Marketing Minute – Last Week’s Marketing News Round-up

Hello fellow marketers! This week in our “Marketing Minute” post, we’ve decided to present a few of the more interesting stories in marketing from the previous week. So sit back, relax and enjoy just a few of the more interesting marketing stories from last week.

Could there be so many Wi-Fi hotspots in the US by 2020 that 4G-LTE could be totally ditched by internet consumers? According to an article by David Goldman it may be sooner than later that mobile users can say au revoir to their mobile carriers and hello to free internet service via public Wi-Fi hotspots. The ramifications for marketing could be enormous. Such a scenario would save mobile broadband users an estimated $30 a month, as reported by a Macquarie Group survey last week. Just as importantly, it would mean that ecommerce would be influenced even more by the mobile market with seemingly no constraints on consumers wishing to surf the web on their mobile devices. But before we get ahead of ourselves, there is still the question of internet security on public Wi-Fi hotspots. Therefore, while mobile users may be more likely to visit your online business away from home, they most likely won’t feel secure enough to make a transaction until they are on a secure connection. So while optimizing for mobile will continue to be a must, understanding omnichannel marketing and how to utilize strategy over multiple devices may be a key to future success.

Speaking of mobile carriers, many news outlets including the Washington Post reported last week that AT&T and Verizon are, and have been, tracking their mobile data users with a so-called supercookie. The supercookies collect information on user behavior such as sites visited and categorize consumer and website preferences. Unlike browser settings on desktop computers, however, supercookies cannot be erased in the browser settings and cannot be skirted by going into modes like “incognito” or “private”. While this gave enormous concern to internet privacy advocates, it could be extremely beneficial to marketers. Once the data has been drilled down and can help explain user trends, marketing professionals will be one step closer to understanding mobile audiences and optimizing that journey to their sites.

Lastly, now that the 2014 mid-term elections have come and gone some ecommerce leaders and politicians alike are beginning to wonder what the results may mean to marketing. In a recent interview in the National Review Online, Rep. Texas Senator Ted Cruz stated he feared that the remaining lame duck session, could tempt some GOP members of Congress to support the Marketplace Fairness Act. The MFA would enable state governments to collect sales taxes and use taxes from remote retailers with no physical presence in their state.  Senator Cruz and other Congressmen believe that this would subsequently hurt smaller online companies that sell their commodities nationally.  Others argue that these taxes are needed to level the playing field between online only retailers and Main Street businesses.

What do you think of the Marketplace Fairness Act, or any of the stories above? Do you have other marketing stories you feel we should talk about? Please give us feedback because your opinion matters!