News and Analysis
Who is Today’s Franchisee?
The answer is, “It could be anyone!” Among the new breed of franchisee (in addition to celebrities and private equity firms) are what we call “corporate refugees.” Experienced business professionals are burning out and aging out of big businesses and seeking autonomy, ownership, and creativity; they seek ways to operate and scale businesses without some […]
Is Bankruptcy the New Normal for MULO Brands?
Over the past year, we’ve featured many articles about multi-location (MULO) brands that declared bankruptcy (BUSTs). But we’ve also seen brands emerge from bankruptcy, become part of other companies (like Bed Bath & Beyond and Overstock), and/or change their business model to be online-only (as Lord & Taylor did with its iconic brand). Some other […]
Flying Fries: Autonomous Delivery Takes Off!
Imagine this… You use your phone to order your pizza or burger (or perhaps a t-shirt because you didn’t pack properly for the weather) from a remote location. Within the hour, a drone, driverless car, or other autonomous “thing” brings you your food and beverage or fashion statement. What was considered sci-fi a mere few […]
Commentary
How Brands Can Better Serve Increasingly Elastic Customers
One of the many things the pandemic has demonstrated is the elasticity of consumers – they’ll continue to consume and ‘snap back’ to their preferred methods, albeit with some new expectations. This is what businesses need to know about the elastic consumer and how they can shift practices to best serve their customers in 2022.
Latest Posts
What Every Marketing Team Needs to Thrive in 2022
The economic headwinds businesses face today make it even more important for marketing teams to work smarter in order to drive growth. Businesses should be stepping up their local marketing efforts and running more hyperlocal campaigns if they want to continue to grow through the second half of the year and the first half of 2023.
Retailers Build Internal Infrastructure to Optimize In-Store Advertising
Target, Kroger, Walmart, AT&T, and even the coffee giant Starbucks are all investing in audio out-of-home advertising as a way to direct traffic to existing kiosks inside brick-and-mortar stores. For Starbucks, which is ramping up to allow for mobile ordering at kiosks in more than 1,300 Target stores across the country, the investment in AOOH is especially pronounced.
Beyond Likes: Win Hearts with Emotional Marketing