Yeah I said it.

Believe me… I was the most psyched person in the world about Google Voice. As you might remember (or if you don’t here is a link), I have a fairly complex phone system. 5 numbers, 3 cellphones, 1 desk phone. I manage it pretty well using Skype (international forwarding/calling, messages) as a hub.

Out comes Google swinging with this awesome idea that you can use a single number as an “Uber Hub”. I start thinking to myself: “Self, you can have one number that gets voice mail (VM) from others, SMSes out, can call internationally for a discount, and can ring any phone as long as you have credit”. I was giddy when I got my invite to the service. I was wrong.

Read on for the full post!

What Google Voice does:

1. Forwards calls to any US number
2. Dials your contact and your cell…connects.
3. Lets you call from your cell with special dialer (BB & Android only)
4. Dial with their international rates (like a call card).
5. SMS within the US for free from the Google Number
6. Forwards SMSes from Google Number to your devices
7. Records VM coming to your Google Number

Before I even consider fully converting I would need:

1. forward to international phones
2. the ability to take over VM services (like YouMail) for ALL devices
3. make me not think about the dialer (there is a paid 3rd party app to do this)

Problem #1:

If I make a call from my dialer while in Dubai, I still pay AT&T roaming on my US line. International forwarding is a MUST. That’s right, including a self sorting way to always call and receive from a local “Google” number even if my main line is US-based.

Problem #2:

Imagine this scenario:

I go to California and meet Michelle. Michelle (disclaimer: not an actual person) is a lovely lady who works for a content producer who my company is likely to do business with. We exchange information and then set up a follow up meeting. Michelle confirms the meeting by SMS that I get on my US (non Goog) number because I am mobile. I reply from that number.

Now Michelle has 2 numbers for me. With my current system it doesn’t matter which of the 5 you call, I pick it up in one place. With Google Voice if she calls the Google number and I don’t pick up it leaves a message in Google. If she calls my US number it leaves a message in Skype.

So I am in Dubai and miss a US call (Michell wants to meet me at MIPCOM in a few months) because I didn’t bring my US cell while I went downstairs for coffee. Now I have two potential sources of VM outside the physical phone on me. This isn’t simpler than what I have already.

Problem #3:

People will exacerbate problem #2 if you can’t make a dialer that “takes over” the phone. On a BB you are introducing a bunch more clicks to the process of calling someone. I’ll do it for international calls to save money… but will not be bothered otherwise. BB and Android are a start… sad to see S60 from Nokia didn’t make the cut as they have more handsets in the market than Google and RIM combined.

There is a third party tool to fix this. It is called GVdialer and was recommended my a commenter in my last post about the topic. I love “the little guy”, but for lasting communication solutions I like big companies. Unfortunately for the GVdialer team I think Google will make this capability free in the near future.

Conclusions:

Now now… Google can (and likely will) fix all 3 rather easily. I imagine these grievances being tended to in the order described here. I would say #1 before ‘09 is out.

However… I have a philosophical question: Who am I doing this for? This costs money and I still have to carry many phones until all 3 of my issues are fixed. Except for adding a decently cool number to my list of ways to be reached… what has Google done for me TODAY? Most people know to reach me by email, skype, or gtalk …. My numbers are appended to every email signature… just call the one you like, makes no difference to me

For now I will just be happy with using my 5 invites to prank people into sexting.

It turns out my prediction was totally right! I mentioned in a previous post about MWC Barcelona (Mobile World Congress) that we are going to see some motion in the direction of a light rich mobile internet, and Adobe and friends did not disappoint with the Open Screen Project

In retrospect, it was not that hard of a call to make. Between the iPhone, Palm Pre, Android, and refreshed Symbian phones the Western World is finally seeing some great multimedia prowess in their phones.

The premise behind this movement is to assure that users have a seamless experience between their various devices. Makes sense: I don’t want to go to a rich flash site and then see a dinky WAP site when I go to the same address on my mobile browser.

