Street Fight Daily: Angie’s List Strikes Paywall, Google Maps Enables SMB Discovery
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology…
Angie’s List Is Now Free — What That Means for SMBs and Local Search (Search Engine Land)
Brian Patterson: In a move that hasn’t attracted a lot of attention online, Angie’s List followed through on their March announcement and removed their paywall last week. Anyone can now become a member without paying the previous ~$40/year fee, and reviews are now accessible by anyone. This change has strong implications for the online reputations of many businesses.
Super Retailers Face Super Location Data Problems (Street Fight)
Gib Olander: Managing location data across hundreds and thousands of locations requires dedicated resources to scale the data and change it. Just as importantly, a business must treat location data as a competitive asset, organized and managed like inventory.
Google Maps Makes It Easier to Find Local Businesses On Your Route (GeoMarketing)
Just in time for summer road trips, Google has rolled out its latest update to Google Maps: Multi-stop directions are now available on mobile. Google Maps isn’t just making it easier to find your way on a road trip — it’s facilitating discovery for local businesses, from restaurants to specialty shops.
7 Ways Booking Platforms Can Utilize Location Technology (Street Fight)
Booking vendors use location technology to personalize and streamline the online scheduling experience for consumers. This, in turn, benefits the businesses that use these platforms because it makes their clients more likely to schedule more frequent appointments.
Square and Facebook Serve Up Offline Attribution for an Ohio Eatery (AdExchanger)
Coupons and discount codes close the loop, but not every online ad has a direct-response component and it’s mission critical for most other small and medium-sized businesses to find the shortest path between online ads and offline sales. That’s the space where Square is looking to play in its bid for SMB advertising dollars.
The Beacons Are Coming. The Beacons Are Coming! (MediaPost)
Aaron Baar: Few doubt beacon technology will be the wave of the future for search marketing. As with most emerging technologies, the conclusion for beacons seems to be: Be prepared, tread lightly to avoid consumer backlash, and make sure the information you’re offering via the technology is relevant and useful.
Just Eat Takes Food Delivery Tech to the Next Level (Business Insider)
Takeaway food delivery service Just Eat is going to start using robots to deliver meals to customers through a new trial. The trial, due to commence in the next few months, will see robots built by Starship Technologies cruising along the streets of London with Just Eat deliveries inside them.
What Do Marketers Get Out of Blending Marketing and Ad Tech? (eMarketer)
The fusion of marketing and advertising technologies can open up a lot of opportunities for practitioners. According to research, nearly half of marketers and advertisers said implementing people-based marketing was critical, among other related tactics.
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