Toasty Technology

A winter jacket that charges your gadgets and keeps you warm, imagine that! 

Mountain Hardwear has cleverly designed a winter coat that has a built in heating system and power adapter, which can charge gadgets that have become more a necessity than a luxury (ie: iPod, cellphone, digital camera or GPS device.) 

The sleek $240 Refugium for men and Radiance for women jackets are definitely the first of its kind. The unique heating and charge elements, which is powered by a rechargeable lithium-ion battery, was developed by Ardica Technology. The installation of the heat and tech connector kit would be an additional $195. 

Users can adjust the Moshi heating system to deliver up to 100-degree heat, which lasts up to eight hours on a low setting. According to Rik Fairlie, reporter from the New York Times, the jacket produced quite noticeable heat that felt concentrated in the areas where the heating elements were located. Paige Boucher, spokeswoman for Mountain Hardware, said your body would evenly distribute the heat when you're out and about in the cold weather. 

I'm ecstatic about this. Although the line has been available since October 15, I still have time to buy before winter hits Texas. On that note, this jacket is designed to be worn under a ski coat, in very cold climates, or alone in warmer climates. I think wearing the thermic micro-insulated jacket alone would hold its own through a "Texas" winter. 

"Talking" Billboards

Ever heard of radio frequency identification, or RFID? It's only a new technology that has given marketers the advantage and edge in better communicating with their consumers. 

Mini USA has began one of the most innovative advertising campaigns yet. More than a thousand voluntary Mini owners in New York, Chicago, Miami and San Francisco have signed up for the Mini experiment, which uses the radio frequency identification card to deliver personalized billboard messages. 

Messages such as, "Mary, moving at the speed of justice," if Mary is a lawyer, or "Mike, the special of the day is speed," if Mike is a chef.

Mini USA calls the experiment "an ever-changing array of unique, personal, playful and unexpected messages."

The billboards are programmed to identify approaching Mini drivers and greet them with a personalized message based on a questioner the owners filled out. The high tech billboard messages are delivered through a coded signal from a radio chip embedded in their key fob. 

A New York Times article asks what happens when a Mini is under a sign and traffic is not moving? After running through three personal messages, the sign switches back to the standard Mini advertisement. 

"Building evangelists is the holy grail of marketing for a number of industries," said Michael Megalli, a partner in Group 1066, a marketing strategy firm in New York. " This is interesting because the marketing is integrated into the product."

Although the Mini USA "talking" billboard experiment has helped marketers go further in their mission of making consumers feel special, there are factors that may need more research before they can continue with the experiment. Safety experts are concerned that the flashing billboard messages may be hazardous. Corky personalized messages can be distracting to not only Mini drivers, but other drivers as well. 

According to the New York Times article, the federal government will soon publish a review of the subject. 

"Marketing is like a horse race," said Mr. McDowell, head of North American operations for the company. "We want to start more and more horses down the racetrack and see which ones are winning." 

Twitter and Public Relations

People are working smarter together.

It's no breaking news that Twitter has changed the face of communication among people, from personal to professional settings. Companies, such as IBM, are diving into the opportunity of better managing the communication between their employes and  its publics. 

"With over 1,000 employees on Twitter, IBM news and expertise spreads faster and more effectively than ever, making the company smaller and flatter and helping IBMers become smarter," states the IBM blog. 

Exactly what type of opportunities does social networking Web sites, such as Twitter offer? PR practitioners are utilizing Twitter to start, participate and monitor conversations. A Twitter user who tweeted about having spotted a celebrity (Willam Shattner) at a Jet Blue terminal received a follow request 10 seconds post the tweet from Jet Blue. The follower was a manager of corporate communications for Jet Blue. 

Now more than ever has it become essential for a business to be in tune with the same channels of communication its publics is using for information. No longer is the public receiving its news and information through the final, final, final draft of news reports and releases. 

"People are turning to unofficial sources first, particularly in times of crisis,"  states a blog from on the Record Online. 

Social media, particularly Twitter, is becoming "the" means of communication and is showing an unstoppable pace in growth. It is the responsibility and duty for businesses to align themselves with the fast development of social media networking.