Interactive McDonald's Billboard (MISC/FUN)

McDonald's recently created a billboard that allows customers to play a game using their iPhone while also being sold fast-food, another example of increasingly tying smartphones into marketing.

A McDonald's billboard in Stockholm, Sweden, allows iPhone users to compete against a computer in the arcade game Pong by connecting wirelessly to the billboard. The contest, titled "Pick 'n Play," has users choose a menu item before the game begins. After choosing, the contestant plays a game of Pong on the large screen, controlling their paddle with the phone's touch screen. If they can last for 30 seconds, a coupon is sent to their phone.

Players don't need to download an app to take part in the challenge. The iPhone relates a user's location to the billboard and allows them to sign into PickNPlay.se via the iPhone.

Pick 'n Play isn't the first non-traditional ad campaign put forth by McDonald's in Sweden. A year ago, McDonald's introduced a billboard game in which several different menu items quickly bounced along the screen. If customers had quick trigger fingers and were able to snap a picture of an item with their smartphone camera, they could bring the photo to a near-by McDonald's location and receive the pictured item for free.

Other companies have also taken an interactive approach to advertising. Mobile advertising start-up company Kiip, pronounced "keep," introduced a mobile phone game that rewards players with real-life coupons to retail stores like Sephora, Dr. Pepper and GNC.

McDonald's strategy to tie in whimsical advertising games with free food items is one way to make sure they keep "Lovin' It." The billboard was a creative execution of DDB Stockholm.

QR Codes Flourish as Sun-Maid Puts Them on Packaging (MISC/FUN)

Those ubiquitous QR codes (short for Quick Response) are popping up just about everywhere these days — on print and television ads, on outdoor billboards, in store windows, and on product packaging.

While QR code usage is widespread in Japan, where it was invented, the concept is still gaining traction in the US. But as smartphones proliferate, product marketers like the 99-year old Sun-Maid brand are leveraging the new technology in the hopes of gaining a competitive edge.

In a promotional tie-in with Dreamworks' animated movie Kung Fu Panda 2, which debuts May 26, Sun-Maid is plastering its canisters and six-packs of raisins with the QR code, which take consumers to a mobile website where they can enter a contest to potentially win the grand prize — a trip for four to Zoo Atlanta. Naturally, the top winners will get VIP treatment at the Giant Panda center at the zoo. The company will also give out Kung Fu Panda 2 toys to 100 other sweepstakes winners.

Rick Bruno, VP of brand management for Sun-Maid, tells MarketingDaily, "By keeping the promotion entry simply and easily accessible by mobile devices, we anticipate a lot of entries and overall site activity." In addition to the sweepstakes, the mobile site will include movie trailers, computer wallpaper, and other features. Sun-Maid is pitching the QR code and the contest on its Facebook page as well.

Sun-Maid raisins are a favorite of kids, so the Kung Fu Panda 2 cross-promotion is a natural tie-in. Last year, Sun-Maid ran a promotional tie-in with another DreamWorks Animation character, Shrek.

How to Customize Your iPad for Travel (MISC/FUN)

Now that you’ve arrived at your travel destination, it’s time to put your iPad to use while you travel. Depending on your style of travel, there are plenty of apps from which to choose. If you’re in an urban setting, then you’ll definitely want to download All Subway HD ($0.99). AllSubway compiles comprehensive metro and light rail maps for more than 100 cities around the world and puts them at your fingertips. People love this app because you can quickly and easily access a transit system map without being online and without looking like a tourist. Many have used this app around the world and love its ease of use and convenience.

If you’re in a foreign country, then you’ll need the XE Currency app (Free). Frequent travelers always use the XE currency conversion site whenever they need to find the latest rates, so we’re thrilled to find their iPad app which brings the same high quality of their site to the mobile app. XE is very simple and straightforward. You simply select the currencies you want to convert, the amount and you’re done. It’s a must have app for anyone planning a trip overseas.

Regardless of how far technology advances, I still love having my handy guidebook with me when I’m traveling. There are a couple of areas though where guidebooks stumble: local events and restaurant recommendations. When traveling I always like to know what special events are going on while I’m there, from concerts to special museum exhibits. This is where Goby (Free) enters the scene. In addition to being a great general travel resource with information on popular sites and attractions, it provides current information on local events. Goby also succeeds where guide books fail by providing great dining information. The “Where to Eat” sections in guidebooks are usually too small, too incomplete and many times totally off the mark. I don’t think I’ve ever been happy with a restaurant recommended by a guidebook. Goby, on the other hand, lists all dining options in the area, making aimless wandering in search of good eats a thing of the past. Their listings also provide reviews, contact information and directions.

