News and Analysis
Seedtag and IRIS.TV Bring Program-Level AI Targeting to Connected TV
Seedtag and IRIS.TV have formed a partnership to expand privacy-first neuro-contextual targeting in connected TV (CTV). The integration brings IRIS.TV’s program-level content signals into Seedtag’s AI engine, Liz, to improve contextual precision, scale, and transparency for advertisers. The collaboration focuses on strengthening program- and scene-level targeting in CTV without relying on identity-based signals. By combining […]
Guideline Bets on an “AI Factory” to Reinvent Media Planning
Guideline has unveiled a major expansion of its artificial intelligence strategy with the launch of the Guideline AI Factory, an internal innovation engine designed to accelerate how AI powers its ad intelligence data products and media plan management (MPM) technologies. The initiative marks a shift from standalone analytics capabilities toward embedded intelligence that directly supports […]
TikTok Is Becoming a Core Marketing Channel — Not Just a Social App
TikTok, once known purely for bite-sized content and entertainment, has evolved into a place people go to discover brands, learn what’s trending, and make decisions. With over 1 billion monthly active users globally and 200 million in the U.S.1, it’s become where someone might first hear about a product, look up a service, or decide […]
Commentary
Six Forces Pushing Sales & Marketing Toward a Breaking Point
Rising capital costs, tightening margins, accelerating AI adoption, and growing privacy pressure are converging into a single reality: inefficiency is no longer affordable. As 2026 approaches, sales and marketing teams are being pushed out of their silos by economic necessity, not organizational theory. Leaders are demanding clear, commercial-grade accountability across the entire go-to-market motion—forcing companies […]
Why Review Competition Breaks at Scale for Multi-Location Brands
Google reviews have become one of the most powerful competitive signals in local search — influencing Local Pack visibility, consumer trust, and increasingly, how brands surface in AI-driven discovery experiences. But while review strategy is relatively straightforward for single-location businesses, it becomes far more complex and fragile at scale for multi-location brands. For multi-location brands […]
The Biggest Risks Facing Influencer Marketing in 2026
Influencer marketing is entering a more fragile phase. As AI-generated content proliferates, trust in online creators erodes, governments introduce tighter social media regulations, and creator burnout accelerates, brands face a more complex and risk-laden landscape heading into 2026. While influencer marketing remains big business, shifts in authenticity, transparency, platform access, and audience behavior are forcing […]
Latest Posts
Tinuiti Report: Social Ad Spend Is Up
Social ad spend is shifting again — and the signals are coming into focus. New Q4 data from Tinuiti shows advertisers regaining confidence in TikTok’s U.S. future, increasing spend after months of pullback, while platforms like Instagram Reels, YouTube, Pinterest, and Reddit continue to absorb growing shares of social ad spend. As automation expands and […]
Six Forces Pushing Sales & Marketing Toward a Breaking Point
Rising capital costs, tightening margins, accelerating AI adoption, and growing privacy pressure are converging into a single reality: inefficiency is no longer affordable. As 2026 approaches, sales and marketing teams are being pushed out of their silos by economic necessity, not organizational theory. Leaders are demanding clear, commercial-grade accountability across the entire go-to-market motion—forcing companies […]
Wix Brings Vibe Coding Out of Experimentation and Into the Enterprise
Website creation is entering a new phase — one where ideas are translated into functioning digital experiences through conversation rather than code. Known as vibe coding, this prompt-driven approach has captured attention for its speed and accessibility, but until now it has largely remained experimental. With the launch of Wix Harmony, Wix is betting that […]
Stic Turns Everyday Driving Into a New, Measurable OOH Channel
Out-of-home advertising is getting more mobile and more measurable. Stic, a platform that turns everyday driving into a brand exposure network, has raised $10 million in bridge funding as agencies and advertisers search for alternatives to crowded digital channels. By paying drivers per mile to carry brand messaging through real neighborhoods, Stic offers brands a […]
Why Review Competition Breaks at Scale for Multi-Location Brands
Google reviews have become one of the most powerful competitive signals in local search — influencing Local Pack visibility, consumer trust, and increasingly, how brands surface in AI-driven discovery experiences. But while review strategy is relatively straightforward for single-location businesses, it becomes far more complex and fragile at scale for multi-location brands. For multi-location brands […]
Retail Media’s Maturity Moment: Why 2026 Changes Everything for Brands
Retail media is entering its maturity phase — and in 2026, there will be no hiding behind experimentation. As brands shift real budget into retail media networks, the pressure is on retailers to prove incremental impact, operational rigor, and measurable outcomes at scale. With U.S. retail media ad spend projected to surpass $69 billion, the […]
How Brands Can Influence AI Search Results—Not Just Rank in Them
As AI answers increasingly replace traditional search results, local and regional brands are facing a new visibility challenge: how to show up when consumers never click a link at all. In an AI search environment where recommendations are surfaced instantly—and often without a website visit—being included in the answer matters more than driving traffic. A […]
Google Anonymous Reviews Reshaping Visibility for Sensitive-Industry Brands
Amid AI Overviews, AI Mode, and a steady drumbeat of core updates, Google quietly introduced a change with outsized implications for certain businesses: Google anonymous reviews. By allowing users to leave reviews under a pseudonym rather than their real name, Google has lowered a long-standing barrier for customers in privacy-sensitive industries. For multi-location brands in […]
Paycom Taps NBA Star Jalen Williams to Put AI Answers Front and Center
B2B tech brands are increasingly turning to familiar faces to humanize complex software — and Paycom is leaning into that strategy with its latest campaign. The Oklahoma City–based HR and payroll platform has tapped Jalen Williams, an All-Star guard for the Oklahoma City Thunder, to headline its new “Answers” campaign, spotlighting how its IWant™ AI […]
The Biggest Risks Facing Influencer Marketing in 2026
Influencer marketing is entering a more fragile phase. As AI-generated content proliferates, trust in online creators erodes, governments introduce tighter social media regulations, and creator burnout accelerates, brands face a more complex and risk-laden landscape heading into 2026. While influencer marketing remains big business, shifts in authenticity, transparency, platform access, and audience behavior are forcing […]
Street Fight’s Big 3
Street Fight Columns
Street Fight Categories
How Community-Focused Messaging Drives Loyalty for Multi-Location Brands