Oracle of NY

Avoiding Traffic with Social Media

In many cities with severe traffic problems, such as Rio de Janeiro, people Twitter incessantly about the traffic. They want to know what streets to avoid and where traffic is moving smoothly. They want to know where the police have set up checkpoints and where the coast is clear.

One of my customers is setting up Twisplays in a restaurant to display the traffic tweets of Rio, including those of Lei Seca RJ which has nearly 150,000 followers.

If the repsonse is positive, he will help me sell Twisplays to restaurants and bars throughout Rio.

Social Media Cafe

Imagine a cafe where people can sit and conveniently view Twitter streams of breaking news, celebrity gossip, cool technological developments, humor, health tips, environmental and green energy progress, upcoming and in-progress local and distant events, check-ins at the cafe and other local venues.

Patrons could even request specific Twitter streams to be displayed.

Imagine the patrons could also tweet messages to be displayed to each other

Imagine a cafe manager or owner who can engage his patrons with social media on-site and off-site, creating a community for socializing, exchanging information and doing business.

Sounds like it would be a great cafe to me - and it's all possible with inexpensive Twisplays.

Twisplays Bar

I'm going to write a series of blog posts about dozens of applications for Twisplays, but I thought I'd start with one that is exciting for its own potential as well as for publicising Twisplays for all the others.

I'd like to open a Twisplays Bar. At a Twisplays Bar, patrons could not only view tweets from and about celebrities, music, social media, local check-ins, entrepreneurs, breaking news, local traffic, bloggers, technology, television, movies and comedy, but they could interact publicly or anonymously with each other via Twisplays.

I think it would be a great differentiator for a bar and create quite a buzz.

I'd love to open one, and if successful (I don't see how a social networking bar marketed via social media couldn't be), then I'd expand and/or franchise.

I'm looking for a partner with an existing or planned bar(who'd be willing to turn it into a Twisplays Bar) and/or an investor to let me run with the concept.

Joshua Persky
917 650 8700

 

 

GrowVC Blog and Podcast - Twisplays

Joshua Persky, Founder and CEO Twisplays is featured in a blog write-up and audio podcast interview by Markus Lampinen of GrowVC.

http://www.growvc.com/blog/2011/01/21/twitter-meets-displays/

http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/grow-vc-podcast-everyone-funding/id369339748

Amsterdam Twisplays

We incorporated almost six months ago and have been selling for three.

This past week, we sold signs to the UK and Brazil. That means we've shipped to the USA, Canada, Mexico, Germany, UK and Brazil!

This coming week, we plan to deliver three ten-foot Twisplays to a restaurant in NYC which is at the forefront of the social networking economy. Once the signs are up, we will take some pictures and create some marketing buzz!

We are being considered by a large telecom for a 100-site pilot Twisplays network, and an advertising agency just pitched Twisplays to major retailer for a small pilot. 

We have a modest angel investment and are trying to develop our angel network.

We just booked tickets to a large audio visual trade show in Amsterdam, ISE, Feb. 1 -3, where we will Twisplay compliments of Channel Media Europe Ltd.

We are looking for customers, resellers, partners, investors and mentors!

CES Twisplays

Chief Signage Guy Tony Reese set up Twisplays at the CES Tweetup event in Las Vegas with the DJ.

 

Startup of the Day: Twisplays

Originality is key to survival in the social media space - remember facebook’s “Harvard only” stunt? Today’s Startup of the Day is Twisplays, one of the most original ideas we have seen so far. What Twisplays does is allow you to display twitter streams of your choice on a scrolling LED display. Cool eh? And when we say twitter stream of your choice, we mean ANY twitter stream that is publicly available to view. What’s the fun part? Try putting this up at your restaurant and see what your smart phone wielding customers do. Twisplays expects onlookers to respond to these streams quite spontaneously.

Founded by Joshua, an MIT grad Twisplays services the NYC area but they do ship out completely built units around the globe.At this point Twisplays only supports twitter feeds. FB and GBuzz in the future? No one knows. All that we know is that Tiwsplays is capitalizing on the social media blowout that’s going on right now and quite well. BTW, these things cost $299 each (shipped) and fit anywhere a LED scroll display will fit.

http://networkedblogs.com/czgop

Happy Holidays from Twisplays

 

Inc. Technology: Tech Start-ups to Watch in 2011

Inc. Technology cited Twisplays as a startup to watch in 2011:

Chris Anderson, the author of the book Free and Wired's editor-in-chief, says we're in a transition from physical atoms to digital bits.

