Are you The Nation's Noggin?

Tesco Mobile and their marketing agency Ruby have together launched a fun and engaging Facebook app called The Nation’s Noggin which is designed as a set of ‘brain-training’-style fun and crazy games.

Your aim is to complete each level in The Nation’s Noggin quickly and correctly, earning as many points as you can by completing the various mini-games. If you're good you become ranked in the ’Leaderboard’ section where you can compare scores with other people in your region, friends or family. Usefully there is a practice zone where you can hone your skills in private.

Rob Spicer from Tesco Mobile and Sam Grischotti from Ruby agency told me that the reason they created this app was to give something back to the customer and help raise awareness of the Tesco Mobile brand. They have sent me a set of screenshots to show you around (click for larger images), but of course if you are a Facebook member, you can go straight to the app at:

http://apps.facebook.com/nationsnoggin     (note that the web address starts 'apps' not 'www')

I’ve used the app found the experience really enjoyable - so see you on The Nation’s Noggin Leadership Boards...below me of course..!

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News has come through about a round of funding for social networking site Facebook has given that brand the same market value as the whole Tesco. Not bad for a company started just under 7 years (as opposed to our 70 years) ago!

Search the Tesco Recipe site using an SMS text message

Text COOK and two or three key ingredients to 83726 (TESCO on your keypad) and get back a great recipe from Tesco Real Food.
Texts are free for Tesco Mobile customers, other network customers may be charged at their standard network rate.

With our focus on Tesco apps for the latest generation of mobile smart phones you might be given to wondering if we've forgotten customers with ordinary mobile phones with simpler internet access - phones which support a simple web browser but where 'apps' are beyond their capability.

Steve McArdle hasn't forgotten. He works in our marketing team has alerted me to a new service we are launching for ALL customers with mobile phones using SMS text messages.

Steve has been working with my colleague Lucia Del-Prete whose previous role at a mobile operator has given her tremendous insight into the enduring 'power' of SMS. Steve also worked with Tesco Mobile and their agency, InfoMedia (who did the technical legwork), to launch this service that will take your food ingredients and look up a great recipe for you.

All you have to do is:
1) Open your larder and fridge and observe a couple of key ingredients.
2) Type 'COOK' followed by two or three of the key ingredients you have observed.
3) Send the message to 83726 - that's "TESCO" spelt out on your phone's keyboard.

So I sent the message:  Cook baked beans potatoes  to 83726
Back came the message:
Tesco Real Food> Thanks for your request. To view your recipe please click http://wap-tesco-mobile.com:80/cook/2d0ba525a6

The link took me to "Bubble and squeak potato cakes with bacon" complete with a picture that does indeed show baked beans and potato.

Thanks to Steve and team for creating an "app" for more mobile customers, not just those whose phone has app capability.

Tesco to sell Apple iPhone on Tesco Mobile tariffs

This morning Tesco Mobile announced that Tesco would be selling the Apple iPhone with Tesco Mobile SIM cards and tariffs.

Our push to get Tesco Finder (and soon, Tesco Grocery Shopper) into the Apple iTunes App Store was because of our desire to bring customers a great mobile experience of Tesco services in the knowledge that this news was coming (yes, I have to agree to 'vows of silence' on some topics of business sensitivity, even on this blog!).

The press release from Tesco Mobile:

25th November 2009

Tesco Mobile through its joint venture partnership with O2 is pleased to announce that it will shortly introduce iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS in Tesco Phone Shops and online through Tesco Direct in the UK.

For further information and for customers interested in pre-registration please visit www.tescomobileiphone.com.

For more information on iPhone, please visit www.apple.com/iphone.

More information can be found on Tesco Mobile at www.tescomobile.com

-ENDS-

News about our announcement (you can get more news from search engines):

BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8378267.stm

Tesco Mobile hope to get iPhones in stock before Christmas, which us insiders can best describe as 'Splendid'!