“Technology has gone to the top of restaurant-owner action lists for 2013,” says Hudson Riehle, senior vice president of research at the National Restaurant Association. Why? It’s what the industry’s key demographic (18- to 34-year-olds) wants most.

We’ve known for a long time, however, that an inextricable bond between mobile and food now exists. In fact, according to the latest statistics from the IAB and Viggle, 69 percent of consumers order food online using a mobile device.

The study found that people use their mobile devices to find restaurant locations, check out menus, and see other users’ reviews. Equally as impressive is the fact that online and mobile orders at Domino’s and Papa John’s pizza chains are now 30 percent of each chain’s overall business.

Consequently, it makes sense why so many restaurant owners are turning to SMS marketing to boost sales and drive more foot traffic into their establishments.

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Social media is fast-becoming a marketing must for businesses of all sizes.

But using social media effectively remains a challenge for many, particularly in light of the “seven types of social media fans” and the different marketing approaches required to really connect with each.

On Tuesday, Veronica Maria Jarski of MarketingProfs shared a fascinating new infographic from ReachLocal, which researched the most popular types of social media fans.

So what does the audience you’re marketing to in the social realm really look like? Find out below.

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Another day, another big development for PayAnywhere, one of the fastest growing mobile payments solutions in the industry.

On Tuesday, PayAnywhere was busy touting the newest version of its popular mobile point of sale (mPOS) app for iOS.

Available for download today from the Apple App Store the newest version of the award-winning PayAnywhere app works with the PayAnywhere mobile credit card reader, which plugs into the audio jack of an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch device, giving merchants of all sizes a safe and easy way to accept credit and debit card payments directly from their phone or tablet.

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Despite the iPad’s popularity and prevalence throughout academia, Microsoft is undaunted in its efforts to claim a sizable share of the education market.

Word surfaced this week that Microsoft is slashing the price of its Surface RT tablet to just $199 for schools and colleges that will use the tablets for education purposes.

So far, the Surface RT hasn’t been a big seller against red-hot iOS and Android-powered tablets, but Microsoft is only ten months into the tablet battle.

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Mark Zuckerberg, chief executive officer of Facebook., was photographed just hours ago in South Korea following his meeting with Lee Don Joo, president of sales and marketing of the mobile communications division at Samsung Electronics Co.

According to Bloomberg, the gathering occurred under an impenetrable veil of secrecy at Samsung’s Seocho office building in Seoul, South Korea.

Although speculation initially suggested that Facebook and Samsung are teaming up to produce a Facebook-branded mobile device, we’re told Zuckerberg’s paramount interest lies in new ways of boosting advertising sales from mobile devices.

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Mobile advertising is set for a bright future across Africa.

That’s the resounding message presented Tuesday in a new White Paper from M&C Saatchi Mobile.

According to the report in question, mobile is emerging as a key advertising channel in Africa, driven by economic growth and affordable smartphones.

The first in a series of whitepapers looking at mobile in global regions and its relevance to advertisers shows that brands and advertisers who want to reach consumers in Africa should consider mobile as the principal channel for advertising and marketing.

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The makers of “Candy Crush Saga” are reportedly considering what may be a sweet treat for investors.

According to rumblings reaching as far as The Wall Street Journal on Tuesday, Midasplayer International Holding Co., the publisher of some of the biggest online and mobile games in the world, is planning to go public.

Midasplayer, better known as King, has tapped banks including J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Credit Suisse Group AG, and Bank of America Corp. to handle a potential offering, these people said. They cautioned that the pricing and timing of any deal had not yet been completed.

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