you.

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For Elektrobit’s marketing team, CES 2017 provided an opportunity to showcase how the company is defining the future of mobility with innovation. EB’s newest solutions enable carmakers and Tier 1 automotive suppliers to develop and bring to market highly automated and fully autonomous driving systems. There can be challenges associated with demonstrating an embedded software solution at a consumer show, but when coupled with a fun technology demo, and two news announcements, we were able to support the marketing team’s mission by taking a three-pronged approach to our media relations:

1. Reconnect with media we already know such as Car & Driver and The Roadshow by CNET, and work with regularly to reinforce Elektrobit’s position as a pioneer in the industry who is defining the future of mobility through innovation;

2. Educate new media/analyst contacts such as Inside Unmanned Systems and IDC Research, about autonomous driving and offer EB’s executives as thought leaders deeply involved with what’s happening in the industry;

3. Create a relaxed environment where a handful of journalists could spend an evening with EB’s executives to build stronger relationships and rapport, and have more candid conversations about the industry. Larger events and mixers often don’t provide the best opportunity to really connect, but by providing a comfortable interaction, it’s a win for everyone. Four important influencers have actually become regular attendees of this annual event because it’s an opportunity to learn.

Autonomous driving was one of the hottest topics at CES this year and we had the opportunity to meet with and educate media from outlets that are less connected to the traditional automotive industry publications WIRED, Embedded Computing Design, PC World and more.

We also developed a social media strategy to highlight how EB is defining the future of mobility with innovation including pre-show and live/from the show floor posts on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. EB featured a fun demo in its booth this year, demonstrating its self-driving software platform in 1/8 scale model cars. This was a big draw for the booth and great imagery for social media.

Overall, the show was a great success for Elektrobit. Executives interacted with 35 press and analysts at the show and we’ve already seen double digit unique pieces of coverage post less than a week after the show ended. We’re also actively following up with the folks we met with for follow-on interviews and contributed article opportunities, further expanding the impact of the show presence. Showcasing embedded software at a consumer show is no easy task, but with creative technology demonstrations and strategic communications, Elektrobit is making it look quite easy.

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And I’m not alone. According to one study, there are now 198 million active ad block users around the world. It’s a Catch-22 almost as old as widespread use of the Internet: no one wants to pay for content, but no one wants to deal with ads, either. However, if content can’t be supported via ad revenue – and if readers are unwilling to comply with (or sometimes even honor) pay walls – there won’t be much Internet to browse. It would seem that the only way for an ad to both drive revenue and avoid either annoying or threatening end-users is for it to be as unobtrusive and tamper-proof as possible while still being effective. That’s a tall order.

Forrester’s James McQuivey sees the way forward as more proactive approaches to advertisement, such as gamification, or even getting closer to the audience: putting ad breaks into headphones themselves.

By integrating ads into headphones’ firmware – or by making them “part” of the headphones in some other way – you circumvent a lot of the opportunity to block them. Additionally, the audio-only medium inherently limits just how in-your-face an ad can get – that is, only in your ear. There are no annoying popups to clog your screen and your RAM or sketchy banner ads to, when accidentally clicked, quietly start a download that could ultimately brick your hard drive.

However, when blocking is no longer an option, there has to be an apparatus in place to prevent “bad” content from getting through. While auditory malware is an unlikely scenario, an ad that begins with an obnoxiously high, piercing note isn’t too far-fetched. Nor is the idea of inappropriate audio ads reaching children. Like so much to do with the Internet, headphone-based ads would fall into a regulatory gray-area. Without government mandates, it may be hard to get the entire headphone industry onboard with ads – headphones without ads could become a selling point, for instance, making ad-ready headphones a hard sell. They could charge consumers more for the ad-free option, but having to pay more for less technology may rub people the wrong way. For these reasons, short of widespread collusion or government oversight, this idea – no matter how potentially perfect in terms of effectiveness, safety and unobtrusiveness – may have trouble getting off the ground, in my opinion.

What do you think?

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“Under the Influence:”

In these 30-minute episodes, Host Terry O’Reilly delves into the boardroom to illuminate the nuances of advertising, marketing and public relations tactics that often vie, and sometimes fail, to get stakeholders’ attentions. In an episode that really captured me, O’Reilly analyzes the some of the world’s most long-lived brands and the keys to their success.

