Placer.ai and TapClicks Partner for Deeper Marketing Analytics
Placer.ai, the leader in location analytics, and TapClicks, the leading provider of Smart Marketing solutions, have partnered to integrate real-time foot traffic data into TapClicks’ omni-channel reporting platform. This collaboration advances the ability for marketers to gain deeper insights into consumer behavior and thereby more conclusively prove the effectiveness of marketing campaigns. In conversation with […]
RM + AI = $$ (Retail Media Gets Smarter)
RM = retail media. It’s booming now as retailers, airlines, and restaurants launch their networks to enable in- and out-of-store marketing to consumers and prospects. AI = artificial intelligence (of course). MULO (multi-location) brands can have huge amounts of data and numerous ways to monitor in-store behavior, but if they’re not using automation to inform advertising […]
MULO Brands With Soul: A New Mini-Series
The term “soul” is all relative. Many MULO (multi-location) brands today aim to stay in business and thrive. They incorporate new technologies into their operations, aim to hire and retain competent and loyal employees and ensure they are selling/serving the products/foods/services that today’s consumers want (and that their marketing is well-targeted and cost-effective). So, where […]
BOOM: Retail is Rising!
Shopping center occupancy rates have dropped for the first time in a decade. According to Cushman & Wakefield, the retail vacancy rate is 5.4%, as reported in the New York Times. The article goes on to report on new and expanded shopping centers and malls throughout the U.S. This is consistent with a recent Street Fight […]
Building Brand Trust Is Multi-Dimensional
In this post-truth era, when the public trust has eroded around news sources, government, healthcare institutions, and myriad other pillars of society, trust and authenticity are difficult to establish. Now add a layer of brand verticals. What happens to brand trust? Vevo, MAGNA, and media agency Initiative conducted a survey of 5,000 U.S. consumers this […]
30K Feet OOH! Targeted Airline Advertising
United Airlines just announced a new advertising program, targeting personalized ads to flyers based on demographics. Advertising to a captive audience on planes is nothing new. The original airline magazines and catalogs were popular back in the day. Pre-wi-fi, all we had to do was read paper media and watch and listen to whatever was […]
Pump It Up! C-Store Innovations & News
The convenience store (C-store) is a MULO (multi-location) retailer we often take for granted. Most of us have stopped along the road for a hygiene break, a fuel refill (gas or electric), coffee, and perhaps even a snack and frosty beverage. Urban and suburban dwellers often rely on their neighborhood 24-hour MULO store for late-night […]
The Robot in Your Dressing Room
Walmart and Amazon are leading the charge in launching new technologies that use AR (augmented reality) and VR (virtual reality) to enable prospective shoppers to “try on” everything from cosmetics to eyewear to fashion. Called “the next step in retail evolution,” virtual try-on technology: May reduce online shopping returns because consumers can better understand how an […]
Cookie Plug: Baking With a New Recipe in a Crowded Space
Last year, the global cookie market generated approximately $40B. That’s a lot of dough! But “oven racks” (number of brands) is growing! Enter Todd Saperstein, a Phoenix-area franchisee of a relatively new cookie brand, Cookie Plug. He’s not new to running a franchise brand, having owned five Dickey’s Barbeque Pits in Oregon for ten years. He […]
Freshpet Sells Food with a Side of CRM
Anyone who has cared for a pet knows that dogs and cats relate differently to their humans. For instance, a dog might greet a familiar human at the door like an excited paparazzo about to snap a picture. A cat, on the other hand, barely acknowledges humans. Yet, human caretakers of cats and dogs are […]
5 MULO Retail & Food Brands Who Are Trend-Spotting and Innovating
The most successful MULO (multi-location) retail and food brands are often those that know their core customers and are continuously innovating to meet their needs. However, the winners usually stay on top of (and ahead of) consumer trends and develop products, offers, and services that meet the needs of new segments without losing brand fans. […]
The MULO Dozen: May Brands in Review
The biggest news for the month of May is the announcement of the return of Street Fight LIVE! More than a decade ago, it’s original founders created this highly interactive leadership event as the place to be for brands, agencies, and technology providers. They knew that the screen (large and small) would be the gateway to […]
Will “Sneakerheads” Dash to Foot Locker’s New Store Concept?
The average American owns about 12 pairs of shoes. Many of those are sneakers. Sneakers represent about $80B in sales worldwide, and that spending appears to be on the upswing. Once reserved primarily for athletes, sneakers are now a wardrobe staple and are selected based on purpose, comfort, fashion statement, and various other factors. Foot […]
AdLib and Kargo Partner to Democratize High-Impact Ad Creation
Today, AdLib Media Group, known for providing accessible DSP (demand-side platform) solutions for independent agencies and in-house programmatic teams, announced a strategic partnership with Kargo, a leader in creating breakthrough ad solutions for the world’s top brands. This collaboration aims to bring Kargo’s innovative advertising technologies and creative formats to a broader audience, significantly enhancing […]
How Can IHOP Become an International House of Profit?
Fluffy pancakes are not the only thing being served at IHOP these days. Formerly known as International House of Pancakes, the MULO (multi-location) brand, run by California-based Dine Brands Global, Inc., has about 1,800 restaurants worldwide, including outposts in all 50 states, two U.S. territories, and 13 countries outside the U.S. The parent company also […]
Do Stores Need Walls? Wayfair Seems to Think So!
While some retail brands (like Lord & Taylor and Bed Bath & Beyond) have transitioned to online-only models, others are heading in the other direction, building physical locations. The latest example is Wayfair, which will open its first store later this month in Edens Plaza in Wilmette, Illinois. The 150,000-square-foot outpost will take a page […]
What’s New at The Cheesecake Factory?
We’re not talking menu items (although that ahi tuna salad looks pretty amazing). The company had a great first quarter ($891.2 million compared to $866.1 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2023). Fortune also named the Cheesecake Factory a “best company to work for” for the 11th year running. Cheesecake Factory’s performance is especially […]
Apple, McDonald’s, and Disney Lead Rise in Q1 OOH Ad Spend
As the upfront presentations wound down, and negotiations began in earnest this month, it’s worth noting that a recent news report signaled a distinct set of diminishing media spending returns in linear TV. The article also said the beneficiaries of TV’s decline are social media spend and OOH ad spend. The Out of Home Advertising Association […]
Weight Loss Centers Firm Up
The weight management industry in the U.S. generated $90B in revenue in 2023. Fed by demand for weight loss drugs (contributing close to $12B in sales), trimming down seems timeless, although brick-and-mortar centers have evolved over the years. Weight Watchers was founded in 1963 by Jean Nidetch and grew to thousands of locations worldwide. In 2018, […]
Raptive Connects Brands to Diverse Creator Media
When Raptive, which describes itself as a “creator media” company, launched Raptive Represents earlier this month to provide direct access to premium, diverse creator media at scale, it was also part of its partnership with Media Framework’s Media Advertising Vendor Encoding & Nomenclature (MAVEN). MAVEN helps buyers understand which media are majority-owned and controlled by diverse owners and supplies certificates so […]