New Facebook App Suite Turns Brand Pages Into Crowdsourcing Hubs

Name: Napkin Labs

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.
Quick Pitch: Napkin Labs makes interactive marketing tools for Facebook.
Genius Idea: A suite of customized apps that make brand pages interactive.

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Brands are set on getting customers to Like their Facebook pages. But then what?
Napkin Labs launched a new suite of Facebook apps this week that it hopes will help answer this question.
The company offers four different apps. “Brainstorm” is a basic crowdsourcing platform that lets brands ask their community a question. “Photoboard” collects and displays community-sourced images. “Pipeline” turns Facebook pages into open forums. And “Superfans” shows who participates the most in campaigns, then rewards them. Most of the tools come with analytics and moderation features.
“I think a lot of brands are starting to realized their Facebook pages can go beyond ‘great, you like us now,’ and actually shape the future of the brand,” Napkin Labs CEO Riley Gibson tells Mashable.
Napkin Labs adapted some functionality of the new Facebook apps from its previous product, which created a separate online “lab space” for brands to collaborate with their customers on products, design and anything else. The separate space had game features — such as a points system and rewards for participation — but it was still asking customers to visit someplace new on the web. Convincing such migration is no easy feat, so it’s not surprising Napkin Labs eventually decided to instead build on existing brand pages.
As Gibson puts it, “We realized the ecosystem within Facebook was perfect.”
Napkin Labs recently demonstrated how its Facebook apps will work with a custom app it made for Domino’s Facebook page called “Think Oven.” Users could submit their designs to the page in the hopes of winning one of $200 rewards.
The startup says pages experience a 29% increase in Likes after running a Facebook contest. But brands will have to decide for themselves how much that’s worth. This is not your average Facebook app installation. Napkin Labs works with clients to customize the pages, and thus its campaigns start at $1,000.
Would you pay that much to customize your brand page, or are there better ways to engage the community that don’t involve expensive customized tools? Let us know in the comments.

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Series Supported by Microsoft BizSpark

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The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark, a startup program that gives you three-year access to the latest Microsoft development tools, as well as connecting you to a nationwide network of investors and incubators. There are no upfront costs, so if your business is privately owned, less than three years old, and generates less than U.S.$1 million in annual revenue, you can sign up today.

