News and Analysis
Nick Dan-Bergman: Taking Flight in the New Agency & Franchise World
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. Nick Dan-Bergman, CMO of agency LT(Lane Terralever), will be joining us to discuss everything franchise-related and sharing the […]
Survey: Marketers Lean-In to Personalization, Performance
We’re well into H2, and omnichannel ad platform Mediaocean has released its 2025 H2 Market Report, a compilation of responses from a global survey of hundreds of marketing professionals. It looks like experimentation is out, and execution is in when it comes to using AI, advertising on CTV, and verifying identity as the foundations of […]
MULO Brands With Soul August Pick: Raising Cane’s
A “one love” philosophy may sound more like Woodstock, Burning Man, or a spiritual retreat than a MULO (multi-location) food brand with more than 900 locations. Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers has become known for its corporate culture, which emphasizes the importance of respect, community, teamwork, and having fun as part of every employee’s daily experience […]
Commentary
Global Brands, Local Strategies: How Retail Media is Catering to Diverse Markets
As performance media and retail media converge, advertisers stand at a pivotal juncture to redefine consumer engagement within an increasingly complex shopping ecosystem. This convergence underscores the critical balance between maintaining a global brand identity and achieving regional relevance, highlighting the necessity for strategic collaboration between local and global teams. Breaking Down Silos: Redefining a […]
The Fastest-Growing Gyms Rely on Customer Intelligence to Win
The beginning of the year is a big moment for gyms, with some reporting more than a quarter of their annual signups in January alone. But keeping those customers is a different story. With the FTC’s new click-to-cancel rule making it easier than ever to cancel gym memberships, gyms must rely on deep customer intelligence […]
2025 Marketing: Trends That Will Redefine Success
As 2025 begins, rapid advancements in AI and evolving consumer expectations are reshaping marketing. Gartner predicts that 30% of outbound email messages from large organizations will soon be synthetically generated. For marketers, the challenge lies in embracing these changes while keeping the customer at the center. Here are some of the trends I believe will […]
Latest Posts
Does DEIB Make a Difference for MULO Brands?
The issue of DEIB (diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging) has become hot in the U.S. these days. Programs are being slashed at a government level and some of the private sector is following suit. MULO (multi-location) brands now need to think even harder about their hiring policies and public images. Consumers have taken to social […]
Mass Appeal vs. Local Love: Who’s Really Winning the Loyalty War?
Customer loyalty is the golden ticket for sustainable business success, but the question remains—are broad, mass-marketing strategies capable of winning hearts, or do localized approaches create the genuine connection customers crave? The challenge for brands, especially those with multiple locations, is deciding how to strike the right balance between scale and intimacy. It’s not a […]
Kevel Acquires Nexta, Bolsters Retail Media Capabilities
Kevel has acquired Nexta, an automated advertising self-serve platform, to enhance its API-based retail media solutions. This move aligns with Kevel’s vision of empowering retailers to control their own ad platforms, optimizing multi-channel ad investment, and unlocking new revenue streams. The integration of Nexta’s AI-driven ad manager into Kevel’s Retail Media Cloud™ offers retailers a […]
Streets Ahead: Google’s Search Labs and Optimizing for AI Search
In this week’s Streets Ahead update, SOCi discusses Google’s Search Labs latest experiment and optimizing local pages for AI search. Google’s Search Labs Tests AI for Business Leads The News Last week, Google’s Search Labs introduced a new experiment called “Ask for me,” an AI-powered feature designed to call businesses on your behalf to gather […]
WeFranch Hits the Road in 2025 With a Team of Franchise “Stars”
The franchise space has become more complex and dynamic in recent years. A key part of the MULO (multi-location) landscape, it has its own subject matter experts, consultants, ecosystem, investors, and owners. One of the topics we’ll be delving into at Street Fight LIVE 2025 is the ever-evolving role of franchisors and franchisees in scaling, […]
Places Scout Acquired: Yext’s AI-Driven Future
Yext is rapidly redefining digital presence management through a strategic combination of AI-driven automation, competitive intelligence, and omnichannel customer engagement. The company’s latest acquisition of Places Scout, alongside its earlier purchase of Hearsay Systems and the launch of AI Review Generation, solidifies its position as a leader in helping multi-location businesses optimize visibility, outperform competitors, […]
Finance Is Questioning Your Marketing Value: Can You Prove Your Worth?
Marketers today are facing an overwhelming number of challenges. Too many channels, each claiming to be the key to driving performance. Finance teams are questioning whether marketing investments are truly profitable. As a result of this pressure, many brands have shifted their budgets toward performance-driven digital channels, prioritizing conversion metrics that validate their short-term decision-making. […]
Monday Morning Quarterbacking: Super Bowl Ad Review
If we didn’t do our gameplay replay of Super Bowl ad trends, we would be derelict as business media covering the media landscape. At $7-8M for a 30-second spot, big brands (and well-funded scaling brands) continue investing in this aspect of their media mixes. That’s a hefty spend, and unless it’s tied to other media […]
Unlocking Local Consumer Behavior: Foot Traffic Data Reshaping Fast-Food Strategies
Understanding consumer movement patterns is key to staying ahead. Foot traffic — the measurement of consumer visits to physical locations—provides critical insights into customer behavior, revealing trends in brand popularity, regional loyalty, and competitive positioning. dataplor, a leader in global location intelligence, has released a foot traffic analysis showcasing how these patterns shape fast-food preferences […]
SMBs versus Giants: The Street Fight Escalates
When Street Fight was founded about 12 years ago, the fight was defined as the battle between small and mid-size businesses (SMBs) and big multi-location (MULO) brands. Technology and location finding were still in their early stages, and consumers were just beginning to use their smartphones to find “near me” businesses at which to spend. […]
Street Fight’s Big 3
Street Fight Columns
Street Fight Categories
How Community-Focused Messaging Drives Loyalty for Multi-Location Brands