Mobile Technologies

Imagine commuting home on the train and pre ordering and paying for your Indian take-away via the mobile. Walk in pick it up or get it delivered at a set time, no credit cards and certainly no cash. Simply a text confirms your order and approved payment credentials. It even tells you what you ordered last time and offers you the loyalty points or free beer right there and then. Payment is verified via a mobile virtual voucher the charge appears on your mobile bill. You then decide to send your sister £50 for her birthday and you ping her the amount via a text message and she can walk into any retailer (not a bank) and collect her birthday money. Don’t imagine any longer just move to Kenya where this actually is in practice now.

Ask any western mobile service provider or certainly any restaurant voucher or discount club provider to name one of the biggest mobile pre order/pre-payment companies in this Kenyan example who operates in ‘mobile intelligent payment sectors’ and they will not know of txteagle ( 2 billion customers in 80 Countries!)

Recent research in the U.K. and U.S. by mobile transaction network mBlox found that British shoppers use mobile coupons more than their American counterparts – 29% vs. 15%.

These figures will rise in 2011/12 as 71% of British and 42% of American consumers expressed an interest in having coupons delivered to their mobile handsets. Coupons alone will not be the only answer.

So you can see why we have seen a rise in investment by Restaurant chains to invest in this early first stage of mobile technology. Ask any IT Directors in the Catering sector and they think if they have a Voucher or Coupon based CRM mobile solution they have a mobile strategy, so VERY wrong indeed.

Apps are NOT the answer as they are limited, unique to vendor and often the designed iPhone app only reaches the 14% of Iphone owners and not open to other mobile infra structures like Blackberry or new 3G and 4G mobile next generation models.

“2011 is poised to be a huge year in the advancement of mobile for retail,” said Sean M. Alexander, technology analyst at IHL Group. “iPhones, iPads and Android devices have all moved past the stage of being cool and into the mainstream.”

The mobile device is here to stay and grow in popularity especially for pre ordering or pre paying for retail goods, discounting or marketing through the mobile device has shaken off any stigma attached to its use, perhaps in part due to the convenience of electronic and mobile formats. While only 1.5% of all coupons are currently distributed digitally, redemption rates are impressive at around 10-15% or as Pizza Express recently stated over 30% compared to an overall paper voucher or direct mailing campaign of 1.2% redemption rates.

Clearly the phone is challenging the way business is carried out in our new mobile world.

“The EPOS providers have had it their own way for long enough say Technology experts in the USA, after all most FPOS/EPOS systems are not complicated technical pieces of kit running equally complicated programs any more (the fear factor within) ..They are only overly priced PC’s with a cash drawer”.

If you assume this stance from the beginning you can begin to appreciate the huge cultural change in how Restaurant and Hotel Brands will take orders or payment or even do their necessary stock control in the very near future. From the how employees will track these orders, how consumers will pay for goods and even to the how CRM/Loyalty schemes operate will change inevitably from paper and plastic cards to consumer’s mobile screens. This viral existence, this dramatic change, will come with next generation mobile phones and the launch of iBook’s. From Australia to USA to Finland to Kenya this is already happening. If in the UK our present Blackberry’s, iPhones and 3G networks can handle this system now why are we not seeing this happening here? The answer is the banks and credit cards control and influence over our finance acts.
So where does this take us here in UK? It’s time for a rethink so be prepared for change. Just Google mobile payments and read the worlds move to this technology. If Japan has it, as does Scandinavia how long before we order our pizza not by APPS but by simple text recognition or by QR Codes to give them their correct title (QR stands for Quick Read) these new square chequered boxes we’re seeing increasingly in advertisements, on products and in our papers can hold millions of pieces of data, the best CRM/Loyalty schemes embedded in their millions of pixel points running loyalty schemes for pennies not pounds The airlines and the rail authorities are already issuing these as e-tickets.

Moving Food Ltd and Juniper Research estimate 15 billion e-tickets will be issued by 2014 in the UK alone!! (From cinemas to stadiums to air/rail and events) So why not in our Catering arenas?