From Zynga To Flipboard: Why All Eyes Are On China For The Next Mobile Boom

Editor’s note: Chris Shen is vice president at Chinese gaming company The9. Prior to joining The9, he served as group account director and account director for several advertising agencies in Shanghai and Taipei.
If you spend any time speaking with Western mobile companies, one topic that’s likely to pop up is their “China strategy.” Due to a mix of mobile penetration, sheer population, and popularity of the mobile web, Western mobile companies recognize there’s a lot of money to be made overseas.
The idea is not without merit: China is the world’s largest mobile market with almost one billion users, 69 percent of which access the Internet through their phones on a regular basis. As such, plenty of big-name Western mobile companies have already begun entering China. However, the mobile market is still immature with issues like fragmentation and piracy, making distribution exceedingly difficult for developers. China isn’t quite yet a home away from home for Western developers, but it’s poised to be the next big mobile market.
China’s lucrative potential is especially relevant for mobile developers. Mobile apps and games were popular in China well before the United States caught on, and the market is only going to get bigger. Smartphone adoption is picking up and opening a window for Western developers to introduce new titles, while in-app purchases are on the rise in China and app downloads have almost tripled in the last year (more on that in a second).
Rise of the Smartphones
China has over 980 million mobile users. While this number is staggering, the majority of users own feature phones. As such, many local developers create apps that cater to feature phones. However, in the past few years, smartphone adoption — both iOS and Android devices — has increased significantly. According to research firm Strategy Analytics, almost 24 million smartphones were shipped to China in 2011, surpassing the number of devices in the U.S. This trend is still gaining steam and creating a profitable window for Western iOS and Android app and game developers. The9 and GREE recognized this trend early and established the $100 million Fund9 to help developers port their games to Android and distribute them in China.
Loads of Downloads
In addition to a massive user base, China’s mobile activity is also skyrocketing. More people are downloading more apps and games. According to mobile analytics site App Annie China’s mobile download numbers have grown by almost 300 percent in the last year. Additionally, research firm Distimo reported that over 30 percent of Apple’s App Store downloads were coming from China by the end of 2011, as opposed to only 18 percent at the beginning of that year.
In-App Purchases and Virtual Goods
China’s massive mobile potential is more than just a numbers game. It’s true that there are more mobile users in China than anywhere else, but they’re also starting to spend more. A lot more. According to App Annie, mobile revenue in China has nearly tripled in the last year, increasing by 187 percent. This is partially due to Apple’s recent announcement that they’re going to start accepting App Store payments in Chinese yuan. Now Western game developers can seamlessly offer virtual goods to China’s huge audience.
Western mobile companies can’t afford to ignore the Chinese market. A good example of this is Flipboard. Before launching in China, Flipboard was plagued by multiple clone apps that grew in popularity in the app’s absence. Since launching in China’s App Store, the company has been successful partnering with big-name companies like Sina and Renren. Hit mobile game maker, Rovio, saw a similar problem with loads of unlicensed Angry Birds (even a theme park) being sold in China. Their solution: open an entire Angry Birds store in China.
There’s more incentive to enter China than just to protect a brand. Companies like CrowdStar, GREE, and Zynga have all announced China ambitions.
As China’s mobile market continues to mature, it’s safe to assume that issues like piracy and fragmentation will become less problematic. For mobile game developers looking to cash in on China today, there are still some ways they can bring their apps over successfully. Finding a local partner to help with distribution, security, and catering to a Chinese audience will ensure a more successful launch.
Companies like The9 recognize both China’s complexity and its opportunity, and are eager to work with Western app developers. By leveraging carrier partnerships and working with multiple distribution channels, local partners can eliminate the headache of entering China.
Developers also need to localize their apps if they want them to succeed in China. This means not only translating apps into Chinese, but also customizing design aspects to meet cultural preferences and various channel requirements.
China is a beast already and it’s only going to get bigger. As Apple and Google continue to penetrate the market and cater to Chinese audiences, there will be a great window of opportunity for Western developers to rake in the yuan.
[image via flickr/bfishadow]

Google Updates Trio of Apps: Wallet, Authenticator, Google+

Google is celebrating Leap Day with a few minor updates to some of its Android apps, delivering new versions of Wallet, Google+, and Authenticator to the Android Market today.

Google Wallet finds itself getting the most significant updates of the trio, but we're still mainly in bugfix territory here. A couple changes have been introduced to how the app handles address input, letting you using a longer address or a PO Box when setting up a prepaid card. Reward cards linked to the app should now see improvements with keeping their data synced-up. Most of us struggle to find one smartphone on which we can run Wallet, but for those of you with multiple NFC-capable phones, this release will better handle sharing your account on more than one handset.

Google Authenticator, letting your use your phone to securely log in to your Google account on public terminals, gets some unspecified bug fixes, but seeing as the whole point of this app is security, we'd treat this release with a little more seriousness than your standard bugfix update. To that end, Google+ also gets some minor, unspecified bug fixes, along with improvements to app stability.

All three Google apps are currently available in the Android Market.

How to Get the Windows 8 Consumer Preview Right Now

Microsoft just launched the consumer preview of Windows 8. That means anyone who wants to check out the latest version of Microsoft’s new operating system — unveiled on Wednesday at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona — can download it right now and start scrolling through Metro apps in all of their tiled glory.
How can you get this groundbreaking piece of pre-release software? Just head on over to Microsoft’s site and download. Microsoft has said repeatedly that Windows 8 would run on any machine that can run Windows 7, so theoretically you should be able to install it on your Win7 PC with no problems (of course, be sure to back up all your stuff thoroughly).
Be warned, though: this is pre-release “beta” software — not ready for prime time yet. As we found in our detailed look at the Windows 8 Consumer Preview, the OS still has many bugs, and some of the functionality isn’t fully baked. Most notably on the “under construction” list: OS-level sharing, which right now can only be done with the Mail app.

