EFF: Claim That Not All Hyperlocal Journalists Are Equal ‘Simply Wrong’
The practice of denying hyperlocal publishers the full status of other journalists has caught the ire of organizations such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation, which has fought to level the playing field for public access on behalf of hyperlocal news media and bloggers. Many local officials have granted traditional media access to public records and meetings while denying the same privileges to hyperlocals…
5 Tools for Outsourcing Hyperlocal Ad Management & Sales
Companies that provide publishers with ad sales support and management tools have become a happy medium for publications that can’t afford to employ full-time reps and aren’t quite satisfied with the low rates they earn from advertising networks alone. Here are five tools that publishers can use to outsource some or all of the advertising operations…
Street Fight Daily: Groupon Tests Payments, Belly’s 1 Million Check-ins
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal content, commerce, and technology...
Groupon Is Testing A Payments System To Compete With Square And PayPal (Business Insider)…
RIP Yellow Pages? Phone Books Re-shape Themselves for Life After Listings (PaidContent)…
Loyalty Startup Belly Hits 1 Millionth Check-In; Active Merchants Say Belly Check-ins Top Foursquare (TechCrunch)…
Social Network Swidjit Develops Local Currency/Barter System
CEO Alex Colket hopes the hyperlocal social network will centralize many of the key functions of Facebook, Twitter, Craigslist, Meetup and Yelp, into one. Swidjit allows users to post “have its” or “want its” to facilitate an online bartering system. The website launched on May 1, and items exchanged thus far include baby strollers, mattresses and even rides to Syracuse, N.Y.
Street Fight Daily: Groupon, Patch, Signpost, Digital First
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal content, commerce, and technology...
Groupon Customers Might Not Get Any Cash From That $8.5 Million Settlement (Business Insider)…
Signpost Makes Deal With Newspaper Biggies (Portfolio)…
The Case Against AOL, In Numbers (Ad Age)…
Study: Political Campaigns Using Mobile Ads for Hyperlocal Targeting
Using hyperlocal-targeted mobile signup ads — interactive in-app ads that allow users to submit basic contact information — marketers are paying on average $0.85 -$1.00 per user signup across all swing states, and $1.33-$1.45 across key battleground states like Wisconsin, Iowa, Indiana, Colorado, Missouri, Michigan, Ohio and Florida, according to a study released yesterday by mobile ad platform Pontiflex.
Street Fight Daily: Target Taps Shopkick, Groupon Offers Settlement
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal content, commerce, and technology...
Target Rolls Out Shopkick Integration Nationwide (TechCrunch)…
Groupon Offers Settlement for Gift-Card Lawsuits (Chicago Sun-Times)…
Sonar Offers On-the-Go Messaging to Friend Groups Nearby (GigaOm)…
Wielding Hyperlocal Brand Influence
It’s clear that for brands there is an ever-increasing array of tools available to help us find the true local advocate. We must remember, however, that influence is not only the ability to drive awareness and get recognition, but also a function of credibility, expertise and the ability to convince people to make decisions…
Street Fight Daily: SnipSnap, Geoloqi, Yell Becomes ‘Hibu’
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal content, commerce, and technology...
Geoloqi’s Location Tracking Now Available to Appcelerator Devs (GigaOm)…
For AOL, a Costly Gamble On Local News Draws Trouble (Wall Street Journal)…
Sense Networks Makes Location-based Advertising Relevant (GigaOm)…
In Wake of Layoffs, a 4-Step Plan for Patch Success
The Patch layoffs today are actually a very good thing. This is an indication that the management at Patch is getting a better handle on what hyperlocal must look like in order to succeed. While I am not bullish on hyperlocal networks and national chains, I am even less bullish on hyperlocal networks with significant management layers. Here’s my map for the highest chance of success for a national hyperlocal network — and my quick turnaround program for Patch.
6 Platforms Hyperlocal Publishers Can Use to Fill Unsold Ad Inventory
Ad inventory sold by networks typically doesn’t command the high CPM (cost per thousand impressions) that individual publishers can charge when they work with local businesses directly. However, these ads do give publishers a chance broaden their advertiser base and earn revenue for space that would have otherwise gone unused…
Street Fight Daily: $1M for GroSocial, VendAsta/Media Deal
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal content, commerce, and technology...
GroSocial Nabs $1M to Become ‘Buddy Media For SMBs’ (TechCrunch)…
Local Newspapers’ Crisis: What Hyperlocal Means — And Why It Works (Guardian)…
How Groupon Used Cloud Computing to Speed Growth (Business Insider)…
$16 Billion Later, Facebook Eyes Local
If we take Facebook Offers as indication of the company’s forthcoming plan of attack in the local space, self-serve, in one form or another, will be at the core of its strategy. The company will likely invest heavily in educating merchants about self-serve advertising, and, with Offers, help teach merchants about the fundamentals of commerce-based marketing…
Hyperlocal News Coverage of Classroom Violence Requires Caution
News videos of classroom brawls and bullying in local schools are newsworthy, but the hyperlocal coverage may draw threats from some who don’t want the information published. This year, legal claims emerged in New York and Philadelphia that provide some guidance on what hyperlocals may expect if they cover such sensitive types of local stories…
The New Local Delivery Systems
The consumer decision now becomes: do I spend my precious hour driving and dickering at the store, or do I spend $20 for somebody else to do this for me? As crowdsourced delivery services gain acceptance, it’s not hard to imagine big brands like Apple Store, Home Depot or any restaurant chain leveraging delivery as a competitive advantage…