Well nor surprisingly in Scandinavia you can now charge anything up to €25 to your mobile phone bill bypassing the Credit Card companies or Banks, so from parking to your Latte appears on your phone bill, France just passed a new finance act allowing €10 to be their set limit. UK governed by the banks and credit card companies will be slow to adopt legislation, but it’s coming this year.

This new way to order or pay does not require a brand specific app or log into the brands web site to order, all done by a central one number code like a pin number that applies across ALL retailers of your choice.

The scary thing is, and this really does challenge the EPOS providers, most of these mobile systems are free, no infrastructure costs, no maintenance fees and no hard ware to break down…the Restaurant operators will pay for the system through a small transaction fee to manage their menu content, their payments and CRM/Loyalty schemes. Updating promotions or new menu’s takes hours not days. These new innovators in mobile technologies offer added revenue streams as the consumer can be charged for using the system too. Data can be with consumer approval matched with other retailers (Starbucks customers share points with Interflora) this e-tailing is also available now. Your Floor manager will have their own Blackberry where the payment is verified, just as the Parking Attendants do on the high street when you pre pay via your phone now.

Checking into Hotels and pre ordering payment of the room and checking out already exists in Scandinavia, with built in CRM and is coming into the UK in 2011.

Imagine this for a moment: I book my airline and my meal and my duty free and my drinks via my mobile device, a QR Code is flashed back and this gets me onto the aeroplane. A text message arrives when I am in Departures and says, “Did you want the normal Chanel No 5 and Bottle of Gordon’s Gin to await you when you return to London or shall we deliver to your house”? Imagine no longer, this is getting launched this year by several airlines!

So loyalty is rewarded immediately, latte’s to sandwiches to pints of beer will appear on your mobile phone bill and no longer will you need to stand in line at the till to order or waive down a waiter for payment. What is more you will not have to search for a brands app or squint at your screen searching for a brands web site to order or review their menu for payment…well just as they do in Kenya enter via your own personalised shopping site accessed via your mobile and use your secure pin to shop or eat away.

Watch this space and watch this revolution takeplace.

The UK drought can only be an annual occurrence unless we understand how much water we use or waste and all of us do one or two simple things to change our wasteful habits. For those of us facing water meters then these simple techniques will achieve both. Techniques can save us all money and help the drought situation now.


Facts:

246 litres of water is used between cattle feed manufacturer, cooling and cleaning /making milk containers, is amount is used up to make one glass of milk

Action:

Drink less cappuccino’s and consider milk's drain on our water table at all times. Think how much water a Starbucks must use!

Fact:

The kitchen and bathroom tap on average uses 20 litres of water in one minute if left running.

Action:

Do not run the tap to wash dishes, vegetables or even to brush your teeth. If you wait for the water to cool to get a glass to drink, fill a jug and keep in the fridge

Fact:

Average UK household uses between 500- 700 litres of fresh water per day, that’s about 4 bathtubs full. That’s over 250,000 litres per year. The shower alone if you take a 12-15 minute shower uses 25 litres per minute!

Action:

Take quicker showers, run the water into a bucket if you wait for the shower water to heat up. Use the bucket from your shower to water pot plants or water the garden, or use it to boil water for cooking or making tea/coffee

Fact:

We all flush too many times, 10 litres each time is used. Consult your partner or family, new household rule could be "if it's yellow let it mellow, if it's brown wash it down!" You can of course use the bucket from the shower and dump into the toilet pan to dispose of the waste. This simple technique helps save water.

Fact:

The Earth has only 1% of it's water suitable for drinking , available at any given time.

Action:

With this fact pass the word at your offices or in your work place, fix drips, don't leave water running and think water saving as part of your personal and work objectives.

Fact: Cooking/Eating is becoming a cultural joy with all the programs on TV, fresh food in our markets and shops.

This all takes water to produce, clean or manufacture. Don't add to the water count by increasing water use at home in the cooking preparation processes.