However, for those bold enough, using Windows 8 on a touchscreen device or with a traditional mouse and keyboard is a fascinating experience. Many Metro apps, with their full-screen nature, look gorgeous, and Microsoft has built bridges into the OS for connecting with services such as Facebook and Flickr. Of course, the traditional desktop is always just a click or two away.
When will you be able to get the final version of Windows 8? Not till this fall, when Microsoft is expected to release it to the public — along with an nearly identical version of Windows for low-power ARM devices and a big update to Windows Phone that’ll bring it more in line with Windows 8.
Until then, you’ve got this to play with. What do you think of Windows 8? Have your say in the comments, and watch for our Open Thread post later today.

Windows 8 Consumer Preview: An Overview

Start Menu

Here's what greets you every time you log into your Windows 8 machine. Yes, the tiles are customizable, though it's a little unwieldy in practice.

 

Sharing in Metro

Sharing is arguably Metro's most powerful feature. Although the sharing option is only populated with Mail right now, once Windows 8 apps get going, you'll see options here like Facebook, Twitter and all the rest -- in every app.

 

 

Finance Metro App

Many apps, like the native Finance app, look beautiful in Metro.

 

Traditional Desktop

You can still get back to the familiar desktop anytime you want in Windows 8. Note the absence of a Start button, which you get to by mousing into the lower-left corner.

 

Bing Maps

Bing Maps, like all Metro apps, makes use of the entire screen. Right-clicking brings up options.

 

Multitasking Menu

You can see which apps are running by pointing your mouse to one of the left corners and then moving it alongside. Right-clicking an app lets you stop it.

 

Action Menu

The side action menu slides out via the side and is the same no matter what app you're in.

 

Apple, Google, And Others Agree To Mobile App Privacy Policy Guidelines

Though Apple, Google, Microsoft, RIM, Amazon, and HP don’t always see eye-to-eye, the six of them have entered into an agreement brokered by California Attorney General Kamala Harris to take a tougher stance on the issue of mobile privacy.
Going forward, the six companies involved must provide users with a privacy policy if the app in question collects personal information. Though the move will affect the app submission and downloading process for users the world over, it was designed to bring those six companies into compliance with California state law.
“The majority of mobile apps sold today do not contain a privacy policy,” Harris said. “By ensuring that mobile apps have privacy policies, we create more transparency and give mobile users more informed control over who accesses their personal information and how it is used.”
It isn’t just enough for these companies to provide app-specific privacy policies to their users; they must also do it before the user downloads it, creating a much-needed means for them to opt-in. Apple and company also need to be consistent in how they display that information, as the agreement Harris brokered called for “a consistent location for an app’s privacy policy on the application-download screen.”
On top of that, users will also be given tools to help police their respective app stores. The terms of the agreement note that the platforms in question will allow users to report non-compliant apps, which could bring about some welcome change in some respects — while the Android Market already allows users to flag questionable apps, the iOS App Store and the Windows Marketplace don’t give users that power.
The past few weeks have made the mobile privacy issue a hot-button topic outside of the tech sphere, and the attention doesn’t just end with California’s AG — two congressmen sent a letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook posing questions about user data privacy, and the White House will be holding an online meeting tomorrow to accompany the release of a white paper on online privacy. Regardless of how this privacy discussion began, don’t expect for the talk to subside any time soon.

