What's the newest craze in IM?

QR is getting bigger

offline seems to be the new IM craze.

http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...word-then.html
(a good post to make you think about the "newest" BS...)

I'll drop this one out for ya: user content generated websites.

Don't ask me what, when, where or why, but they've been working very well for me. You just need to find a market where people need to talk/advertise/buy/sell/trade something, low or none competition and you're good to go.

People have a urge to talk/write/buy/trade a LOT of stuff. Just find 10 niche markets, develop, test, and pick the winners.

Last year I developed a couple of these sites and so far so good.

Edit: with all this 2012 craze, guess a site targeting that info can do well too. :p

The search doesn't work on your WF?
http://www.warriorforum.com/search.php?searchid=7641342

And to not get lost, start with this one:
http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...-qr-codes.html

3D Printing, in the next 3-10 years it is going to completely change manufacturing and e-commerce.

Guest blogging is fantastic way to market you and your company online.

It can offer stable, DF, high-PR backlinks from relevant authority websites. SEO gold!

Do your research first though. Choose sites with high-PR that you can offer something to, demonstrate your expertise etc ...

Get things published regularly on a variety of sites and you'll soon push your website up Google's ranking and do wonders for your traffic and online reputation.

I would say that one of the most innovative NEW forms of marketing is blue-tooth advertising. There are several companies out there that provide the gear.

However...that being said...the NEW things aren't necessarily the best. In fact, it seems like the NEW stuff that the "gurus" are pushing is actually the stuff that was hot 5 years ago.

Hi, I think the market is reinventing itself every 3 months. That's the problem. Internet time is probably 3 to 4 times faster than the real world. When you combine that with technologies merging (think camera, phone and browser) and it's all ever shifting, ever moving. Old wisdom says: "build a list" but with open rates on the decline, combined with marketers becoming even more aggressive with their send rates, then even this old adage is not what it was (still vital though).

Personally, I think 'News' and 'celebrity' and 'food' are 3 relatively evergreen sectors....coupled with coupon codes and yes, those QR codes are about to have their day... my 2c worth.... regards Allen

I can usually tell what people think the newest thing is by what e-mail pitches I get from IMers. I would have to say, offline, QR, and other mobile-ish stuff are the next big things. Actually offline is big already at this point.

Also, this one may sound odd and a bit non-IM, but disaster/crisis preparation is getting bigger. People are worried about the instability in the world they see right now, financially and otherwise, and looking for ways to prepare their families for anything that might happen.

Getting people offline to online is still massive - it is not new but its got legs. Understanding quality of content is interesting and how to monetize it. Without being one of those sites that full of ad's.

I'm going to say that APPS seem to be a craze that just hasn't taken off seriously yet. There are hundreds of people who are making thousands (dare I say millions) off the Apple App Store and now the Android App Store.

Mobile is the future indeed and if selling something for a measly $.99 to hundreds of thousands interests you then I would encourage you to get in now while the entry barrier is still low (the corporations are coming... I assure you--once that happens the cost of doing an APP is going to skyrocket.)

Mobile Marketing... specifically on Android is H.O.T. right now.

I'd have to say setting up your own high pr mini network.

Yes, push button software recommendations with countless different names are jumping out of the lists every day. Beginners should be aware of their temptation.

3D is definitely buzzing especially in printing business.

Also as we all know, Mobile Marketing is growing by leaps and bounds ... totally massive!

Apps is another beast to deal with especially when Google has opened the apps for Android for developers to monetize. If you know how to create apps then this is the key for making some serious money in Apps development.

Cloud Services is making its mark worldwide and becoming a huge success.

Anymore?. Hmmmm ... I'm sure someone will come up with something soon or later.

Some funny stuff in this thread. Offline marketing products had a steep rise in popularity, but that seemed to level off months ago (at least).


I don't mean to hurt your feelings, but this is really funny, even if it isn't a joke. To say "the biggest newest craze has always been..." is blatantly contradictory. It's so ridiculous that I actually like it, lol.

Plus... the online world is not "new" to anyone offline, unless they live in a third world country or something. And to say that the offline world is new to the online marketers is even more crazy.

I'm sorry, but I just got back from the bar and I can't stop myself from poking fun. No harm intended.

Of all the things listed here, I have to agree with those who said "mobile".

"The next big thing", as the OP called it, can mean a huge number of things. I.M. covers nearly everything in the world, and things can come out of nowhere for any niche.

One of the few criteria, though, that helps justify what I think you are looking for, is growth. Something that is growing very quickly in popularity is going to leave a lot of marketers behind. Upward growth means there is more potential than is being taken advantage of. Downward means there is probably too much competition, because marketers will stick around long after the popularity shrinks. Level, or near level growth is simply right in the middle, literally.

Mobile is one thing that is truly leaving marketers behind. There are so many boundaries that most people just don't even seriously consider it. That's changing quickly, of course, but for now it leaves an incredible opportunity for those with the resources and will to take advantage.

I also think investing is going to grow, though I don't know how much. They say people will permanently change their habits because of this recession. If that's true, then I think the investment industry will experience awesome growth over the next several decades. After all, we're quite sure that there is going to be an increase in jobs and in job security in the very near future. That means more money in average people's pockets. The question is, what will they do with it? Investing sounds logical to me, but where? Stocks or forex? Maybe confidence has dropped so far that people will avoid those. Precious metals then? Start ups?