Local Quotables: Gary Cowan, Patrick Kitano, Clara Shih and more…
The best words about and around the hyperlocal industry.
Don’t dismiss local newspapers’ brand equity with audiences, says Ron Blevins from hyperlocal agency Novus. Datasphere’s Gary Cowan notes that hyperlocal news only exists because of some great software platforms; Jed Kleckner from Delivery.com brings out the environmental benefits of hyperlocal; and the Journal Register’s John Paton questions the assumed frequency of local daily newspapers. More:
Ron Blevins, Novus, November 15, 2011
Street Fight: There is a big benefit to that because local newspapers and local community sites in general are very trusted. They have a lot of brand equity with audiences. If you can insert yourself into those publications, it lends to more credibility from an advertising standpoint.
Gary Cowan, Datasphere, November 10, 2011
Street Fight: Technology now provides a platform that makes hyperlocal news feasible. With the rise and evolution of the Internet, there is now a credible way to cater to hyperlocal audiences. This evolution involves growth in the online audience, cost-effective platform management and hosting tools, and even mobile information-gathering capabilities for both staff reporters and crowd-sourced content.
Jack Dorsey, Square, November 14, 2011
GigaOM: It’s amazing, (with Square) you’re in business right away. In terms of anyone being a retailer, anyone being a merchant, the line between consumer and merchant, the counter, blurs.
Patrick Kitano, The Breaking News Network, November 10, 2011
Street Fight: With such demand, it’s surprising to see very few social marketing agencies operating at a local level. The hurdle may be that social media marketing demands smart, local people for hands-on engagement, and the cost of procuring that talent may not scale or be too expensive in the face of small SMB marketing budgets.
Jed Kleckner, Delivery.com, November 15, 2011
Street Fight: But there’s one kind of energy that the new generation of Mom-and Pop retailers — the ones who operate online — tend to generate less of: The fossil fuel consumption that leads to global warming.
Dave McClure, 500Startups, November 15, 2011
MuckerLab: We’re pretty bullish on Groupon and LivingSocial as being future platforms for local. Everyone thinks of them as buying platforms. We think of them more as small business platforms. If you think about it, in the U.S., there are millions of small businesses. These people have historically not been that easy to get to, so it’s been hard to have a business focused around small businesses.
John Paton, MediaNews Group, November 13, 2011
New York Times: There are probably a whole bunch of dailies out there that cannot sustain themselves going forward at seven days a week […] Some should probably be weeklies, or there may come a time when they don’t put out a newspaper at all.
Clara Shih, Hearsay Social, November 10, 2011
Hearsay Social: Customer loyalty and acquisition is best accomplished at the local level, because that’s where the strongest relationships are built. And social networking is all about relationship building. For retail stores, this might mean exploring the power of check-ins by offering deals and promotions. For gyms and health clubs like 24 Hour Fitness, one of our key customers, generating leads and fueling traffic to local centers is essential to driving conversions.