3 Apps for Contractors Help Estimate Building Costs

This may be the digital age, but not all contractors are fond of apps that help them estimate building costs. Some say they’re too expensive and others say the apps tend to estimate too high.
“If I used one, I wouldn’t get any work,” said Eric Reynolds, owner of EW Reynolds Contracting in Williamsburg, Virginia.
But for the growing number of contractors who see the benefits of these apps and are considering them, here are a few favorites.
3 Apps for Contractors
Bid4Build 3.5
Bid4Build includes a customer-maintenance database, a supplier database and a tool that breaks down your estimate into phases or rooms. You'll find a section that groups line items for a specific job and a database that helps calculate dimensions with a calculator. It includes forms for change orders, job costing and tracking.
The app also lets you store digital photos. You can generate maps and create a timeline schedule for subcontractors and clients to track what’s happening on a given day.
Bid4Build is easier to use than many other apps, so you can submit bids faster. It’s also easy to install, and an interactive training tutorial helps, if needed.
Cost: $500
Pros: Affordable. Lots of features. Well-designed. User-friendly.
Cons: It’s not Mac-friendly.
The bottom line: You can’t go wrong with Bid4Build. It works for large or small companies, but it’s probably best for small or mid-sized contractors.
ProContractorMX 2.6
ProContractorMX is really four apps in one. It’s great at drawing in AutoCAD and adding TDS data and image files into your report to create accurate estimates. It’s easy to customize, so it's easy to change estimates at the last minute.
Unusual features include a tool to update prices in a variety of forms, a module to calculate excavation and fills and view takeoffs of trenches.
ProContractorMX includes an advanced auto-CAD engineering functionality. It imports data from BIM files, creating estimates from the data.
Its interface is easy to use, and it includes built-in calculators and converting tools to factor in labor, equipment and markup pricing. There's a learning curve if you haven’t used an app like this before. Step-by-step instruction in a CD and Maxwell Systems courses help.
For installation, you may need an IT person to set up the database. Maxwell Systems provides a lot of support, including customer support reps you can call.
You'll find these components: ProContractorMX Digital Takeoff, ProContractorMX Estimator, ProContractorMX Earthwork and ProContractorMX Earthwork Digital Takeoff.
Cost: $2,000
Pros: Lots of features, including putting information in one place for easy presentation.
Cons: Must create your own SQL database during installation—not an easy task.
The bottom line: The app allows small and large businesses to create excellent proposals.
GoldenSeal Basic
This tool is excellent for estimating costs, scheduling, writing contracts and project management. It prepares detailed estimates.
Goldenseal includes a feature called Smart Dimensions, which makes it easy to estimate building costs. Tracking bids from subcontractors is a snap, and if subcontractors let their insurance expire, there's an option to stop their pay.
This construction-management and project-management software helps you create and manage change orders and punch lists, as well as write contracts. The business-management software organizes customers and potential customers by their contact information, appointments and sales.
Goldenseal is easy to use when it comes to setting up your client, vendor, subcontractor and company information. Setting up your cost books, cost items and assemblies is harder and takes some time and attention to detail. Despite the complexity of the app, it’s easy to install. Turtle Creek offers training courses, well-written manuals and free lifetime support.
Cost: $400
Pros: Versatile. Lots of management programs. Large database.
Cons: Lacks features found in competitor software, including CAD. Can’t export job-cost estimates.
The bottom line: Goldenseal is a good solution for small to medium-sized businesses.
Mark Di Vincenzo is a journalist with 24 years of experience and is a New York Times bestselling author. He blogs for Contently.