Action:

Steam vegetables whenever you can, if you boil, do not cover the vegetables entirely. If you have left over water from vegetables or potatoes especially after cooking, leave it to cool DO NOT dump down the sink. Use the cold vegetable water to add to smoothies, mix with water for a great vitamin enriched and nutritional drink or simply pour onto your potted plants, watch them thrive with this enriched water, better than fertilisers!

Fact:

50,000 litres of water is lost in the average family bathroom in the UK

Action:

Hold a family meeting consider (or even an office meeting to pass on these techniques) examine the families tap policy re running them to wash faces, clean teeth and the longer showers discussed . Can these showers be shortened by a fraction. 2 x fifteen minute showers can use over 50 litres per day remember. Can you all live with if it's yellow let it mellow? Challenge your family to reduce the 250,000 litre annual usage to be cut by 10% (25,000 litres)

There are a number of small things that all add up.

Fact:

It would only take 10% of us to follow all these actions to save millions of gallons or litres of water per annum.

Use the internet to search for water saving ideas from adding a brick to the water cistern to grey water uses...go on just do something and do it fast.

Fast Food

BRUSSELS, April 2, 2012 (press release) – Eating fast food will increase your risk of suffering from depression, a new Spanish study has found. Presented in the journal Public Health Nutrition, the finding shows a correlation between depression and the consumption of fast food, such as hamburgers, pizza and hot dogs, as well as commercial baked goods like croissants and doughnuts. Specifically, people eating fast foods and commercial baked goods have a 51% greater chance of developing depression than those who do not consume such foods.Researchers from the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria at the University of Granada also identified a dose-response association. 'The more fast food you consume, the greater the risk of depression,' the Scientific Information and News Service (SINC) quotes lead author Almudena Sánchez-Villegas of University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria as saying.Subjects who consumed the most fast food and commercial baked goods are usually single, maintain poor dietary habits and are not very active. Other characteristics of these subjects are that they smoke and work more than 45 hours each week.The team says the results are equally conclusive with respect to the consumption of commercial baked goods. 'Even eating small quantities is linked to a significantly higher chance of developing depression,' says Dr Sánchez-Villegas.The study used data from the SUN project of the University of Navarra Diet and Lifestyle Tracking programme. All 8 964 subjects taking part had never been diagnosed with depression and they had not been prescribed any antidepressants. The researchers assessed the participants for a period of around six months. A total of 493 subjects either were diagnosed with depression or were prescribed with antidepressants.The results of this latest study further substantiate the results of the SUN project in 2011, which were published in the journal PLoS ONE. Of the 12 059 subjects evaluated by the SUN project team, 657 new cases of depression were identified. They found a 42% jump in the risk linked to fast food, which is lower than what the current study discovered.'Although more studies are necessary, the intake of this type of food should be controlled because of its implications on both health (obesity, cardiovascular diseases) and mental well-being,' Dr Sánchez-Villegas says.More than 121 million people around the globe are impacted by depression. Experts believe this high number makes depression one of the primary global causes of disability-adjusted life years. Countries with low- and medium-income levels report depression as being the leading cause of disability-adjusted life years.But not enough information about how diet influences developing depressive disorders exists. Studies in the past indicated that certain nutrients have a preventive role, such as omega-3 fatty acids, group B vitamins and olive oil. Data also suggest that a healthy diet, like the popular Mediterranean diet, is linked to a lower risk of developing depression.

Well with our healthy ingredients, added omega 3 to our Wrapid range and our nutfree chocolate spreads, guess we were always ahead of the game!

Imagine commuting home and pre ordering and paying for your Indian take-away via the mobile. Walk in pick up or deliver at a set time, no credit cards and certainly no cash. Simply a text confirms your order and approved payment credentials. Payment is made via a mobile coupon and the charge appears on your mobile bill.
Recent research in the U.K. and U.S. by mobile transaction network mBlox found that British shoppers use mobile coupons more than their American counterparts – 29% vs. 15%.
However, these figures are destined to rise as 71% of British and 42% of American consumers expressed an interest in having coupons delivered to their mobile handsets.
“2011 is poised to be a huge year in the advancement of mobile for retail,” said Sean M. Alexander, technology analyst at IHL Group. “iPhones, iPads and Android devices have all moved past the stage of being cool and into the mainstream.”
The coupon has shaken of any stigma attached to its use, perhaps in part due to the convenience of electronic and mobile formats. While only 1.5% of all coupons are currently distributed digitally, redemption rates are impressive at around 10-15% compared to an overall 1.2%.
Clearly the phone is challenging the way business is carried out in our new mobile world.

