Street Fight Daily: 12.16.11
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal media, technology, advertising and startups.
Consumers Not Turning to Social Media Sites for Local Business Info (Mashable)
People who look for information about local restaurants and businesses are turning to the Internet but not social media sites, according to a new study from The Pew Internet and American Life Project. Only one percent of those who look for information about local businesses beyond restaurants — such as retail stores — turn to social networking sites.
With Factual, 1 API Now Unlocks Data for 55 Million Places (GigaOm)
Application developers can now use one API to access data from Factual’s marketplace that contains data on more than 55 million places worldwide. And, as of today, that data includes places in China and Canada, as well as a dedicated “restaurants” data set that categorizes eateries across 43 different characteristics.
Patch Salesperson Says Company Is Quietly Letting People Go (Business Insider)
A Patch salesperson tells BI that management just gave everyone on his team impossible goals for December – and that if they don’t meet these goals they will lose their jobs. He says Patch’s business model is “not sustainable,” and that “The patches dry up.”
Foursquare’s Crowley Declares Bygones! — And Maybe More? — With Google (AllThingsD)
Foursquare co-founder Dennis Crowley sold his company, Dodgeball, to Google in 2007, but he left two years later complaining about the lack of resources devoted to his start-up by the search giant. Crowley called the experience the “perfect storm of bad timing.” But that sentiment has apparently shifted considerably.
Google Exec Discusses Local Efforts (Local Onliner)
Local is obviously an important part of Google’s core search business – 20 percent of desktop search is now local-oriented. But local is “fundamentally about places. Any type of action; how does it get there; how do you share what I am doing about my experience (i.e. photos, check-in); how do I save money on a deal?” said the company’s head of local consumer marketing, Jeff Aguero.
Aiming To Be The ‘Groupon Of Groceries’, SavingStar Passes 1 Million Users In Under A Year (TechCrunch)
The startup recently launched a loyalty offer that allows users who buy a certain item multiple times at different locations to receive additional cashback on their purchases. SavingStar also provides exclusive deals on name brand grocery products, which are linked to shoppers’ loyalty cards at more than 100 grocery and drug store chains, which enable users to save without having to clip or print paper coupons.
Get Street Fight Daily in your inbox! Subscribe to our newsletter.