 American Express OPEN Forum

The Facebook Platform Roadmap in 2012

For Facebook, 2012 will be the year of the third party app. News, videos, and songs streaming down your newsfeed are just a “small taste of overall vision,” said Carl Sjogreen, director of product management for Facebook at the Inside Social Apps Conference.  The focus for the coming year will be on enhancements to Open Graph, mobile and games.Facebook recently reinvented the user profile as a timeline of major life events rather than a static “about me” page. The social network also extended the Open Graph platform for third party apps to include things like Spotify playlists on users’ tickers, newsfeeds, and timelines. Said Sjogreen, the apps are “a way for you to tell your story and to discover new things.”
Each of the activity streams serves a different function. According to Sjogreen, Timeline and Ticker are on opposite ends of the spectrum. “Timeline takes everything in your life and make it digestible,” said Sjogreen, and focuses on a user’s general interests and hobbies. “Ticker and Newsfeed are much more about what’s happening right now.”
In particular, Timeline favors apps with longer-term engagement, like Spotify, where users can say something like, “Hey, I listened to these artists the most this month using this app.”
With games, Facebook can take activities like high scores and other achievements to populate users’ newsfeeds while they play. On Zynga’s “Words with Friends,” for example, players can share their highest scoring words or the words they play most often.
Because games are inherently social, Sjogreen encourages mobile developers to create Web-based rather than native applications in order to make them available to more users. “I want to play ‘Words with Friends’ with my mom,” he explained. “I don’t care what platform she’s on. If I can’t play with her, it’s not a useful application to me.”
Facebook is working on making it easier for developers to integrate their apps with Facebook using a single API. Right now, said Sjogreen, “We are trying to figure out which [connections are] going to be the most meaningful for developers, and which we are going to want to build richer experiences around.”
Added Sjogreen, “Games are a shining example of how Facebook integration and social design can really be transformative for an industry.”

10 Apps That Make Me More Productive

We’re becoming an app happy world. Apps that run on our laptops, apps for mobile, apps for iPads and tablets—even better are the apps that sync across all of our chosen devices, keeping us on track in an increasingly online world.
Below are 10 applications that I use on a daily basis to get more done, manage more information, communicate more ideas and generally keep the plates spinning.
1. TweetDeck. This is my primary social media dashboard. It’s a desktop application that runs on Adobe Air and while there are lots of alternative choices, I’ve just always stuck with TweetDeck. (I do however use the Twitter app for my iPhone.) I have groups, lists and searches set up at all times and use the scheduled Tweets feature to meter out content I want to share throughout the day.
2. Evernote. This is my brainstorming, idea clipping, bookmark storing powerhouse. Evernote syncs beautifully across all devices and allows me to outline my life in many ways without having to commit anything to memory. I’ve stored everything from ideas for my books to wines I want to remember.
3. Dropbox. This is my online backup and file storage tool of choice. I probably overuse this tool, leaning on it as a file server for my team as well as a backup for important files, but it just works well. I also use it to share large files and grant conference attendees access to my PowerPoint presentations.
4. Reeder. This is an app that turns my chosen RSS reader, Google Reader, into something much more functional and much more attractive. I do most of my blog reading on my iPhone or iPad and the Reeder app gives me a ton of functionality. I can easily share a post on Twitter, clip to Evernote and bookmark to Delicious right from the post—great time saver.
5. Dragon Dictation. This iPhone app (at least that’s the only version I use) allows me to speak a memo and have it converted to text. I haven't really tested this out, but I think I could compose a blog post using this tool. The app then allows me to e-mail the text or manage it in various other ways. I use this tool whenever I get a flash of brilliance while driving or think of something when trying go to sleep and want to capture the idea right away.
6. HelloFax. This app is billed as a fax machine replacement, but I don’t really use that function. What HelloFax allows me to do is receive a document—like a contract, agreement, vendor form or non-disclosure—that need edits and my signature. Instead of editing, printing, signing, scanning and e-mailing back, I simply download the document, upload it to HelloFax, make my edits, drop in my stored signature and e-mail it back.
7. Text Expander. There are dozens of snippets of text that I need to use frequently. Text Expander allows me to write chunks of copy once and then paste those chunks whenever I need to with a couple keystrokes. I have entire e-mails that I send in response to certain requests, e-mail signatures, blog sponsorship messages and even HTML code  that I use frequently committed to short, time saving keystrokes that are easy to recall.
8. Pixelmator. This is my replacement to Photoshop. Now, I’m not a graphic designer, so I don’t have major league design challenges, but I’ve used Photoshop for years and for $29 this tool does everything I need it to do and is much easier to use than Photoshop. I’m sure Adobe would challenge this statement, but this tool is at least on par feature wise with the $99 Photoshop Elements.
9. Adium. I use Adium for all things related to IM. This Mac-only client allows me to converse with folks via instant message regardless of the IM platform they use—Facebook, Google Talk or AIM.
10. Transmit. This is my file transfer tool. It’s lightening fast and allows me to upload and manage files via FTP to my websites. I also use it to access my Amazon S3 file storage as I use Amazon’s cheap hosting and streaming for my videos and other larger downloads that I make available on my sites. I also use Transmit to move files around on my laptop. Instead of using two instances of the Finder on my Mac, I use a split window in Transmit that allows me to drag and drop files more easily.
Image credit: dougbelshaw via Flickr CC
John Jantsch is a marketing consultant, speaker and author of Duct Tape Marketing and The Referral Engine and the founder of the Duct Tape Marketing Consultant Network.

