Today, let’s talk movies. Specifically, let’s talk about the movie that’s topping the US box office charts this week. The movie that has a 97% fresh rating on RottenTomatoes. The movie….all right, enough of that. We’re obviously talking about The Social Network. The ‘Facebook Movie’. Except, it’s not really the Facebook movie. It’s not even the ‘Zuckerberg Movie’. No, from this vantage point, it basically feels like a ‘we-have-no-idea-what-Facebook-or-social-media-is-but-let’s-make-a-movie-anyway’ movie.

Oh, we are not here to talk about the actors, who are mostly brilliant, or David Fincher’s direction, which is tight, or even Aaron Sorkin’s dialogue, which has the pace and bite his fans are familiar with. But as a peek into one of the foremost techno/entrepreneurial minds of the 21^st century, it stumbles and ultimately fails. Zuckerberg is presented as a loner with an edge, awkward around other people. Basically, the caricature of a programming geek. By all accounts Zuckerberg has his flaws and a history of questionable decisions, both personal and professionals. Many might take him to task on his ideas about privacy. But neither is he the unblinking, unsmiling, unfeeling, almost alien creature he is presented to be. The movie does not explore why he does what he does, or tries to even understand the Facebook phenomenon. It is far more interested in a (largely fictionalized and lurid) story of betrayal and excess with a popular brand name to draw in the crowds.

The Social Network does not understand social networks; indeed, it even seems frightened of them. It sees its creators as disconnected nomads in a digital desert; people who don’t understand humans, only computers. The one man painted in a sympathetic light is Zuckerberg’s former friend and partner Eduardo Saverin. Not surprising, since Saverin served as consultant for the book The Accidental Billionaires, the book this movie is based on.

The tagline for the movie reads ‘You don’t get to 500 million friends without making a few enemies’. It’s clear that Fincher and Sorkin lie strictly outside that 500 million. Ultimately, what’s ironic is that The Social Network gets many things right – but not the people that populate it.

Mobile devices are growing increasingly popular in the world and are forcing SMBs to become part of the online marketing game. Most companies are designing mobile versions of their websites to cater to these online customers. There are several trends that are expected to come up this year.

Real-time search is becoming more popular than search engine optimized pages. The year will also see the popularity of social media sites like Twitter and Facebook growing more. Many businesses have profiles in these social networking sites and are using them to stay in touch with potential customers, existing customers and employees. These companies are intent on making their presence felt online.

Companies are also creating their own content on their websites in the form of blogs, pictures and videos. Blogs not only help in getting a better search engine rank but also let companies share their knowledge and expertise with its visitors and employees.

Businesses all over the world are going digital. As a result, digital marketing is gaining importance by the day due to huge competition. Several new trends are emerging in digital marketing and these are changing the face of online marketing for small businesses.

Mobile Marketing:

Advertising through text messages, application development, and other mobile tools are gaining popularity due to its wide reach among mobile consumers. Mobile marketing is also generating maximum consumer responses than other forms of online marketing.

Local Advertising:

Online banner ads are getting better at local ad targeting. Major social networking sites are focusing on geography-based advertising for display ads. Another change in ad pricing is CPA or Cost Per Action, through which you would only pay for your online ad when a desired action, like purchase, is carried out by a visitor.

Social Media Advertising:

Advertising on social media sites is becoming an important tool for bringing traffic to your site and increasing your brand visibility.

Real-Time Availability of Products in eCommerce Websites:

Small online retailers, with the help of latest technology, can sell their products in highly specialized eCommerce sites. Potential consumers can find real time availability of a product in these specialized sites.

The popularity of mobile devices in India creates plenty of opportunities for marketing through mobile devices. There are more than 330 million subscribers to mobile devices and this number is increasing every day. This growth has encouraged many companies, magazines, banks, and TV stations in India to include mobile marketing in their marketing strategies. Since it is a personal device, targeted advertising through SMS have been proving to be effective.

More than one hundred mobile value added service providers and technology companies are attempting to introduce innovative mobile solutions. Telecom operators are also teaming up with mobile technology providers. For example, Reliance Communications, in February, had announced implementing a mobile marketing software platform called Neon on its telecom network, and had teamed up with mobile marketing technology and advertising provider Flytxt.

The mobile device is a powerful means of targeting customers and marketing solutions through this medium can be useful for banks and retail stores to manage their relationships with their customers. A Reliance Communications statement has mentioned that more than fifty popular brands in different sectors ranging from automotive to financial have profited from the telecom company’s mobile marketing services.

Earlier, mobile advertising in India had not attracted too many investors because of its format which was usually text messages or simple pictures. It is now expected to grow with the adoption of 3G and Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs). 3G is expected to open up more avenues for advertisers since it allows for adoption of better media content. Only recently did the Indian government approved MVNOs to operate in the country. MVNOs will provide mobile services by purchasing airtime from existing telecom operators. Their brand is then marketed and distributed through the network. Both these mobile services are expected to help the mobile marketing industry grow faster, along with the subscriber base in India.

A new report on the internet usage amongst Indian Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs) has shown that SMBs are set to spend on and help in the growth of the internet in India. The report predicted that SMBs will increase the amount spent on internet related activities by 16%.

SMBs are focusing on the infrastructure of internet connections, and are focusing on closing the gap in the use of internet related technology like ecommerce and broadband. In India, the most preferred mode of accessing the internet is through DSL and cable modems. Many Indian SMBs are focusing on maintaining the companies’ websites and are very keen on developing and managing their services online. There is scope for growth in this particular field in India. The study also found that in India, one out of every four companies have websites, many which are hosted on third party servers.

Online advertising is a very popular means of promotion in India where 90% of SMBs use social media for promotional purposes. Email marketing and online banner displays are the preferred means along with other forms of online advertising.