Matthew Petro - Latest Comments

Re: AT&T-Mo: so what?

patrickem — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 12:55:14 -0000

I hope you'll enjoy paying you $1000 a month cell phone (wireless broadband) bill. That is what a two carrier system will look like.

Re: My two cents on iPad 2

Trimson Grondag — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 13:33:29 -0000

I wonder when Apple is going to introduce wireless syncing for iPad, iPods, and iPhones. Wouldn't it be great to pair the mobile device with a desktop computer just once and then have it sync up regularly when in range?

Re: My two cents on iPad 2

Matthew Petro — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 11:37:56 -0000

I've had a difficult time completely giving up on physical media myself. I never carry CDs with me, but I buy almost all of my music on CD, then rip it to iTunes.

I think Apple won't eliminate the ability to add physical media to your iTunes library, regardless of whether the library is stored locally or in the cloud. Ultimately though, Apple builds devices which allow you to access your media in the easiest possible way. Having to sync devices and put media on local storage just puts up a barrier that Apple wants to eliminate.

Re: My two cents on iPad 2

Trimson Grondag — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 11:23:07 -0000

Good post, Kanye. I completely agree that netbooks are dead. I listed mine on eBay the same day iPad 1 was announced in 2010.

After hearing the announcement of iPad 2, I was disappointed that the storage on the most expensive model hadn't gone up to 128GB. Call me old-fashioned, but I still like the idea of carrying all my music, photos, & video with me on the tablet. With 64GB, I limit myself to a playlist of favorite music and seasons of TV shows I'm currently working my way through. Of course, I kept buying CDs & DVDs until recently. It took me a long time to get past the idea of owning physical media, and it will also take me a long time to get past the idea of owning a file stored locally on my device.

Re: 2D bar codes: cool, but still not prime time

Matthew Petro — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 14:53:55 -0000

So the novelty factor comes into play just as much as the actual usefulness of the code? Interesting.

Re: 2D bar codes: cool, but still not prime time

Matthew Petro — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 14:53:11 -0000

I think part of the confusion with them is that there's no big entity trying to build awareness and user familiarity. If Google, Apple or Microsoft got behind 2D codes, built an app into their mobile platforms and pushed user education, that would go a long way towards making them useful.

Re: 2D bar codes: cool, but still not prime time

Resound Creative — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 11:43:29 -0000

Thanks for the shoutout, Matt! I would agree - there's a ways to go before QR codes go primetime. However, if you're targeting the right demographic (esp. business executives) with a high amount of smartphone use, the response is pretty great. Just having the code in a campaign can elicit interest, even if the user doesn't have the capability to scan it.

Re: 2D bar codes: cool, but still not prime time

Brad M. — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 11:30:52 -0000

Reminds me of the old CueCat from Radio Shack. Great concept, bad implementation.

Re: 2D bar codes: cool, but still not prime time

halfacat — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 11:23:37 -0000

Excellent post Matt! I want to integrate these into a few things but the fact that I cannot figure out how to use them tells me my users are going to find them useless and worse: an editorial oversight. "look at this ad? Guys got pixelation going on! Ugh!"

Re: So long, (most) location-based services

Matthew Petro — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 20:34:55 -0000

Yelp is a slightly different beast in terms of location-based services. As you point out, checkins ultimately serve the purpose of enhancing Yelp's core business of reviews. I can see how as a value-add, checkins make sense for Yelp. But for the standalone LBS services, checkins can't provide enough value to support them.

Re: So long, (most) location-based services

Trimson Grondag — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 17:23:49 -0000

What about Yelp? That site tries to tie check-ins to review credibility. In other words, the more times you have checked in a place, the more authoritative your review appears. At least that's the theory. I have no idea of how Yelp's check-in business is going.

Re: So long, (most) location-based services

Matthew Petro — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 13:55:12 -0000

The plethora of apps which don't have a lot to differentiate themselves from their competitors is where I think the problem lies. Checking in with multiple apps sucks and while gameplay is fun, is anyone really going to be hardcore about playing in more than one app?

