Street Fight Daily: Google Delivers Same-Day, Local Search on Mobile
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal content, commerce, and technology.
Google Shopping Express Test Partners Include Target And Other Local SF Stores (TechCrunch)
We’ve been getting all sorts of new info since we first ran our story about Google dogfooding ”Google Shopping Express,” its same-day Amazon Prime and Postmates competitor. The company has lined up eight stores in the Bay Area, according to our sources, and we’ve heard from two sources that omni-store Target is part of the coterie.
SXSW: Foursquare’s Crowley Wants to Leverage ‘Active’ Recommendations (Street Fight)
As Foursquare’s user base expands and its database of grows past 3 billion data points, the company’s CEO says the amount of data available will increasingly make location a fulcrum for leveraging behavior modification.
Only 29% Of Consumers Regularly Use Mobile Devices To Find Local Businesses (Search Engine Land)
Mobile Internet usage is growing hugely, but only 29% of consumers regularly use their phones/tablets to find local businesses, according to a study by BrightLocal. However regular, repeat usage is relatively high with just 19% of consumers looking for a local business at least once per week, and 29% of them doing this once per month.
SXSW: With Pivot, Zaarly’s Focus Shifts to Merchants (Street Fight)
Zaarly rolled out its “storefronts” initiative last fall, and soon will completely drop the consumer-generated request model it was founded around to shift entirely to a storefront selling approach. From a hyperlocal marketing perspective, one of the most profound effects of this will be the way Zaarly is now counting on buyers to bring sellers.
Retailer Enthusiasm for Mobile Payments Tempered by Power Struggles in Industry (Mobile Commerce Daily)
Uncertainty about the technical future of mobile payments was named as a top business challenge, with 76 percent of retailers agreeing, according to a new report from RSR Research. Even though retailers believe mobile payments are coming, few are willing to invest in mobile payments today because of ongoing uncertainty over how mobile payments will evolve.
6 Platforms For Booking Local Services (Street Fight)
Platforms that allow consumers to book appointments with service-based professionals (like plumbers, electricians, and mechanics) are disrupting the way local services have traditionally been scheduled. Here are six platforms working to change the way local, service-based businesses schedule appointments with consumers.
Life360 and Locaid Partner Up to Help Parents Keep Track of Their Children (PandoDaily)
Life360 and Locaid are today announcing a partnership that will allow parents to locate and communicate with their children, allowing them to check in and contact them in case of an emergency. Unlike other “Where are my family members?” services, like Apple’s poorly-named “Find My Friends” application, Life360 works with both smartphones and feature phones, provided the family is using its Premium service.
Facebook ‘Focused on Basics’ for News Feed and Mobile Ads (Inside Facebook)
Hyperlocal, real-time, something that incorporates features like text, push notifications, QR codes and GPS. Facebook News Feed product manager Jeff Kanter says that idea is interesting, but for now, mobile ads can be much simpler and still be effective.
Cleanup in Aisle 3: How Retailers Will Avoid Slipups in the Digital Age (AllThingsD)
Elliot Grant: Technology has changed the simplicity of retail, and the advent of information-on-demand and Internet-enabled mobile devices is pushing retailers to adapt their practices in order to attract and keep customers with increasing expectations of transparency and personalization. For all the challenges retailers face as they adjust to the new reality of a digital age, there are also some enormous opportunities for those willing to adapt.
Get Street Fight Daily in your inbox! Subscribe to our newsletter.