This post is by Michael Pollock, the original owner of Small Business Branding. Yaro Starak now owns and produces the latest content for this blog.
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WSJ online: New Gadgets Aim to Help Users Watch Their Weight (link via engadget).
"In recent months, several services have sprung up
that let people use their cellphones or other gadgets to design workout
schedules, decide which menu items at a restaurant are compatible with
their diets, and even use their camera-equipped cellphones to send
snapshots of their meals to a dietitian for review."
Professional Coaches and consultants should take notice. As should anyone who provides similar services to busy people with lots to do and an ever-diminishing number of hours in which to do it. Here’s the gist of MyFoodPhone, according to the WSJ article:
"Customers use any camera-equipped cellphones to
send snapshots of their meals to a Web site and receive advice from a
registered dietitian on how to modify eating habits to reach weight or
health goals."
Using mobile devices – cell phones, camera phones, mp3 players, etc. – to improve various areas of one’s life is a trend that’s gaining momentum. Personally, I can barely remember what life was like without a cell phone. And that was just a few years ago. Look 5 to 10 years down the road and ponder where we’ll be. Are you keeping pace with this trend? In other words, are you offering products and services that more easily integrate into the busy lives of your network?
The mobile lifestyle is all about overcoming friction and inertia (among other things). And those are two of the biggest forces we need to overcome en route to achieving our goals and/or making life changes.
Example: You have an important call to make, but you’re on your way to an important meeting or your daughter’s parent-teacher conference. Pulling over to use the pay phone is a huge challenge. Tons of friction there. First you have to find one. One that works. Without gum on the mouthpiece. Then you need to find the number. Then you need to dial the number. And heaven forbid it’s long distance call that requires operator assistance. Ugh. So you put off the call (inertia).
Enter the cell phone. Problem solved. Friction and inertia is minimzed significantly.
Carrying around a food journal and pulling it out each time you eat something is friction. Minimize the friction – just snap a photo and send it to your dietician. It actually sounds kind of fun, trendy and hip. The website even looks fun, trendy and hip. And all that goes a long way toward getting past the inertia of starting a new diet. If you can help people deal with friction and inertia in fun, creative ways, they’ll absolutely love you for it.
For more on the mobile lifestyle, check out Howard Rheingold’s very fine Smart Mobs blog.