What I have to mention though is that we are a few leaps away from this dream. Standardization is major issue. Its hard enough for a developer to have a site look identical on every single desktop browser available, much less their mobile counterparts.

2009, then, will not be the year of ubiquitous seamless experiences on mobile platforms. What I hope we will see is an increasing amount of resources behind enabling rich content consumption on mobile platforms.

It is this humble gent’s opinion that entities that will want to be forward with mobile engagement will do is create customized experiences depending on the platform. In essence, create different sites for every platform. We are already seeing this with the iPhone. There is a fantastic plug-in that allows Wordpress admins to generate wholly different sites when iPhones visit their domains. It is called WPtouch and it is a harbinger of mobile content.

Those online destinations with a bit more oomph (development resources) actually build custom iPhone apps that allow the user to have an optimized experience on their iPhone. The Boy Genius Report is a perfect example of this. This is the way it should be… the iPhone does not have a 15-inch screen and optimized layouts allow for the most user friendly way of consuming data.

If I was to build a site I wanted to attract mobile users to, I would essentially create multiple sites. One would be for the desktop audience and others for the different kinds of mobile browsing platforms available.

That’s right. If someone is using mobile Opera, the Nokia S60 browser, the BlackBerry browser or (in the near future) the Palm Pre browser, they would each get a different site that is optimized for screen size and performance of the device they are using to access the site. Why shouldn’t they?

The point is that creating a pleasant mobile experience will draw users to your destination since they will enjoy consuming content on your site more than a non mobile enabled competitor site.

Are there any out-of-box CMS systems that are optimized for mobile users? I haven’t seen any. Shoot me an email or leave a comment if you know of some!

How many phone numbers do you have?

Some of us are lucky enough to just have one, others (like me) don’t have that luxury. To keep sane I have a pretty well sorted system that I use to keep it all in check. Here are my phones and how I sort them:

1. US private/personal mobile number
2. US BlackBerry work mobile number (with attached unlimited world data plan, cheap data no voice plan)
3. US “Desk” Skype number
4. UAE “Desk” phone number
5. UAE mobile

I will let you in on a little secret: there are only two devices.

My ATT BlackBerry is just an email device. I do not give that number out to anyone. The ATT BlackBerry data plan is the cheapest I’ve seen in the world.

Now for the other 4:

My private phone is on a family unlimited US plan. That number calls to my US based skype number which has unlimited international calling. The skype number forwards to my mobile phone from Etisalat in the UAE that has free incoming.

My UAE desk phone forwards to my UAE mobile phone.

My outbound calls are either made through my UAE cell or if international my Skype Out account (connected through a VPN since its blocked in the UAE). Etisalat also happens to have some of the cheapest roaming charges around.

In case I miss a call, my voicemail system sends me an MP3 via email that I can sort and listen to at any time.

I use a Nokia E51 (highly recommended, pictured above) for all my voice calls (including skype through Fring) and a road warrior Curve as my mobile data hub.

In short: Use an online call/routing system to call a line that has free incoming calls as a “hub number”. Have that number be the number where you get a lot of calls from, but not where you local mobile is.

Shoot me an email or leave a comment if you have a better system

I love that post big conference period when keynotes and studies hit the web. Mobile World Congress  in Barcelona is starting this week and is looking like a riot. New devices, further web integration, and a decrease in bulging pockets are all welcome. Most importantly though, I am interested in what 2009 will hold for mobile marketing.

