One participant stated “It’s EXPECTED that a company have some digital face – whether it’s on FB or Twitter I don’t know – but they need a strong electronic presence or you doubt their relevance in today’s marketplace.”

Other participants echoed this sentiment, stating that companies without “digital faces” are seen as behind the times and not interested in their demographic. You can read more about the study here.

Before you pick up the phone, think about the person you’re calling. If they rarely pick up their phone and you usually have to leave a message, send an email or a text message. They may respond a lot quicker. Is the person you are contacting on the road a lot? Don’t text or call him/her. In many states, talking and texting while driving is against the law and it’s all too tempting to take that call or reply to that text. Leaving duplicate messages at various “doors” of communication can be frustrating, so pick one “door” to which to leave your message.

It’s also important to let your communication preferences known. Prefer to talk on the phone? Is it easier for you tot get to your email? Let your colleagues and business partners know. This can prevent people from leaving duplicate messages at your various “doors” and ultimately lead to better time management.

“Dear Hiring Manager,

Please accept this application for the administrative assistant job . . .”

Here are a few tips on writing cover letters:

Address the Hiring Manager by Name
Unless you are applying to blind ad, you probably know the name of the company. Using LinkedIn or making a couple of phone calls to get the name of the hiring manager can make your cover letter memorable to the hiring manager. Also, the fact that you took the time to find out the name of the hiring manager shows initiative.

Use Keywords
Many companies are working with a skeleton crew and you shouldn’t overlook the possibility that one person may simply be scanning over your cover letter, searching for certain important words. Look at the job description carefully and use the same words.

Follow the Instructions
Look carefully at the instructions given for how to apply for the job. Does it say to put certain words in the subject line if you are applying by email? Does it specify which kind of attachments you should use? Does it specifically say “No Phone Calls”? Not following specific instructions can cause your application to be lost, deleted or tossed aside.

Be Creative
Finally, make sure you aren’t using the same tired clichés in your cover letter. Cover letters can be boring to go through, especially if they all sound the same. Make sure they stand out! For advice on creative cover letters, check out this article.

You can see examples of business card with QR Codes as well as other new ideas on updating your business card in this article from Mashable.

iAd is sure to be valuable tool for marketing. According to Apple, iPhone users have downloaded over five billion apps and spend at least 30 minutes a day using iPhone applications. iAd also offers metrics, which adds value to marketers seeking to measure their efforts.

For more information on how IAd will affect mobile marketing, check out this blog post from DMNews.

Recently, I was a participant in the pre-market test project for AT&T’s new Microcell 3G product. The Microcell 3G connects to your broadband service and acts as a mini-cell phone tower. During the test we learned that the Microcell 3G device needed to be placed at least one foot from your exiting Wi-Fi device.

Now, the instructions for the AT&T Microcell 3G device clearly state the proper placement for the Microcell 3G device. A simple solution that could have become “Microcellgate” had the instructions not included this needed statement.

So the simple solution for Apple would have been to tell people “don’t cover the antenna area while talking on the phone”. Or you could have been given the reason for purchasing bumpers, which fit around the iPhone and help with the reception issue. Not a big deal. But Apple made it a big deal, by first denying there was a problem. Then, giving a partial-admission of the problem, then a full-admission and then, finally, a resolution. If they had simply admitted the problem and offered a solution immediately, it would not have grown in the PR nightmare we have witnessed. Apple took a simple matter and turned it into a major multi-million dollar disaster that will take years to overcome.

The lesson for companies, candidates, or anyone dealing with the public is to be upfront and honest. Let the public know as quickly as possible what they deserve to know. In Apple’s case, the antenna issue should have been handled in the iPhone 4’s operating instructions.

On a side note, when I ordered my iPhone 4 on the first day, I noticed they were selling bumpers,. In a “Blink” decision, I purchased bumpers for my phone. I’m glad I did. I am perfectly happy with my iPhone 4 and would have bought it even if I did know about the antenna problem. Think about all the money Apple has spent – and will spend – on “Antennagate” when a simple truthful statement about the antenna weakness could have avoided the entire matter.

According to this blog post from SocialFresh, Starbucks started its social media campaign by working with existing unofficial fan pages to consolidate them into one official page at Facebook’s urging.

In the social media space, there are many claiming to be rock stars, but Starbucks is by far the biggest social media success thus far. Companies should look to them as a leader in the space.

Location-based marketing is used via Smart Phone applications. Examples of Location-based applications are GoWalla, Tri-Out and Foursquare. Since Starbucks is using Foursquare as its location-based marketing platform, we will go into some detail about how it works.

A user downloads the Foursquare application to their Smart Phone and creates an account. When you go to a location (restaurant, bar, coffee shop, etc.), you “check in” using the application. You can link to your Twitter or Facebook account so you can let your friends/clients know where you are. The person that checks into the same location the most amount of times becomes the “Mayor” of that location.

Starbucks among a few other companies have started rewarding their “Mayors”. Starbucks Mayors receive a dollar off of their order. This creates incentive for Starbucks customers to show loyalty to a particular location and it’s also a competition.

Since location-based marketing is new, it has its share of problems. For one, you have to have a Smart Phone in order to participate. As Smart Phones get more popular, this will be less of an issue. Another problem is that Starbucks hasn’t been vigilant about letting their employees know about this promotion. As a result, it creates a negative Starbucks experience when it is supposed to be positive. Also, there is nothing to stop employees from checking in effectively blocking customers from taking advantage of the deal.

Once these issues are ironed out, I think location-based marketing will be the next big thing for retailer’s, restaurants, bars and pretty much anything with a storefront. You can read more about Starbucks’ use of location based marketing here.

Catone notes that at a recent conference, he collected so many business cards that his wallet nearly burst, so clearly, the end of the business card has not arrived yet, however, most of them ended up in a recycling bin. So, should business cards die in place of a less disposable pixilated version? There are already many Smart Phone Apps that enable you to trade contact info quickly. The IPhone has Bump, which enables you to transfer and receive personal info from another iPhone by merely bumping them together. Though the application is very cool, at the end of the day, you are only exchanging data, it doesn’t have the look and feel of a business card. A business card offers more personality that a mere contact page in a phone, but as Smart Phones become more the norm and new fancy business card applications come around, I suspect we will start to see the end of the business card.

You can read Cartone’s article here.