As technology becomes ever-more ingrained in day-to-day marketing strategy, we are faced with terminology and jargon many of us don’t have time to get to grips with. So what exactly is a mashup? As with many Internet terms, a mashup means different things to different people. A simple definition is that it is a web application that utilises data from different sources, combining it into a single application.
The classic mashup is the use of cartography applications such as Google Maps. This is where websites plot data over a map showing for example, where each of your customers is located. A good example of this type of mashup can be found at maps.fon.com, which plots free wi-fi access points on a Google Map.
Mashups have become popular because companies such as Google, Amazon, Yahoo and Microsoft are providing us with access to applications we’ve never had before. If you wanted to develop your own version of Google Maps it would take many months and cost huge sums of money. However, Google give it away for free as part of its brand-building activity.
A couple of my favourites are:
- dev.benedictoneill.com/bbc , which takes BBC News and plots stories on Google Maps to show exactly where events are taking place.
- http://www.theadgenerator.org/ , where real corporate slogans are remixed and randomised to generate invented slogans, then paired with Flickr images, generating fake ads on the fly.
Business mashups
Some say that businesses have been creating mashups for many years and are nothing new. Certainly, businesses have been overlaying company data on maps for many years, back to the days when pins were pushed into paper maps. The difference with Internet-based mashups for business is they that they can be maintained in real-time and allow for worldwide collaboration. As businesses continue to embrace technology and explore new options, the use of mapping mashups is becoming more widespread.
However, how businesses are expanding mashups past mapping is less obvious. This is because the results are so embedded in their applications that the process is seamless. Companies are springing up that base their entire business concept around mashups. Possibly the biggest and most popular mashup is Digg, which brings together data from many sites and combines them with site reviews and site rankings. Digg has become so popular that Google has reputedly offered $200 million for the application.
People in the know are saying the next big Internet idea will not be created in-house. Rather it will be a mashup of already existing data and applications. So for those up for a challenge, the tools are already out there, it just needs someone clever enough to put them together.
The legalities
Before you go rushing out to create your new mashup, bear in mind that parts of it – if not the whole – contain information and tools you don’t own and are not under your control. Questions about privacy, protection of intellectual property and the ethics of sharing or borrowing information from online sources must be addressed. As many have already found with broadband contracts, a fair usage policy applies to any application or software and can be enacted at any point if the provider deems it appropriate.
If you are using the mashup for commercial purposes the water becomes even muddier, but as long as you read the small print and act in a responsible manner you should have nothing to worry about. If you have questions ask the provider for permission and let them know what you are doing – you never know, they might be so impressed with your mashup they want to promote it on their site.
Making mashups happen
Mashups are created using APIs, JavaScript, XML and other technologies; they can take a while to put together. But Google, Yahoo and Microsoft have made the power of mashups available to anyone with Google Mashup Editor (code.google.com/gme), Yahoo Pipes (pipes.yahoo.com/pipes) and Microsoft Popfly (http://www.popfly.com/), which are all tools that allow marketers to create mashups with little or no technical knowledge.
Google Mashup Editor is targeted at those comfortable working with technology. If this isn’t you, but want to get stuck in and get results quickly, I would recommend Microsoft Popfly.
As you become more experienced with Popfly you can create varying applications that will give you a better understanding of your market and offer your customers a better experience.
If you want to see more mashups or you have your own that you want to promote check out Programmable Web (http://www.programmableweb.com/) and Mashup Awards (http://www.mashupawards.com/).
What next?
With tools such as Popfly, the mashup has been released from its techie leash and the power is in your hands. Whilst you may already use traditional software such as Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint to create mashup-type applications, true mashups now give you the technology and flexibility to make these applications real-time and share them with everybody.
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