I will definitely follow up the conference with some thoughts, but here are two predictions that I look to hearing most about:

1. Light rich content is going to step up hard. Mobile bandwidth is not free (sorry, State-side readers) in most parts of the world and as more phones ship with powerful web browsers there will be a need for a 3rd kind of mobile site. Currently we can zoom and pan around full sites with Xed out media, plow through text on a WAP site, or buy an iPhone and hope that the site has an optimized interface for the iphone. With Nokia, Samsung, and Palm pushing hard into the connect multimedia phone space it will be interesting to see how developers optimize mobile experience for those users. I have more thoughts on this that I’ll write in detail about later (really, I will!).
2. SMS will reign supreme. Yes, some of us can now email, chat, tweet, stream, and listen to music from our phones. That great and all, but most users can’t and SMS will remain as a cheap, fast, and convenient way of reaching people. SMS is also the least complicated and most reliable system. When my BlackBerry shows “GSM” on the top right… I can still text a few friends what my plans are. As such, I see further innovation with opt in direct marketing using short codes. I was a notorious Google Text user when I lived in the States and I believe that these capabilities will trickle down to smaller sized businesses.

I would say #2 is for sure, #1 is a toss up with how much progress has occurred that we don’t know about already.

For those who are attending, I am hugely jealous. Barcelona is amazing. Enjoy.

I had the pleasure of reading  Deloitte’s annual “The State of the Media Democracy” study. Here are some publicly available stats that I believe are indicative of where its all headed:

Millennials (ages 14 – 25) spend more time with media per week, but less time watching television, and mobile devices are primary entertainment channels for them.

Ok. I’m one of these. Yes I consume more media daily. No, I do not watch any TV. Even when I had full access to HD cable glory, I would prefer to run TV shows and movies from my media center… aka big hard drive with content hooked up to a USB enabled DVD player. TV is great, but unless you are ponying up for a cable co dvr, you are out of luck in terms of on demand content.

In 2009, more than ever, people want to access their content when they want to for an affordable price.

58% of all respondents want to easily connect their TVs to the Internet to download or view content or view content on their PC. That number bumps up to 70% for Millennials.

Building on the point above…

This is where Netflix GETS IT. XBOX + Netflix is the best thing since sliced bread. No more waiting for disc in the mail (so archaic!) and no new hardware! This is great! These types of deals are showing us that we are headed to the convergence of TV, internet, and home computing. Windows Media Center and Apple TV are a decent start, but still not mainstream enough. Xbox is mainstream. I am still waiting for the day when I can  whip out a phone and using a shortcode order a netflix movie via sms, and have it all loaded up in HD automatically to my STB (Set-top Box) which remains in a powersaver mode until it gets the comand. If this same box is also my gaming station and my cable box, all the better. I want to see the end of having a dvd, dvr/cable box, game box, and <insert other device here> clutter up my TV space, eat power, and create a web of wiring confusion in my living room.

60% want the ability to move their content to any device they own without any problems.

The last part is key. That TV show that I downloaded at home… If I want to watch it on my 3g phone while waiting at an airport lounge or riding a train, I should be able to do it. Its my content. I paid for it. Serve it to me when its convenient for me. I (and many others) will pay for that… just don’t make me go to MIT to figure it out ok? Thanks.

Lessons?

1. Lines between devices that are used for media consumption are bluring
2. Convergence is good if functional
3. On demand (location and device agnostic) media providers will be kings

To date, I am a huge fan of the paper PDA (I’ll touch on why in another post) for my to dos and notes. Meetings, however, are kept on mobile devices. Google Calendar, BlackBerry, and Outlook meeting invites rule the day.

If you are not a couch potato and not a cubicle dweller, you meet people. You take a meeting here.. .a meeting there. You might be meeting someone for lunch. If you are active and up and about you are ruled by your mobile device calendaring.

Here is an idea. RIM, Apple, Palm, Microsoft, Nokia… Listen up!! I am giving away a free idea so that your customers love your devices more.

If I have a meeting in 30 minutes, my Blackberry tells me “Hey you have a meeting in 30 minutes”. That’s it! What a waste!

How about a single click option to send a “I’m running 20 minutes late” email to everyone on the meeting invite… and automatically send a text message to them as well if they are in your phone book. This saves valuable rush hour/vital  phone call minutes on actually getting there on time and finishing the conversation without having to send an email or make extra apologetic phone calls. Shit happens. People run late. Everyone understands… now how about a mobile device that eases the process?

You are welcome.