Don't tell that to Joshua Persky. The former NYC banker kept getting light bulb moments about an LED display that shows Twitter feeds. These 140-character messages can include weather info, status updates, sports scores, or anything you can find on Twitter.

Persky had a banking client who created plasma TV advertising for a local bar. He is an MIT graduate so he already gets the technology, including networking aspects and costs. He also heard about another business that uses LED signs on vending machines and had seen Twitter feeds on massive signs in Times Square.

He built a prototype Twisplay and friends on LinkedIn.com said they loved the idea.

Persky said he had orders waiting before the product was even ready for launch.

The displays measure 26"x4"x1.5" so they are small enough to sit in the back of a conference room or in your cubicle. To use them, you connect the display to your laptop, which provides the Internet connection. (Some models connect to a cell phone network.)

"My business plan is to sell 1,000 signs by November 2011, putting Twisplays' revenues at $300,000 to $500,000. We just sold three customized ten-foot Twisplays to a social media restaurant in NYC and are in negotiations with a large telecom for a 100-site college campus network," says Persky.

http://technology.inc.com/managing/articles/201012/techstartups.com.html

MediaBistro Twisplays

Have something to say? Now you can share your tweets with in-store customers, patrons, clients and guests using an attractive LED sign. These "Twisplays” are perfect if you want to advertise to your on- and off-line customers at the same time, show off a celebrity Twitter feed, or give waiting-room clients breaking news tweets to watch.

MB Media Brokers unveiled Twisplays at last week’s Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions Expo, and we think they’re onto something.

These LCD screens are perfect for on-site Twitter advertising. Just think of the possibilities of showing your Twitter feed to your in-store customers: you could run a promotion encouraging customers to follow your business account on Twitter, or get company news out quickly.

Twisplays can sit on a counter, mount on a wall or hang from a ceiling.

Businesses can wire Twisplays up to their PC, or they can access the MB Media national wireless network to display up to 20 tweets per day.

Integrating the on- and off-line customer engagement experience is something that many businesses could benefit from. This simple sign is one way that you could update your customers – however they’re connecting with you – about your offers, news, and events using a single tweet.

http://www.mediabistro.com/alltwitter/businesses-twistplays-displays-your-twitter-feed-on-a-digital-led-sign_b615

Black Friday Twisplays

Black Friday through the weekend for Twisplays. $40 off! That's $279 including shipping. Use discount code gobblegobble. Happy Holidays!

Vending Times Twisplays

MB Media Brokers debuted Twisplays at the recent International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions Expo, held Nov. 15-19 in Orlando FL. The new application for the company's LED-matrix electronic sign enables all types of businesses to harness the power of social media throughout their locations and at the point of sale.

Twisplays can be placed in sites ranging from offices and stores to restaurants and bars, allowing the locations to share their Twitter feeds, which can include company news to promotional offers, with customers, patrons or passersby and encourage them to sign up to receive tweets regularly. The LED signs can sit on a counter, mount on a wall or hang from a ceiling.

The system can either be wired to a PC or added to MB Media's national wireless network to display up to 20 tweets a day. "I think it will be a great way to expose retail customers to social media and give businesses a new way to reach customers," said MB chief executive Dave Levine.

http://bit.ly/hH22xl 

Money-Saving Twisplays

What are the best Twitter streams for deals, discounts and freebies?
Airlines? Brands? Tickets?
Where would it make the most sense to put Twisplays showing those deals?
Bars? Cafes? Restaurants? Banks?

TWTRCON: MediaFunnel and Twilio Twisplays

 

Clearwire Twisplays

Thank you Clearwire for providing Twisplays with a 4G USB device for a trial!

We are blogging, Twittering and Twisplaying from the IAAPA in Orlando, selling Twisplays to amusement parks, museums, family entertainment centers, aquariums and other attractions.