Stephen Minall of Moving Food Ltd says:
“The EPOS providers have had it their own way for long enough say Technology experts in the USA, after all most FPOS/EPOS systems are not complicated technical pieces of kit running equally complicated programs any more (the fear factor within) ..They are only overly priced PC’s with a cash drawer”.
If you assume this stance from the beginning you can begin to appreciate the huge cultural change in how Restaurant and Hotel Brands will take orders or payment or do stock control in the very near future. From the how employees will track orders, how consumers will pay for goods and even to the how CRM/Loyalty schemes will change from paper and plastic cards to mobile screens, this viral existence, this dramatic change, will come with next generation mobile phones and the launch of iBooks. In Australia to USA this is already happening. In the UK our present Blackberry’s, iphones and 3G networks could handle this system now.

Consider Trevor Seeman (President of http://www.smartertakeout.com/), his touch screen ordering system for customers, has built in average spend evaluation software with a fully integrated loyalty program. It is helping change many brands in the USA, but already Trevor has written the system for iPhone and ipod use, thinking way ahead of most of Europe.
Trevor says, “ Its not the front end alone but the MIS behind this that grabs both customer and brand owner alike” In other words the total solution is fundamental, easy to use for the customer and providing the auditing trail and management control for the brand operator.
If you really want to see the potential of pre order/pre pay by text then look no further than companies like http://www.readyping.com/ or txtandtell, developed by http://www.touchworks.com/. Here the enticing images and quick response times can be programmed to suit eat in or carry out customers, built in loyalty schemes and live data on spend per head, voucher redemption and impulse marketing are standard software options. We are not talking APPS here by the way, but through your personal non verbal link to your favourite restaurants/hotels/retailers. Take a good long look at http://www.corethree.net/ an advanced British company based in Watford Herts and appreciate where the independents could take this.
If specific programs are being written for mobile phones, then clever, practical and unique programs will evolve. Take a look at http://www.ywaiter.com/ this is already evolving into a fully integrated system.
http://www.franchisepayments.net/ is a very clear leader and clever mobile phone system allowing Franchise Brands to attract orders by phone, but with payment processes also. Again viral marketing built in, this even tracks lapsed users and reminds them “they” have not visited in X number of days.
If you want a modern look at touch tone technology look no further than http://www.t1visions.com/, Marco Ventura the CEO showed off this impressive booth, “based on total inter active solutions” says Marco.
Picture this journey: Booths or tables seat 4, the touch screens can be inverted and split 4 ways so all customers can touch activate them individually around a specific menu of drinks, starters, entrees and desserts, the menu items can be tapped and full ingredients are listed, ask for a recipe card and the menu item will be printed BOH and brought to the table. Choose a wine and the intelligent program will choose a wine that suits all entrees. Off to see a film ? Touch cinema, up pops the movie selection will poster links, tap and a 30 second video of the movie will play, ask for a discount and a voucher for the cinema, one can be printed. A built in web cam takes pictures, can even turn them into cartoons, ask for the occasion to be remembered, a photo can be taken and printed back of house. Your order is remembered in detail, you are invited to become a member and your meal/drinks data is stored. Next visit sign in with your code and you get a reminder of your last order, further access is available to MTV via video, this matches your music choice and of course games technology is standard…now get this you designers this is all built into a table top less than 4 inches thick and USA price with software is a mere $5k per booth. In the States the average check on this system has gone up 25%; pay back on each booth less than 9 months…
So where does this take us here in UK ? It’s time for a rethink so be prepared for change. Just Google mobile payments and read the worlds move to this technology. If Japan has it, as does Scandinavia how long before we order our pizza not by APPS but by simple text recognition. Pixel Codes, these new square chequered boxes we’re seeing increasingly in advertisements, on products and in our papers can hold millions of pieces of data, the best CRM/Loyalty embedded in programs for mere pennies. The airlines and the rail authorities are already issuing these as e-tickets.
Moving Food and Juniper Research estimate 15 billion e-tickets will be issued by 2014 in the UK alone!! (from cinemas to stadiums to air/rail and events)
The scary thing is, and this really does challenge the till providers, most of these mobile systems are free, no infrastructure costs, no maintenance fees and no hard ware to break down…the user pays for the system through their mobile/text charges. In Finland, already advanced in mobile pre-order, the first €20 Euro’s for goods can be charged to your phone not your credit card, so buying fast food, paying for parking, ordering drinks goes to the mobile phone bill. In France this is now €10. This obviously challenges the Credit Card companies and the banks hold on this sector – what will they do to combat the threat to their own revenue streams?
Checking into Hotels and pre ordering payment of the room and checking out already exists in Scandinavia, with built in CRM and is coming into the UK in 2011..
How powerful will this be ? Understand one thing, its here, its gaining momentum fast so be prepared to trial…move with it or be left behind.
No doubt there will be more to follow on this very interesting subject.
Stephen Minall – Director Movingfood.com