Top 10 Free Google Chrome Plugins for Small Businesses, to Increase Productivity

Since Google launched its Chrome Web store in December,
extensions have sprung up to speed up to simplify the messy
world of Internet browsing. If you're a member of the club that
spends more time looking at screens than people, some simple
browser add-ons can streamline many of your daily processes
on the job.
We brought you a list of great Google Chrome apps for small businesses shortly after the store's opening. Here are 10 new
ones that are sure to increase your web productivity while at work.




1. StayFocusd

We understand it's a bit much to ask you to go completely cold turkey from Angry Birds. Fortunately for the Internet-browsing addicts out there, StayFocusd puts a cap on a list of sites you choose to limit. Whether you're wasting time on social networks, blogs, shopping or gaming, you can customize your list of restricted sites. Then, set your limit to the amount of time you will allow yourself to waste.
2. Large Document


Say goodbye to e-mail bounce-back notifications for documents over 10 megabytes. The Large Document app lets you transfer what e-mail won't, and it's simpler than an external sharing site like YouSendIt or Dropbox. The Chrome extension converts your file into a URL you can share. An added bonus? No log-in information is required.
3. Docs PDF/PowerPoint Viewer

Docs PDF/PowerPoint Viewer ends the frustrating restriction of needing to download Doc and PowerPoint files to view them. Rather than wait to read several pages sent in e-mail, open Docs, PowerPoints and PDFs directly in your Chrome browser.
4. Yast

Whether you're timing your hours billed to clients or how long your lunch meeting lasted, Yast makes timing your work easy. The app generates time sheets you can comment on and color codes so you can organize all your time-related needs.
5. TabCloud

Sure, tabbed browsing makes everyone's life easier. That is, until your tabbing gets to be a disorganized mess. TabCloud lets you save browsing sessions for a later date. If you're researching a project, just save the set of tabs and return to the bunch at a later time. And, because they're stored in the cloud, you can access your tabs from any computer.
6. Screen Capture

Using Screen Capture, you can easily grab stills from your browser. More transferable than copy and paste and faster than taking notes, screen shots will speed up your work online.
Fun fact: This is the very app that took the photos for this gallery!
7. Popchrom

Expedite your typing by turning your commonly used phrases into abbreviated shortcuts. Let's say you add "lmk" as a shortcut for "let me know if you have any questions." Once you have the shortcut saved, all you need to do is place your mouse over the abbreviated shortcut—in our case, "lmk"—and press ctrl+space. The expanded text will replace your abbreviation.
8. HootSuite

HootSuite puts all your social networks in one simple dashboard, updated in real time. Track traffic to your site, monitor conversations and schedule messages using this handy app.
9. Read Later Fast

If you often find yourself distracted while reading every interesting story you stumble across during the work day, Read Later Fast can help you kick the habit. Rather than forgetting about all those interesting links, this app will store your stories in an easy to use inbox for reading at a later time.
10. Google Calendar Checker

Rather than navigating between your work and your schedule, this easy app counts down until your next engagement in the corner of your browser. Google Calendar Checker's simplicity keeps you focused on meeting your deadlines and preparing for engagements.
Let us know in the comments if you are using any of these apps. Which work for you? What did we miss?