News and Analysis
5 Platforms Using Artificial Intelligence to Generate Ad Creative
Startups like Omneky, Creatopy, and Luna have been integrating AI technology into their ad creation platforms for years. With OpenAI’s ChatGPT hitting the mainstream, more brand advertisers are seeking out generative AI solutions to make their own campaigns more effective and scalable. Here are five companies to watch.
Top 7 Digital Marketing Trends for Agencies
To keep up, agencies need to take initiative as soon as a marketing trend begins. This not only helps your clients stand out in their markets, but it also helps you become a leading agency in your own right. Here are the top digital marketing trends for agencies that you should jump on quickly in 2023.
Commentary
Forever-Changed Buying Patterns Mean Rethinking Customer Loyalty
Online ordering and curbside pick-up became an essential service for everyone from major retailers like Home Depot and Target to restaurants and small specialty shops. Bookstores began delivering orders without a delivery fee. Even car dealerships have had to rethink their entire sales model, with many moving the full customer experience online.
While these business transitions were driven by the pandemic, the new consumer buying trends — and the business measures put in place to adapt to them — will likely become a permanent fixture even as the economy enters a recovery phase.
Why Advertisers Are Turning to In-Game Offerwalls
Think of offerwall as a mini in-game store that lists potential tasks that a user can complete in exchange for in-game currency. The task or event could be a variety of actions such as installing another app and carrying out a specific task, completing a survey, or signing up for a service. It’s popular with engaged users who want to experience premium content by investing their time rather than money.
Game developers benefit from increased retention and the ability to engage with and monetize a user that otherwise may not have turned ROI positive — in some cases even turning them into paying users. The benefits for the advertiser are numerous.
Location Weekly: Torrid Deploys Personalized Maps in Email Marketing
In this episode of Location Weekly, the Location-Based Marketing Association covers 51Degrees partnering with Digital Element, Stirista acquiring Nikaza’s attribution and location intelligence engine, Torrid finding success with email marketing using personalized maps, and FedEx launching real-time package tracking with SenseAware ID.
Latest Posts
New Brandify Survey Reveals Consumer Habits in Local Search
For Brandify’s local search consumer survey, consumers were asked to name the tools they’ve used in the last 30 days to find information about businesses nearby. Though a vast majority of 77% named Google Maps over any other tool, there was a significant “second tier” group including Facebook at 38%, Yelp at 35%, and business websites at 32%.
The study also asked consumers about the frequency of searches, the range of businesses for which they searched, preferred devices, and the likelihood of visiting a business after searching.
The Path to Agency Scale: Product, Sales, or Both?
David: I’ve been thinking quite a bit about our product mix at ThriveHive recently. And in particular the segmentation of the various offerings of our newly combined GateHouse/Gannett company by customer budget.
It has surprised me, frankly, that so few agencies seem to go to market with the essential digital marketing bundle for local businesses you and I proposed exactly two years ago. In re-reading that article, I’d still give the same advice today and with even more urgency based on the rollout of Local Service Ads.
What’s Ahead for Last-Mile Delivery in 2020
Delivery is emerging as a competitive advantage for local retailers. In fact, in September 2019, Onfleet surveyed 1,000 US consumers to gather their impressions on online versus local store shopping and delivery expectations. Seventy-six percent said they would be more inclined to order from local stores rather than from Amazon if they could get same-day delivery.
With that in mind, here are some delivery trends we’re expecting for 2020.
LBMA Vidcast: Quotient Technology to Acquire Ubimo; UPS and CVS Team Up on Drone Delivery
On this week’s Location-Based Marketing Association podcast: Quotient Technology to acquire Ubimo, Fortnite and Royal Canadian Legion, Pepsi to pay it forward for the holidays, Groundlevel Insights + Gathr Lab, UPS and CVS team up on drone delivery of prescription drugs, and Wirecard buys the majority stake in AllScore.
Should Small Businesses Participate in Black Friday?
The total amount spent by shoppers on Black Friday in 2018 was $715.5 billion, according to The Balance. What’s even more noteworthy is the average amount spent per shopper, at $1,007.24. This represents an increase of approximately 4.3% over Black Friday 2017 sales. The numbers show that shoppers are ready and willing to spend on Black Friday. So, rather than leaving it to large-scale retailers, if you’re a small business owner, why not consider joining in?
The truth is, you still might be wondering whether the additional time and investment are worth it. Below, we present some pros and cons of participating in Black Friday you may not have considered.
Holiday Discounts Don’t Necessarily Lead to Loyal Customers — Here’s Why
When brands go in on discount-focused events like RetailMeNot’s Cash Back Day, which was held earlier this month, there’s concern that the long-term impact might be negative and that brands might be training customers to expect discounts. That expectation can reduce the perceived value of the brand’s products, and it can diminish brand equity over time.
95% of Consumers Plan on Buying Most Holiday Gifts Online
While brick-and-mortar sales remain a robust part of the holiday shopping experience, online shopping is asserting clearer dominance than ever before this year. A walloping 95% of consumers plan to do the majority of their holiday shopping this season online, according to multi-channel engagement platform Leanplum.
Heard on the Street, Episode 39: Building a Local Merchant Operating System
The word “platform” is thrown around a lot these days. It’s sometimes invoked for the sake of PR positioning, sometimes to make something sound more sophisticated than it is, but often the technology being described is really more of an application. A true platform is a central point in an ecosystem of apps that can be launched and managed from one place.
This is the definition that Sparkfly embodies. As I discussed with founder and CEO Catherine Tabor on the latest episode of Heard on the Street, the company integrates several local merchant functions through the single jumping-off point of its local merchant platform.
The Rise of First-Party Data: Why Quality Matters Over Quantity
For years, digital marketers have paid hand over fist in the digital gold rush for data. Instead of a tangible product, tech companies earn millions in revenue from the data they collect on previous, current, and future digital consumers. But digital marketers seeking to gobble up as much data as they can for their campaigns — while not stopping to consider the source of or methods used to collect it — are taking the wrong approach. The age-old mantra of “quality over quantity” has never been more relevant in online advertising, and marketers must quickly and fully embrace first-party data or risk their digital campaigns (and bottom lines) falling flat.
5 Ways to Improve the Customer Experience for Holiday Shoppers
The retail space starts to feel chaotic this time of year, with brands pulling out all the stops to win over holiday shoppers. Amidst all the talk of sales and discounts, retailers this year are looking at integrating new customer experience initiatives designed to bring in first-time shoppers and encourage long-time loyalists to spend even more than usual.
To learn even more about the customer experience strategies retailers are launching this year, we checked in with a few industry experts. Here are their thoughts on the best customer experience strategies retailers are trying out this holiday season.
Street Fight’s Big 3
Street Fight Columns
Street Fight Categories
How Agencies Can Protect Multi-Location Brands from AI Visibility Gaps