Augmented reality software works to overlay useful info onto a real-world view using a mobile device.  Imagine the amazing apps that commercial ventures could create with the augmented reality technology like the videos show below.  You could walk into your favorite store, search for the products you’re looking for and potentially have information, coupons and offers pushed to you at the exact point when you’re ready to make a purchase decision. Both sides would benefit – stores would have to employee less people and customers would have a richer experience.

Imagine going to an outdoor concert, finding all the folks you know attending that same event and even exploring information about the bands and songs going on at that exact moment.  The list is endless.  Developers and marketers should be salivating like a wild dog over the potential.

Augmented Reality Apps Will Create Deeper Experiences, Be Available in September is a post from Bob Hazlett, a digital marketer who writes at One Half Amazing!

Buried deep in the iPhone OS 3.0 keynote was something which I believe to be very important. Basically, the new OS will offer an improved App Store, which opens many new possibilities for developers and consumers. Developers could sell more things on top of their apps, and consumers would be able to expand their experience with those apps. Apple has promised that improved OS will work within the applications, therefore you can purchase and upgrade new things through the app itself, even while the transaction still goes through the App Store internally. For example, an iPhone game developer could charge for additional game levels or digital content creators, such as magazines could charge for a subscription of 6 issues which ran out after a specific period of time.

What’s the opportunity here for Apple?

This got me to thinking that Apple has the ability and backend already in place to fill the void where Facebook, Google and Amazon have failed us. They could lead a revolution of publishers around the world monetizing content beyond your typical smart phone app. Picture a site that offers digital content subscriptions, collects membership dues on a periodic basis, or provides premium services on their page.  My theory is that Apple could transform your iTunes ID into a single sign-on (similar to Facebook Connect) enabling publishers to charge customers on a recurring basis using a single authorization anywhere digital content is sold.  I envision blogs, podcasts and mobile & social applications. Essentially what I’m talking about is a microtransaction using your iTunes log in.Anyone with a publishers account could now charge and earn significant income from a multitude of sources.

For me, this could do the same thing for online publishers as it did for the struggling music industry and in the same ways it created a marketplace for independent programmers.  Apple is definitely big enough and has the foundation in place to pull it off.

How I envision it working?

Here’s a quick and dirty mockup of how I envision an Apple payment program working on a site such as the NY Times.

Now this is all speculation, but I’d be interested to hear your feedback. Tell me how crazy I am in the comments below.

An Apple Payment System Could Revive Stuggling Publishers and Bring MicroTransactions to the Masses is a post from Bob Hazlett, a digital marketer who writes at One Half Amazing!

The event, which will be held from 1:30 – 4:30 at the Emerge Memphis building will bring two of the most well-respected leaders from the world of innovation, interactive marketing, and user experience.  The private workshop will entail about 60 minutes of presentations and Q&A by both Adrian and C.C. as well as a private panel discussion with both to end the day.  The workshop and panel are both open to the public.  Tickets can be purchased online and will set you back $150.

If you can’t pull away from work that afternoon, but still want in on the action, there will be a free cocktail reception from 5:30 – 7:30 that same evening.  We’d love to have you stop by!

Adrian Ho and C.C. Chapman Teaming Up For Memphis TechFuel Event April 23rd is a post from Bob Hazlett, a digital marketer who writes at One Half Amazing!

1. Prezi – move beyond the standard linear presentation and give your next deck a stunning zooming effect.  Create maps of texts, images, videos, PDFs and drawings. Prezi is still in private beta, but they have a test tool you can kick the tires with.
2. Fliggo – is a platform solution for creating your own video website. Whether it’s a video blog, a YouTube-like community or a private site for your company or family, Fliggo can be as much or as little as you’d like.
3. FeedWeaver - combine multiple RSS feeds into one. Feedweaver allows you to create, filter and mashup personalized RSS feeds similar to Yahoo Pipes, but without the learning curve.
4. Qipit - copy and share notes using your mobile phone.  Capture whiteboards or handwritten notes with your camera and they are converted into a PDF form.
5. Pixlr – online image editor built in flash similar to Photoshop Elements.
6. Drop.io – easily share images, video, audio, documents and other digital content using a simple and private interface.

What is your favorite new webapp?  Login to the comments with your Facebook account below and let me know.

6 Kickass WebApps is a post from Bob Hazlett, a digital marketer who writes at One Half Amazing!

Does anyone know if they offer this in physical book format? I know it sounds silly, but I’d love to have a ‘real’ copy. Maybe Lulu.com can help me.

