Mobile is the next big thing, but what about mobile advertising? Is it going to hold up as usage patterns change? That and more in today’s Lunchtime Links:

Google’s rotten day: Thursday, Google’s stock took a nosedive because its not-very-good quarterly report got released a few hours early by accident. But the problem that really made investors wary had nothing to do with an early release. Rather, they think the report shows weakness in mobile advertising — a model quickly becoming more important for Google. The Street‘s Chris Ciaccia puts it bluntly: “If there’s a stark difference between companies that play in the mobile arena, it’s that hardware pays, and advertising doesn’t. At least not yet.” Facebook has also gotten nicked in recent months over similar concerns. If your association relies on advertising for revenue, is this a bad sign for you?

Spaced out: Velvet Chainsaw’s Jeff Hurt suggests that where meetings are concerned, we’re reaching a point when we need to stop focusing on the tech and get back to the basics — great eduction for attendees. “Too often our discussions have been on traditional room sets, spaces, and AV,” he says. “But even the best and grandest meeting space does not transform speaker practice and attendee learning in any measurable way!”

Don’t get too excited: Is the recent economic upswing not nearly as good as it looks? That’s what SurePayroll’s president, Michael Alter, argues on Inc. magazine’s site. He cites economic data his company has organized that shows a low level of hiring among small businesses. “We’re also finding that optimism among small-business owners — key drivers of the economic engine — is unusually low,” he says. “It has been hovering around 60 percent since May, before it fell drastically to 45 percent in September.” Finding the same trends among your association’s members?

Anything cool you’ve seen today? Let us know in the comments.

(photo by pittaya/Flickr)