News and Analysis
Scoring AI & Advertising Points with Aaron Goldman
In the weeks leading up to Street Fight LIVE 2025, we’ll be getting up close and personal with some of our speakers, encouraging them to share stories of how they found themselves in the MULO (multi-location) ecosystem. Today, we speak with Aaron Goldman, advertising guru and Chief Marketing Officer of Mediaocean. How did you first get […]
Monica Feid Talks Franchise Marketing
In the weeks leading up to Street Fight LIVE 2025, we’ll be getting up close and personal with some of our speakers, encouraging them to share stories of how they found themselves in the MULO (multi-location) ecosystem. Once such speaker is Monica Feid of agency, Thunderly. Monica Feid is COO & Co-Founder of Thunderly Marketing, a […]
Scaling the Mountain of Brand Reputation Management With Brynn Gibbs
“Meet” another one of our outstanding 30+ thought leaders taking the stage at Street Fight LIVE 2025. We want to give you a glimpse into the marketing and business insights of each of them before you join us in LA. Brynn Gibbs is the Founder & CEO of Consumer Fusion, a company that helps MULO […]
Commentary
Streets Ahead: Google Business Profile Reverifications and Meta Chatbots
In this week’s Streets Ahead update, SOCi discuss the issues regarding Google reverifications and explores Meta’s roll out of AI Chatbot features. Google Business Profile Reverifications The News In early March, the SEO community noticed a significant increase in locations requiring reverification on Google Business Profile, prompting many to temporarily halt updates. Last week, Google […]
The Rise of AI Ad Buying Agents: A Marketer’s Perspective
AI-driven ad buying is not new. From Google Ads’ “set-it-and-forget-it” approach to Meta’s dynamic audience targeting, the goal has always been to automate away the tedium of bidding and targeting. But with the more recent advancements in generative AI and deep learning, the promise is morphing into something more expansive: real-time, hyper-personalized ads that match […]
Streets Ahead: Instagram AI-Powered Search, TikTok Creator Search Insights
In this week’s Streets Ahead update, SOCi covers Instagram’s new AI-driven search feature and TikTok Creator Search Insights Instagram’s AI-Powered Search The News Instagram is testing an AI-powered search feature within the comments section, according to AdWeek. This new tool automatically generates AI-driven search summaries, offering users relevant context as they engage with posts. 🔹 […]
Latest Posts
Streets Ahead: ChatGPT Shopping and Yelp’s AI Call Feature
In this week’s Streets Ahead update, SOCi discusses ChatGPT introducing direct shopping and Yelp testing AI-powered call handling. ChatGPT’s New Shopping Experience The News OpenAI has introduced a new augmented shopping experience inside ChatGPT, enabling users to browse and buy products directly within the platform. The feature showcases detailed product information, customer reviews, and direct purchase […]
“Consumer Discovery is Now a Free-for-All” Declares SOCI in New Study
The SOCI 2025 Consumer Behavior Index (CBI) reveals that marketers need to shift gears when it comes to search, declaring the industry’s state “the marketing crisis you didn’t see coming.” The study has enormous implications, as traditional search is evolving rapidly. According to their late-breaking announcement based on the index, the strategies that MULO (multi-location) […]
Optimizing for AI: Future-Proof Your Website for Search
Over the years, there have been many significant improvements in how search engines function. While these improvements have meant new changes in how company execute their SEO (Search Engine Optimization) campaigns, for the most part, the core fundamentals have been the same. However, in the past few years, AI technology has changed everything. Reliance on […]
Gregg Majewski, CEO of Craveworthy Brands, on Restaurant Trends
Gregg Majewski is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Craveworthy Brands, a multi-concept restaurant platform company and franchisor that launched in 2023. Majewski has built the MULO (multi-location) company brick by brick, adding iconic brands such as viral Dirty Dough, Food Network-founded Taim Mediterranean Kitchen, and Southern California-favorite Fresh Brothers Pizza. Earlier this year, […]
10 Design Offers Four MULO Design Principles for Brick-and-Mortar
10 Design is an architectural design firm that has created retail spaces (and mixed-use complexes) globally. 10 Design asserts, “Brick and mortar retail isn’t dying. It’s evolving. The most successful retail spaces today merge commerce, culture, and community, turning shopping into an immersive experience.” That principle can be applied to MULO (multi-location) retail design in […]
A BOOM and a BUST: Harry & David & Hooters
Openings, expansions, and bankruptcies are standard fare in the MULO (multi-location) retail and restaurant space. This month, we saw one significant opening and one bankruptcy declaration in the MULO ecosystem. Harry & David recently announced they are getting back into the retail game. This 91-year-old seller of gift baskets and gourmet food items shuttered most of its […]
Aquarium Ad Is a 3D Fish Out of Water
First its ads had a Super Bowl presence earlier this year. Now the Georgia Aquarium is going big in out-of-home. A creative campaign by Doe-Anderson, an agency in Kentucky, launched two executions in Atlanta to let the locals know they have one of the country’s great aquariums right in their backyard. If you find yourself […]
The Future is Here: A More Collaborative, AI-Enabled, Creatively Driven Industry
The advertising industry is in a period of accelerated transformation. What were once incremental shifts are now crystallizing into clear priorities — moving from hypothetical or expected into real and transactional. Consolidation around media-agnostic, AI-driven systems and the integration of creative and media processes are no longer future goals — they’re actively reshaping the way […]
Adaptive Checkout Uses AI to Boost Conversion Rates
Fraud and crime are realities of the MULO (multi-location) ecosystem. Brands used to just have to worry about the checkout stage with shoplifting, dishonest employees, and fake IDs and credit cards. Now that we’re living in a phygital world (one that combines brick-and-mortar and online sales), thieves, fraudsters, and AI-powered bots have become more sophisticated. […]
A Street Fight Trend-Spotter Walked Into a Bar ….
Well, not exactly. We attended the Bar & Restaurant Expo in Las Vegas to check out trends and products for the MULO (multi-location) bar and restaurant ecosystem. The trends we spotted include: Although liquor is still popular, mocktails are having a moment. Studies indicate that Americans are choosing moderation in their drinking habits and non-alcoholic […]
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