Re-Cycling in 2011!!

In the line at the store, the cashier told the older woman that plastic bags weren’t good for the environment. The woman apologized to her and explained, “We didn’t have the green thing back in my day.”

That’s right, they didn’t have the green thing in her day.Back then,they returned their milk bottles, Coke bottles and beer bottles to the store.The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, using the same bottles over and over.So they really were recycled.

But they didn’t have the green thing back her day.

In her day, they walked up stairs, because they didn’t have an escalator in every store and office building. They walked to the grocery store and didn’t climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time they had to go two blocks.

But she’s right.They didn’t have the green thing in her day.

Back then, they washed the baby’s diapers because they didn’t have the throw-away kind. They dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 220 volts – wind and solar power really did dry the clothes.Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing.

But that old lady is right,they didn’t have the green thing back in her day.

Back then, they had one TV, or radio, in the house – not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a pizza dish, not a screen the size of the state of Montana. In the kitchen, they blended and stirred by hand because they didn’t have electric machines to do everything for you. When they packaged a fragile item to send in the post, they used wadded up newspaper to cushion it, not styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap.

Back then, they didn’t fire up an engine and burn petrol just to cut the lawn. They used a push mower that ran on human power. They exercised by working so they didn’t need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity.

But she’s right,they didn’t have the green thing back then.

They drank from a fountain when they were thirsty, instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time they had a drink of water.They refilled pens with ink, instead of buying a new pen, and they replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull.

But they didn’t have the green thing back then.

Back then, people took the bus or tram and kids rode their bikes to school or rode the school bus, instead of turning their mums into a 24-hour taxi service. They had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And they didn’t need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint.
People sat down and wrote letters and cards, the personal touch too, not printed off Xmas form letters and posted out by the hundreds!
It’s a crying shame that we didn’t have “the green thing” back then!

The pie re British Blokes state of health..

