Thursday Buzz: Shazam Gains a Set of Eyes

Shazam has long been one of the most necessary apps on an iPhone, thanks to its revolutionary ability to determine the current song playing nearby.

Now, the company’s aiming for something even bigger: visuals. On Thursday, the company announced the new visual recognition features available for its app. The plan offers significant advertising and monetization opportunities, the company notes.

“Whenever [users] wave their phone over any item with the Shazam camera logo on it or a QR Code, they’ll instantly get taken to custom mobile experiences including interactive content, special offers, and ability to purchase items or share them with others,” the company stated in a blog post  (opens in a new tab).

The company is working with a variety of partners—most notably Disney, which is launching an interactive feature for its film Tomorrowland  (opens in a new tab).

Could this be the future of marketing at events? It certainly stretches the capabilities of an already-popular product.

Awarding Advocacy

Your association gives out awards. Why not for #advocacy  (opens in a new tab)? http://t.co/BBJenOkb6k  (opens in a new tab) #assnchat  (opens in a new tab) pic.twitter.com/GLX1Ut8MlL  (opens in a new tab)

— Connectivity (@CQConnectivity) May 28, 2015  (opens in a new tab)

If we want to encourage our members to advocate, why not give them an award for doing it well? That’s a good question, and one that the National Athletic Trainers Association (NATA) has answered by creating a new advocacy award as part of its annual awards program.

The William T. Griffin Award for Outstanding Leadership in Legislative Advocacy  (opens in a new tab) came about in honor of the late Griffin, who was a key advocacy figure with the association for more than two decades. By highlighting Griffin’s work, NATA Government Relations Committee Chairman Mike Chisar says the association hopes to create a culture around advocacy.

“Since I’ve been chair, I’ve been trying to elevate the importance of what we do,” Chisar told CQ Connectivity  (opens in a new tab). “As athletic trainers, none of us know anything about advocacy; yet it’s the lynch pin for what we do.” (ht @CQConnectivity  (opens in a new tab))

Other Links of Note

Trying to figure out your budget for that new piece of software you’ve got your eye on? Permitsy has a few ideas on procurement  (opens in a new tab).

Community building is not just a onetime commitment, says Idea Architects principal Jeffrey Cufaude  (opens in a new tab).

Here’s a surprise: According to The Verge, the best email client for iOS is … drumroll, please—Microsoft Outlook  (opens in a new tab).

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