Razorfish Releases 2009 Digital Outlook Report is a post from Bob Hazlett, a digital marketer who writes at One Half Amazing!

Changing the way your small team works and communicates doesn’t take much effort. Changing the way the entire organization shares ideas, collaborates and communicates is a big movement.

If you know a few easy tricks, its easy to write for search engines, but how do you write and create unique content that people seek out and instantly recognize?

Anyone can create a product or services that people will buy, but how do you move to products that people seek out, talk about and want to become a part of?

I could go on and on.  The point is – the stuff on the top is easy and most people and businesses are willing to stop there.  Take off the blinders, get your hands dirty and dig deeper.  The payoff is much greater than the work required.

How Do You Move To The Bigger Idea? is a post from Bob Hazlett, a digital marketer who writes at One Half Amazing!

What If Everything Changed? is a post from Bob Hazlett, a digital marketer who writes at One Half Amazing!

One idea, 54 hours: Startup Weekenders build real company – Commercial Appeal
Spynnr
Memphis Startup Weekend Blog
Launch Memphis Flickr Photostream

Startup Weekend Memphis Recap is a post from Bob Hazlett, a digital marketer who writes at One Half Amazing!

• there wasn’t such a thing as an iPhone, let alone a cellphone. Remember when you actually had to plan a time to call someone?
• you had to be home at 8pm on Friday night to catch your favorite show because there was no TIVO or on-demand?
• there was no Starbucks?
• you had to visit each of your favorite sites on a regular basis to see if they were updated because RSS hadn’t been thought of yet?
• there was no mapquest or turn-by-turn GPS?
• only the rich and privleged had access to Harvard, Stanford or MIT?
• AltaVista was your search engine of choice?
• you taped your favorite song off the radio when it came on?
• there was no way you’d fill up a 20GB hard drive?
• voting in a presidential election you had the choice of one old white guy or another old white guy?
• it cost too much to quit your job and do something you loved.
• you lost track of friends because Facebook and MySpace were still figments of imagination?

My point is that things change. Business models come and go. Ideas spring from all walks of life.

A majority of the things above weren’t even around 10 years ago. What are you doing right now to prepare your business (and yourself) to be successful in the next 10 years? Do you have a plan? Your business could be gone in the blink of an eye (just ask Blockbuster). Why are you still sitting on that great idea? Get out and get moving. Take action. Talk is cheap.

Do you remember when…. is a post from Bob Hazlett, a digital marketer who writes at One Half Amazing!

The game has changed and Blockbuster just received the biggest wake-up call in their companies’ history. It’s not as if they didn’t see the writing on the wall. Apple has been begun putting distribution channels out of business over the past 5+ years. Not to mention the beating Netflix has already put on Blockbuster.

In my opionon the main advantage that Apple holds are low overhead and scalability. The costs of resources that Apple has remain fairly fixed and will continue to be so. Users downloading an additional copy of iTunes costs them next to nothing. In addition, the advantage of the web makes selling 1 copy vs 1 million copies of a single movie nearly the same.

Blockbuster on the other hand is crippled with fixed (and escalating) costs of doing business. Not to mention store upkeep and such, but also purchasing an additional copy of a movie for the local store is much more than the cost Apple incurs. Blockbuster has a limited number of physical movies that are available in each store, this isn’t the case with Apple and iTunes.

I can remember about 10 years ago when Blockbuster was opening stores almost every 24 hrs. What if they would have taken some of these resources and devoted them new technologies and initiatives? Would Blockbuster be sitting in a better position?

Lessons you can learn from Blockbuster

• It’s not the smartest of the species that survive, but the one that is most adaptable to change.
• Bigger is not always better. some may say that small is the new big. No longer can you compete on size. In the current business environment, companies that rely on being fast and nimble are much more likely to be successfull. Apple should keep this is mind as well, as I’m sure more and more companies and startups looking to take them down.
• Your business can evaporate in the blink of an eye. Now, I’m not saying that all Blockbusters will shut down overnight, but I firmly believe Apple will tighten the noose and Blockbuster’s current business will cease to exsist. Netflix has seen the erros of those that came before them. They will survive and continue to fight Apple for market share.

What would you do if you were the CEO of Blockbuster? How do you modify your business plan? What should other businesses take away from this situation?

Additional Resources:
The Internet Changes Everything
Blockbuster, Netflix shares fall following Apple’s movie rental service launch

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Goodbye Blockbuster, It Was Nice to Know You is a post from Bob Hazlett, a digital marketer who writes at One Half Amazing!