Ikea is known to have revolutionised the way we buy furniture by laying out the store to take you on a journey through different rooms so you can see items in situation. To launch a new store, Ikea decided to turn this idea on its head – well, not 180 degrees but 90 degrees – by laying out its wares onto a vertical billboard to double as a rock climbing wall. To have a go at clambering this wall, you’ll need to flat pack…I mean, back pack with your climbing gear and head to Clermont-Ferrand in France.

“Jitter Juice” is the slang term for coffee according to the Urban Dictionary, as too much coffee gives you the jitters, one of the downsides to a caffeine addiction.

As the world craves to be connected all the time, many people have been suffering from the jitters due to the anxiety felt when your electronic device dies and you are stranded in a deserted place where there are no power outlets – i.e. anywhere outside.

Fear not, all hope is not lost! The creative masterminds of the planet have come up with amazing ideas as to how to charge your mobile devices without needing to search high and low for a power outlet to plug your charger.

These fantastic innovations have been nicknamed “Juice Jitters”

Fusing technology and fashion, arguably the two biggest influential industries today, Vodafone UK and Richard Nicoll combined their genius to produce a phone-charging handbag for the “nomophobics”, curing all the jitters out there. Oh and if you’re wondering, nomophobia is the fear of being without your mobile phone.

Swedish designer Peter Thuvander has come up with the brilliant design of a charger for your iPhone/iPod while you play yo-yo, dubbed the “iYo”.  This invention has been well received by the eco-friendly community, as it beats solar and wind powered ideas, which is essential for countries like Sweden that have dark windless winters.

The copious amounts of innovative ideas show that society today deems it essential to stay connected 24/7.  Saying “my battery died” no longer counts as a reasonable excuse.

In one sense, this is great for brands to have more touch points and opportunities to reach consumers.  That said, with this information overload, it is important to stand-out and be heard above the buzz. Enter your social media PR campaign.

Clearly the need to always be online is fast becoming an addiction for many. As the number of smartphone users continuously rises, I begin to wonder whether the addiction is to the device or the applications that run on them. From weight-loss trackers to planning your train journey, Smartphone creators and third party companies have managed to create an application for almost anything.

This has also led to a rise in mobile social media; with every social media network like Facebook and Twitter having an application, many users are able to enjoy the option of being able to update in real time.  Being able to tweet “currently at the @PRCA brand strategy event” while you’re  actually sitting at the event makes a lot more sense than waiting till you get home to log on to Twitter via your computer and tweeting it an hour later.

Did you know that…

There are more mobile phones in the UK than people

The use of wireless hotspots almost doubled in the last 12 months

45% of people use the internet on their mobile

28% of people in the UK have purchased something using their phone

There was a total of $241 billion in global mobile phone  transactions in 2011[PJS1]

52% of UK mobile phone users have a smartphone

6 million people accessed the Internet over their mobile phone for the first time in the previous 12 months

With the expansion of the online mobile world, social media is becoming a fundamental part of brand campaigns and PR strategies.

Brands must conquer the online space, especially social networks so that they stay memorable in a world where we are continuously bombarded with information.

Image: http://www.treehugger.com/clean-technology/iyo-yo-yo-charger-for-power-without-solar-and-wind.html