Airline Gets Creative to Improve Customer Experience (MISC/FUN)

When airline customers think about flying they often focus on flight schedules and possible delays, damaged or lost luggage, and making connections. Its not exactly a happy place for their minds to be. Now, one airline gets creative and is making changes to move beyond that.

Delta Airlines, the one that not long ago added Seattle Best Coffee, will make Apple iPads available to rent on flights from Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) when the airline upgrades its Concourse G terminal at the airport beginning in January 2012. Using "virtual newsstands" at "Media Bars" throughout the terminal, customers will be able to download their choice of content, including publications, movies, music and apps. Once customers reach their destination, a prepaid postage box they got at the time of rental will be used to return the iPad.

Jetstar, an Australian domestic airline, also offers iPads as a form of in-flight entertainment.

Travel Decisions – Dominated By Women (MISC/FUN)

Women—young, old, single, married, and widowed—are fueling an explosive growth in the travel industry. More women are traveling, for business and for pleasure, and they’re calling the shots. Just look around in a restaurant, how many tables are occupied by groups of women?

Of those who currently take nature, adventure or cultural trips, 75% are women. Ten years ago, there were no such statistics. Now we know that the average adventure traveler is not a 28-year old male, but a 47-year-old female. And she wears a size 12 dress.

Last year women travelers spent over $95 billion in Outdoor Equipment, from hiking boots to specialized bike seats designed for the female anatomy. The number of women-only tour operators has increased 230% in the past six years.

According to the LA Times, 80% of all travel decisions are made by women, regardless of who they travel with, pays for the trip, or where they go.

Mom researches and then books the summer vacation for the entire family.

Grandma surfs the Internet, collects brochures, books tickets and accommodations for a multi-generational family reunion at a resort.

A middle-aged empty-nester books a five-day hiking trip with friends while her husband is golfing.

The Viddy (MISC/FUN)

If a picture is worth a thousand words, how many tweets can you get for video footage? Viddy, a new, free app for your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad allows you to shoot, stylize, and share your vacation videos with friends and followers. You know, just in case they're not envious enough that you're off traveling, this little gizmo can really rub their noses in it...real time.

Viddy makes it easy to share your travel experiences on Twitter, Facebook, and your Viddy profile (see footage of England's Stonehenge and San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge courtesy of two budding Viddyographers). And if it gives you the filmmaking bug, you can add visual effects and a soundtrack to your mini masterpiece, too. Phone, camera, action!

Affluency: Being 'Technology-Infused' Proves Taxing for Affluent (MISC/FUN)

As people of means acquire more technological devices to simplify their lives, their lives have actually become more complicated.

The prior decade was a decade of tremendous change, most of it undeniably bad -- 9/11, Iraq, Afghanistan, economic boom years that ended in the Great Recession, the rise of China, massive deficits, political polarization and more. When we asked Affluents in January 2011 how their lives had changed in the previous decade, the top answer -- selected by 79% -- was that they'd become "technology-infused." And it is easy to see why.

Consider that:

• Fully 98% of Affluents are online, averaging over 25 hours of internet use a week.
• Affluents own an average of 3.5 TVs, and three-fourths have at least one high-definition TV.
• Two-thirds have a digital video recorder, of which 58% report always or frequently fast-forwarding through commercials.

The most dramatic changes have been seen in the adoption of "new" media platforms. Smartphones barely qualify as "new media" any more, having gone decidedly mainstream -- 52% of the Affluents own them, rising to 92% if we broaden the scope to those with any kind of wireless or cellular phone.

The newest of the new -- tablets and e-readers -- are seeing explosive growth among the Affluents (who, of course, are not only enthusiastic about media and technology, but also have the discretionary income to buy such devices). Our monthly Mendelsohn Affluent Barometer survey shows that e-reader ownership doubled between September 2010 and April 2011 from 12% to 23%. Tablet growth has been just as dramatic, and it is poised to continue. Consider that 14% of Affluents now have a tablet, and an additional 15% plan to buy one in the next 12 months. Put another way, nearly one-third of the Affluents may own tablets within the next 12 months.

But technology, seemingly like everything else from the last decade, is viewed by the Affluents as something of a mixed blessing. When we asked how their lives had changed over the past decade, "infused with technology" was the most widely cited answer. But equally telling are the phrases coming next on the list -- "more complicated," "more stressful" and "focused on finding ways to do more with less." In contrast, fewer than half said their lives had become "more fun" or "easier."

Expect another trend to continue: Life will continue to get more complicated for those of us in advertising and media. We must understand the growing adoption and use of new technology, as well as the evolving "topography" of platforms and occasions. At each point in this topography, we must understand consumers' level of engagement, receptivity to advertising, preferences for apps vs. web-based content, unmet information needs and much more. And we must do it all in an environment in which consumers feel they are facing more complex and stressful decisions than ever before.