This is starting to really get somewhere.  The interactivity is what it is all about.  The actions on the ad can be tracked.  However there is no user input.  I’m sure this will eventually be incorporated.  Another down play is that you still need to be directed to a third party website in the end for various options.  I know that is most advertisers point, but in the end it is unnecessary and is a draw back.

I want Clickboards to be much like the Google Gadget Ads and I think if I want to start I should probably just create them and become a client of Google and just use them the way I want to.  It’s not hard with this format to promote discounts and relay enough information to promise the user that when they disclose some information about the product they like that the next time they go to the store to purchase the advertised item, the discount will be waiting there for them.

We also talked about the difference between SMS and MMS.  It seemed common that this idea worked better through MMS and that most phones are capable of receiving MMS.  We did argue about the potential plagiarism rights an SMS creates.  He was saying that people can simply send themselves coupons, thereby creating cause for theft.  He was saying that waiters can simply send themselves a bunch of messages, or even in the first place not tell that the SMS was used and pocket the money.  This led me to the validation step.  Currently his process does not have a validation system.  I suggested that once the coupons have been sent to the user, that they would be required to validate the coupon in front of the waitstaff thereby expiring the coupon from use by that user.  The total validated coupons received for that client could then by submitted at the end of the week or month for their records, eliminating theft from waitstaff.  But he saw that people would not pay the extra money to send one more message to validate their coupons.  This led me back to the fact that I wanted to change his model to be free to the user.

Regardless each message is locked in to costing RMB1 under his model so this would not work or change.  However he said I could have my own number to use for RMB3000 a month.  So the Clickboards on his site or others around the Internet could be accessed through my number.

He kept explaining that the mobile coupon market is still very young and has not taken off.  He has seen little success with this type of business model.  Something that can not support itself.  And charging the client for giving away the coupons is very difficult.  Alvin sees the light that the Clickboard has but not necessarily through coupons and believes charging clients RMB12 per acquisition of coupon will be difficult.  Getting any money out of them would be hard.  So he sees value in the Clickboard but not for this.  This is a conundrum.

He followed up his argument with a colleague he helped try to take print coupons to the mobile media for use.  He said there was little success.  However I am going to follow up with this person Andrew Collins of MailMan.com to see if he sees the light in what I’m doing.

We concluded by saying that I need to do my own stand alone website that would act as the hub for Clickboards and that I could on a trial basis use his website as an extended portal.  And again use my free number in which these discounts would be accesses through MMS.   This he said he would do on the basis of a friend.  However to build this standalone website with full Java applications could take three months with ten people working solely on the project for a grand total of RMB300,000.  This is currently what his mGuanxi.com website is worth.

I then asked what he is doing with mGuanxi.com and he said it was simple the social tool of his service.  I began to understand that not too many people are that involved with this site as their choice for a social media.  We then went into behavioral advertising and that kind of tailspinned as he did not see people interacting heavily enough with the site to truly allow it to work for the clients.  I see that and asked why there was no advertising on the site now and he said he did not want it to be overbearing to the user at this point but that is in the plans.

Currently Alvin is working more in Search Mobile Advertising which I agree is where most people see the potential for the mobile devices in the future.  He is working with some big names and I think that is where his aim is.  Maybe he will apply the Clickboard to this service in the future.  He liked the idea and I’m sure he is thinking of ways to utilize it.  One day I hope I still get credit.

He left me feeling encouraged that the idea has potential but told me the more you do the more pitfalls you will discover.  He is reluctant to change, that is one of the number one pitfalls that occurred during this meeting.  However if I was to start he would go with the flow and help me out.  So as he said keep talking to investors and get their advice.  So keep talking about it!

So, I have changed the name to reflect more of what a Clickboard does.  In four clicks you are still free to surf the Internet without being dragged into a buying process or printing off coupons.  Four clicks is pretty powerful when you think about it, what will you accomplish in your next four clicks?

Then enter imaginary Clickcard number and click…

Then replay or go to Clickboards.net.

This is really where the Clickboard comes in.  The first criteria remains the same, click through.  However, a Clickboard is not clicked on once, actually maybe three of four times.  The sales message is broken down into segments, each displayed after each click.  This puts the ball back on the hands of the advertiser, demonstrating their ineffectiveness or effectiveness of the ads they create.  By taking away the fear of opening a new window, tab, or replacing the window you are in, the Clickboard allows you to remain idle on the page you are viewing.  But the message from the ad is strengthened after each click.  So now an ad can be measured by how far the viewer followed the ad through the three or four clicks.

A Clickboard registered with Clickboards.net will also not take them to the advertisers site in the end.  Clickboards not registered can take them to any desired site on the final click.  Since this is not of concern to me, I will only discuss the effectiveness of those Clickboards that are registered.

The final click on the Clickboard will not take you to the advertisers site and promotion, rather it will take you to Clickboards.net.  Once there, in relation to the ad that brought you there, more details of the promotion and other ways to save on this or similar products will be displayed.  Again, the effectiveness is measured by how far the user follows this and similar promotions.  But it doesn’t stop there…

Even without going to Clickboards.net, the savings from the promotion displayed on the Clickboard are automatically added to the users profile.  So next time they use the Clickcard, these promotions can be obtained upon checkout.  With the use of mobile Clickboards and Clickboards.net Kiosks, users can be reminded of their collection of coupons.  A click there, a click here, these all add up and can be used to show the advertiser that there ads are being seen.

Upon check out, coupons stored will be automatically deducted.  On the receipt will show the discounts received next to the product purchased.  These deductions are further reinforcement to use the Clickcard and to continue using Clickboards.net and to continue clicking on Clickboards.

This three tier level of measuring performance is really the next step to bringing back an industry that has set its sites on hyper-inflation and non-concrete performance criteria.

Advertisers should not be responsible for their own ads.  If someone was to really learn from this, they would see that their performance should be outsourced.  This would allow them more flexibility, and with results as positive as those that can be constructed through the use of Clickboards, advertisers would more than welcome the positive impact.

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