Can pie or pasties ‘face’ the challenge of cosmetic surgery and a healthier British bloke?
Before we answer this "eyebrow-raising" question, here are some interesting facts to consider:
■ 65% of the UK population seek
food-related products to provide a
health benefi t
■ 14% wish to lose weight
■ 8% of males now have facial
cosmetic surgery
■ 19% look for health in later life
■ 17% strive for sensible all-year round
health.
Health is now the primary driver behind meal occasions consumed in and out of the home for one in five people. That equates to 15.2bn meal occasions and it’s growing by 5% year-on-year. So does this healthy shift mark the demise of perceived less healthy products such as the pie and perhaps herald the end of the pastie craze? And how on earth do male cosmetics come into the equation?
Demand for male cosmetics has resulted in a year-on-year boom in male cosmetic products of 38%. That level of growth has occurred every year since 2002 – many bakers can only dream of such rises. Why? Because British males have more dough to spend on their appearance, despite the recession, looks are in. That apparently useless fact can help us judge the consumer spends of the future. One can actually transform this into meaningful data to reflect trends affecting the pastie/pie market. A new slant on the pie chart!
What this shows us is that as men invest in skincare products,they are increasingly conscious of how others perceive their appearance.
Haircare can lead eventually to body care. Thus begins a journey where men think more about their dress sense. Then along comes some form of body awareness:
the journey- bloke joins the gym, bloke runs a bit more, bloke drinks more water and less booze, bloke starts to eat a sensible diet and consumes more salads and veggies. Pie and chips drops out of the routine and it’s an exit for the weekly pastie treat.
The British male wants to look younger, act younger and strut his stuff in the latest garb. Be aware, he is watching his waistline and counting his wrinkles. This information counters the government view that we are all getting fatter.
So, as we approach 2010, with concerns on health, recession, labels with sugar E numbers and fat warnings everywhere, the male is looking trimmer, he’s diet smart and he’s watching his body beautiful in the mirror. The health-conscious ageing UK population – those over 50 – are also in huge growth and sales of all those savoury pastries are declining, or are they as recession may force us the other way. Indulgence and reward are entrenched human traits, so I, for one, suspect that the pastie will survive. Plus the target market of the fancy designer pastie chains is not getting fatter, nor are shoppers in the pricey deli sections of the supermarkets.
But bakers and food manufacturers will still need to stay ahead of the game. The pastie of the future will probably need to have Omega-3 in its enzyme-enriched, calcium-enhanced pastry and the ingredients will include ginseng and other brainimproving, ethical, planet-friendly stuffings – no doubt sourced from the local organic pig farmer!
What this spells out is that the baker has to get his NPD (New Product Development) hat on, think outside the proverbial donut box and consider how to get a guiltfree pastie into those healthier males. ■

PDA - our future is here...

Not for long will be be recieving print or e-mails to print off vouchers/coupons or offers, already in Japan we can track who opens and who scrolls down their screen to read detail or ads, new ideas emerge , as in Google Map, where voice recognition allows you say "pizza" and up pops the most convenient location to where your hand held is located, think now you say "best pizza offer" and we have a new dimension in capturing customers thru offers or discounts.Pixel to photographic recognition is here and all products will carry a picture or pixel image that holds ingredient details, CRM programs. Think not then Google pixel bar codes and see what Mc Donalds have successfully trialled in Japan. In phone purchase System UK and US a little behind even Kenya, where you can buy mineral water to cars on the PDA..marketing is well advanced here too where pixel and bar codes are "spammed" then in store infra red will read code and recognise customer with full user details..think loyalty, CRM, Tribe Advantage...Tesco in UK think in 5-10 years all EPOS systems will be redundant...I can see that from whats happening in Africa, Japan and even Finland re PDA usage to purchase...we in www.wrapid.com are about to launch pre pay pre order by phone...along with tracking our marketing hits via that tiny screen...moving away from loyalty via paper card or plastic to PDA friendly applications...Pizza Hut generated £1m in sales over 3 months with their new Apps, the Widget gets launched here in 30 days (open ended apps for all phones)...get on board or get left behind..
Clearly changes are happening, from viral marketing, (see previous blog on Local Marketing Made Easy) to the way we want to recieve information, a pixel code carries far more detail, so photograph the image, send it to a Brands Head Quarters and get ingredient details, ethenticity statements, traceability, Company CRM position...everything you need...this saves on print runs and changes on packaging costs re reprint or recipe changes as the pixel is constant, just the details posted/e-mailed back...only 1 in 20 of us actually study ingredients in depth, so those "in need " can send off for full disclosures.

The PDA will be our cash, our credit card, our loyalty scheme and our security access (In Japan the bar code on your PDA gets you into your hotel room via infra red reader) it will come, it will be exciting..but hard paper tickets and cash will be with us as a balance I am sure...watch this space..moving food takes on a new dimension...