Interning at a Start-Up
Throughout my college career, I have been fortunate enough to have several internships, one of course being here at Songwhale. After experiencing these internships, I have not only discovered what type of job I would eventually like to have, but more importantly the type of atmosphere I’d like to work in. To me, the start-up/small company atmosphere is one of the best opportunities for college internships and even entry level jobs. At a start-up, you’re able to be apart of every process. At Songwhale, the account managers are able to give input to our design/development team. And vice versa, the development team helps us explain certain technical aspects to our clients. Also, I feel as though interns are able gain more hands on experience. From what I’ve heard from my friends and peers who have worked in a corporate environment, it’s rare that corporate companies allow interns to deal and manage clients directly.
Personally, I believe that sometimes start ups and smaller companies are overlooked by students. Everyone immediately goes for companies they know and actually come to their campuses. Not enough students take the time to research start ups in their area. Fortunately for myself, after working for a small division of a company in Australia, I knew exactly what type of internship I was looking for and found Songwhale. I’d love to encourage all undergraduate and graduating students to consider a smaller environment. The experience benefits can often far outweigh any financial perks. I can honestly say that working at Songwhale has been one of best experiences for my career.
If you have any questions about working for a start-up or need assistance finding a start-up in your area, feel free to e-mail me at katie.stout@songwhale.com
-Katie
What is Predictive Gaming?
Songwhale recently launched an interactive SMS campaign with The Pittsburgh Penguins called predictive gaming. Prior to the launch, most SMS promotions were only used for fans on site at the game. Now, with predictive gaming, fans watching or listening at home can also participate in mobile trivia.
In the pregame show, radio and TV announcers will ask fans a question of the day such as: Who do you think will score today’s first goal? or How many power play attempts will the Pens have today? Fans are then able to text their response in to 32623 to see how their vote lines up with the rest of the population. SMS bouncebacks include the percentage of fans that chose the same answer as you. Each game, one grand prize winner will be chosen from the pool of correct predictions.
Predictive gaming is an outside of the box SMS promotion to engage fans that can’t attend a game in person. It’s not only a great way to include the radio and TV markets, but also allows the Penguins to build upon their existing mobile database…it’s a win-win for both the client and the community.
As Songwhale continues to work with professional sports teams, we plan to develop and implement new SMS promotions each step of the way. Look soon for promotions to buy merchandise and tickets through SMS! Mobile payment options will soon be included at all of your favorite sporting events.
For more information about predictive gaming and how it could be used for your business, feel free to contact me at christina.morgan@songwhale.com
- Christina Morgan
Introducing … Songwhale Milwaukee!
Meet our launch team, Matt, Erika, Amanda and Allie, under the official “largest Songwhale sign in the world,” according to Jon (who would know). We just didn’t want anyone to miss it.
-Erika Juday
We’re used to transferring money from one bank account to another, but what if someone told you they were transferring money to their AT&T or Verizon account? You’d think they’re crazy - no one has an account provided by their wireless carrier. Well, soon we just may thanks to a start-up called BOKU.
With BOKU, users get a credit card provided by MasterCard and a “bank account” with their wireless provider. They also receive an NFC sticker to attach to their phone that works with any retailer that accepts NFC payments. They then can deposit money in the wireless carrier account and use it to pay for anything.
The draw of BOKU is that there are no ties to specific phones or terminals. This means that if the merchant doesn’t accept NFC payments, the customer can simply use the credit card to get the job done. Because the account is linked to the customer’s wireless carrier, he or she can get updates via text message about his or her spending habits and any deals that are happening in the store, among others.
In addition, credit card companies get their usual merchant fee, and wireless carriers get paid when merchants send offers to BOKU users.
So really, this looks a like a win-win-win situation. We, as customers, get the convenience of NFC payments and accounts on our cell phone while being alerted about deals as we enter stores. The only problem is that only one carrier has picked up BOKU, and it’s in the UK. Here’s hoping that BOKU makes its way to the US!
What do you think? Does BOKU sound like something you’d use? Or does it seem like just another account to manage? Click the link above to read the full article and let me know your thoughts!
Dan Whitman
2012 is the year for mobile. Companies, and now entire industries, are catching on to the craze that is mobile payments. Countries around the world have began testing mobile payment systems in the transportation industry for reasons of convenience and efficiency.
Imagine being able to reserve a taxi, track it’s status, and pay for service, all on a mobile app. Get Taxi does just that, and those living in London and Tel Aviv are incorporating its use into their daily lives. Get Taxi coordinates cab pickups and payments while eliminating phone calls and the frustration associated with unreliable service. Users of this app can track their reserved taxi in real time on a smartphone’s map. This app also benefits the driver by bypassing the need for a dispatcher and welcoming cash, credit cards and business accounts for payment.
So here’s hoping that it wont be long before Get Taxi makes it way to the US. Also mentioned in this article are VeriFone payment technologies and high-tech solutions for subway payment. Check it out to learn more.
Sammy Frankel
Check out this cool video from the Pittsburgh Technology Council that features Pittsburgh based companies and their successful and innovative projects. Tune in at 1:45 of the video to see the shout out to Songwhale for mobile content!
Social Media is changing the way we experience and enjoy important events, like last night’s Super Bowl. If you check out your Facebook news feed, I guarantee that at least one of your friends has shared his or her favorite commercial from last night. In the final three minutes of the game, there was a recorded average of 10,000 tweets per second (TPS)! This just goes to show the increasing relevance and popularity of Twitter during important events. While the majority of last night’s Twitter posts were about plays, scores, and athletes, others, like me, were tweeting about their Super Bowl food consumption.
To date, the event that holds the all-time record for tweets per second was the premiere of the Japanese movie “Castles in the Sky” with 25,088 TPS! What event do you think will beat out “Castles in the Sky” for the number one spot?
Check out the link above for some other high traffic Twitter events.
Questions or Comments? Tweet me @Sammyfrankss or @Songwhale
Sammy Frankel
They are calling this year’s game the first “second screen” Super Bowl. How will you be interacting with the game and commercials this upcoming Sunday?
Check out this great article from USA Today that explains how you’ll see mobile used this weekend during Super Bowl festivities.