Gameplay is good stuff and really is the only thing Gowalla, Foursquare and the rest have that Facebook Places doesn't. Unfortunately, I don't think it will be enough to support them as Facebook grows Places, Deals and whatever else is next.

Re: So long, (most) location-based services

Clintus McGintus — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 12:19:57 -0000

I see your point. But for me the services tell me where my friends are above all else and both Foursquare and Gowalla allow comments and photos now so that adds to the experience. But I'm with you, checking into 3-4 different apps is kind of crappy. This is why I like Gowalla the most. From it I can check into gowalla, foursquare, and Facebook. Also, i can see all 3 services in one view so no matter what people are using I see it. And last, I love trying to unlock the badges and pins. That's the game part for me. Recently I've started collecting all the items in gowalla. I hear there's some epic pin for having them all in your collection.

Re: Denny’s major social media fail

Leann — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 11:08:30 -0000

All I can say is that someone has probably lost their paid position with Denny's Restaurant and a couple of guys named Denny could cash in if they need a little $. The restaurant could choose to decline but it would be...another fail.

Re: Piss off closed-minded people

Dani Cutler — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 12:25:38 -0000

They had an event in Tempe too, at the Cultural Center downtown. The whole issue has been blown completely out of proportion, and I don't like to blame, but the media certainly hasn't helped. At all.

Re: Piss off closed-minded people

Greg G. — Sat, 11 Sep 2010 22:06:01 -0000

I would add that many more than 3,000 additional Americans, plus many tens of thousands of others, have been killed as a direct result of actions taken post-9/11.

Re: The medium changes, the response does not

Matthew Petro — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 17:00:29 -0000

Thanks, glad you enjoyed!

Re: The medium changes, the response does not

Chris Lee — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 14:00:19 -0000

Just wanted to say I enjoyed both your #crazyamy posts, sir!

Re: Lessons from a Yelp tragedy

Matthew Petro — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 21:49:14 -0000

True, but it's the kind of train wreck entertainment that bad reality TV capitalizes on. We have way too much of that already. Having said that, I really hope Crazy Amy doesn't get her own show.

Re: Lessons from a Yelp tragedy

Ron — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 18:36:16 -0000

If nothing else, we owe Amy a huge debt of gratitude for the sheer entertainment of watching her stomp and scream her denials across the internet like a spoiled child who's been caught stealing dessert out of other kids' lunchboxes.

Re: The medium changes, the response does not

olllllo — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 18:15:48 -0000

There is something "Palinesque" about her characterization that she has been attacked and all the while attacking.

No. I think she has already been insulated and self-righteous before all of this and is now seeing social media as a tool to let everyone know how secure and together she is.

Re: The medium changes, the response does not

Matthew Petro — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 15:51:19 -0000

This is exactly the other side of the social media coin from the CrazyAmy situation. You talked about a business online, they saw it and acted on it appropriately. They were able to turn a negative into a positive and build their brand at the same time.

Thanks for sharing your story!

Re: The medium changes, the response does not

Matthew Petro — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 15:46:36 -0000

Damn right!

Re: The medium changes, the response does not

Matthew Petro — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 15:45:51 -0000

Me too. But given her steadfast adherence to her chosen path, a part of me thinks she would have reacted the same in person had Joel verbally delivered the critiques he wrote in his Yelp review. I think she just doesn't understand that customer service isn't just for people who love her restaurant and her food.

Re: The medium changes, the response does not

Matthew Petro — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 15:43:15 -0000

Exactly. Maybe our brains just aren't wired to respond the same to people when they aren't physically present. Maybe it's just instinct to react harsher when there's a communication medium in between us and the recipient. But we're also humans. We have smart brains and the ability to cognitively overcome our instinctive reactions. Use your higher-order intelligence, people!