For me, Terry’s Stella Artois case study was the most compelling. As one of the oldest continuously-operating company, founded in 1366, Stella Artois has cultivated an upscale image carrying its long-standing slogan, “reassuringly expensive.”  He describes how, in the early 2000s, Stella Artois made a fateful decision that would have a big impact on their reputation; they chose to start selling their beer in supermarkets. On paper this decision made sense, as grocery stores gave Stella thousands of new locations to sell from. However, stores began discounting the beer and treating the product as a loss leader—a product designed not to earn profit, but used as an advertising ploy to attract customers inside. Once inside the customer then in turn spends money on more profitable items. Stella’s taste, high alcohol percentage and discounted price, spurred young men to start drinking Stella. A number of these young men were binge drinkers and rabble-rousers. Suddenly, Stella Artois’ upscale image was tarnished by pictures of soccer hooligans causing trouble and drinking Stellas. As a result, respectable pubs and upscale supermarkets stopped distributing Stella Artois. Moreover, their catch-phrase, “reassuringly expensive,” no longer made sense. The company pushed to reclaim their heritage and their image. To do this, they first pulled their brand out of certain supermarkets. The company’s marketing pivoted to focus on the beer’s high quality and brewing standards with the new theme line “she is a thing of beauty.” They also printed a 9-step instructional pouring poster to accompany the new Stella Artois chalice. These tactics changed the conversation and convinced the public to look at the beer in a new light. Cheers.

“99% Invisible:”

Design is all around us, but so much of it goes unnoticed. “99 P.I.,” a podcast hosted by Roman Mars, investigates the process and power of design on all scales from flags to cities themselves. Mars has an uncanny ability to make topics that typically would only peripherally interest me, and bring them to center-stage for further exploration. Episodes are generally 20 minutes long. One of my favorite episodes was about the architecture of San Francisco’s Chinatown when it was rebuilt after the 1906 earthquake. Prior to the quake, this neighborhood looked like the rest of SF. With the chance to start fresh, the now iconic pagodas sprouted to match Americans’ ideas of what China looked like, but in reality they more closely mirrored Chinese design from centuries prior. These and many more topics make “99% Invisible” 100 percent worth your time.

“Planet Money:”

Ever since I read “Freakonomics,” I have been looking for consumable case studies with a particular focus on behavioral economics. NPR’s “Planet Money” does just this for me with topics that range from the unbundling by cable companies to the price of buying a foreign passport. This show does not require an advanced degree in finance, because it makes complex economic concepts accessible. In a recent episode, Adam Davidson discussed the implications of a mall that straddled two municipalities with differing minimum wages. This episode delved into the costs for store owners and employees on both sides of the mall.

“Think Again:”

Unlike the other podcasts described above, “Think Again” has an atypical format that differs from the public radio model. Jason Gots surprises the world’s brightest minds with ideas they are not at all prepared to discuss. The show asks these experts from their respective fields to candidly comment on hand-picked previously recorded interviews from the Big Think archive. For me, the podcast provides insight into the minds of some of the best and brightest to illustrate how each processes and values ideas that often require a high level of nuance. Moreover, there is something compelling to the “beginner’s mind” angle. If you are looking for an episode to start with, try episode 41 with poet Sarah Kay as she discusses who gets—and inversely who doesn’t get—a voice, what she would do if the Earth was imminently doomed by an asteroid impact and much more.

Let’s face it, there are few things that can make one’s commute less awful. For me, these podcasts allow me to tune out the overcrowded railcars that are Bay Area Rapid Transit and tune in to something much more pleasant and stimulating. I’m always on the hunt for new podcasts that cause me to lose track of time, so for those commuters who are also listening to something surprisingly interesting, let me know below what podcast you have on tap.

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Twitter’s timeline is intended to enable you to never miss important Tweets from people you follow. The algorithm, which is built similarly to the one that populates the “while you were away” feature introduced a year ago, is meant to bring the tweets it thinks you would find most interesting to the top of your feed upon initial login. This, of course, means that Twitter’s feed is no longer being displayed in chronological order and to many, this is a huge change and one that is triggering some uproar.

According to a Marketing Land article, Twitter’s goal with the new timeline is to boost visibility of brands’ best organic content and to get more users interacting with that content. In essence, the brands’ best tweets will live at the top of their streams; this is supposed to get users engaged right away without having to scroll through less engaging posts. Twitter is implementing this new timeline in an effort to revamp its advertising strategy and ultimately, increase positive engagement of brands’ posts.

So what does this mean to PR professionals in our efforts to ensure our clients’ content is engaging as possible? When it comes to the work we do for our clients, I would consider this motivation to produce tweets that are more engaging and knowledgeable than the last.  Ultimately, the more compelling and targeted content means a better match for the algorithm and will encourage engagement and followers to keep coming back for more.

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