You may already know about (and use!) the Bump app for iPhone or Android. The software from Bump Technologies lets users share contact information simply by bumping their phones together.

Well, that technology just went one step further. PayPal just announced a new iPhone application that lets you send money by—you guessed it—bumping your phones together. The app is currently free to download, but you must login with your PayPal information to use. The app includes a special feature that aids in the notoriously dreaded check-split, down to how to factor in tax/tip. Someone pigged out on a steak while you noshed on a salad? No problem! There’s a feature that helps you figure out who owes more too.

Read more about this money swapping technology here.

Yes, yes, Foursquare is everywhere these days. But what’s all the buzz about? And what is everyone saying?

Well for starters, the location based social networking platform was all the rage at this year’s SXSW. There were dueling parties between Foursquare and Gowalla, including attendance by Ashton Kutcher at the former, and DJ Diplo at the latter. Gowalla may be everyone’s favorite underdog, but Foursquare appears to be leading the LBSN pack, experiencing a phenomenal growth surge of 100,000 users in 10 days surrounding SXSW.

Read more Foursquare news here and here. Excuse us, we have to go count our badges now.

Women can be fickle. That’s nothing new.

The latest attempt by the opposite sex to evolve and meet those ever-changing needs comes in the form of a new, crowdsourced fragrance (and accompanying campaign) by Unilever’s Axe. Traditionally known for their tawdry, sexy advertisements that feature women regressing into sex-crazed vixens at first sniff, the men’s fragrance developers charted a new course with their latest product debut.

Twist is a new fragrance, co-created by consumers and the brand. The first ad shows a robot repeatedly making over a guy over the course of a date night, supposedly to keep the object of his affection interested.

But perhaps even more relevant than its commentary on the intricacies of dating, is what this new campaign says about the rise in co-creation and the need for two-way conversations between brands and their consumers. The marketing landscape has changed, in large part due to social media and the shift from top-down sales techniques to two-way conversations. It’s nice to see that advertisers are evolving to meet these needs. Women aren’t the only fickle ones, it turns out.

Read more about the campaign here.

Foursquare is slowly but surely taking over the world.

Much like Twitter, its appeal is somewhat hard to describe, but more than a few folks here at Creative Asylum have been bitten by the Foursquare bug. The idea is this: members use their cellphones’ GPS capabilities to check in regularly from physical locations such as  restaurants, bars and shops. People within their network are notified of their locations, and conversations and discoveries about new places and new things ensue.

We’ve noticed two particularly newsworthy developments with Foursquare of late:

Harvard has partnered with them to create a campus-based game that rewards students with badges and points for exploring the school and surrounding places of interest. Essentially tacks an official Harvard-specific game with a special collegiate badge on the existing Foursquare functionality and purpose.

Twitter and Foursquare Become the New Loyalty Program at Tasti D-Lite - This marks the first time that a restaurant chain has tacked on social media rewards for social media exposure to their customer loyalty programs, and it’s been a long time coming.

Now if only rival Yelp wasn’t completely honing in on their turf!

There’s this new movie coming out, maybe you’ve heard of it. It’s called AVATAR?

James Cameron’s sci-fi juggernaut has been gradually building buzz in anticipation of its December 18th release date. As one of the most anticipated and costly films ever made, AVATAR is bringing the hype—especially with the promotional campaign.

A partnership with McDonald’s was recently revealed that includes sneak peeks of a planned interactive Web site and a Twitter promotion. McDonald’s is pulling out all the stops by incorporating augmented reality into the mix, with “thrill cards” that put customers on Avatar’s home planet. Cool.

The official Avatar interactive trailer is pretty darn cool too. While you watch the trailer, interactive “hotspots” come up where you can learn about the characters. Not to mention the integration of Avatar’s Twitter, Flickr, and YouTube accounts.

The wildly successful ElfYourself campaign from Office Max has become a holiday mainstay over the last few years. Something you can count on… like egg nog and shopping mall brawls.

Office Max and JibJab have just launched the 2009 edition, complete with a Facebook Connect component AND a flash mob.

So be sure to get elfed this year. Now, with more social media!

 

What’s tastier than a pudding pop and less itchy than a sweater? Why, social media of course! Just ask Bill Cosby, the veteran comic who has recently taken the web by storm. With no less than eight outlets, Cosby is more accessible than ever.

He’s even got a Facebook app that lets you dress yourself up in a Cosby-style sweater. Who’d have thunk all the strange and wonderful places we’d go wtih social media?!

Read more about the Cosby invasion here and here. And be sure to follow him on Twitter here.

Honda and Ford have been at the forefront of the social media marketing shift lately, proving that the auto industry—albeit struggling—has its finger on the pulse.

Case in point: Honda’s ‘Social Experiment’ recently netted 2 million Facebook fans. This cross-platform push urged people to join as fans and also to learn how they are connected to other owners, friends, and fans around the world. It would appear that “Everybody Knows Somebody Who Loves a Honda,” but the real question is: will it sell more cars?

And let’s not forget Ford’s Fiesta Movement. This grassroots social media campaign gave 100 social “agents” the keys to the new Fiesta model and encouraged their feedback through blogs, Twitter, video and events. All without spending a dime on traditional media.

While both Honda and Ford have turned out impressive numbers, the jury is still out on what this will mean for the revival of the auto industry. Perhaps the more important implication here is the extent to which social media is overtaking traditional ad dollars and making more sense when it comes to brand marketing.

How do you sum up college in 140 characters or less?

Would-be journalists at Griffith University in Australia could tell us. The academic institution just made Twitter education part of the mandatory courseload.

“Some students’ tweets are not as in depth as you might like. But I don’t know if getting them to write an essay is any more beneficial,” said Jacqui Ewart, senior lecturer at the university.

Let the Tweducation begin!

Attention, Finns! Broadband is now a legal right. In a landmark case, the Finnish government became the first country worldwide to sign a law dictating that every citizen has a legal right to a broadband connection.

In other news, the Federal Court in Australia has recently decided that individual judges may decide (on a case by case basis) if they will allow Twitter coverage in their courtrooms.

And, not to be outdone, our very own CIA has just invested in a social media monitoring firm. The agency plans to use technology to monitor International intelligence shared in public channels to get an early edge on what’s being communicated by influencers.