News and Analysis
The MULO Hotel is Alive and Well
Summer vacations have ended but millions of people are still traveling for both work and play. Business travel is almost back to its pre-pandemic level, with close to 500M trips taking place this year and the global business traveler market estimated to reach $2.1T by 2031. Despite the popularity surge for alternative lodgings like Airbnb and […]
UGC: A Conversation With Roee Zelcer, CEO of Humanz US
MULO (multi-location) brands and agencies have long used word-of-mouth marketing to build traffic and sales. But UGC (user-generated content) as marketing is clearly having a moment. Brands’ fans are taking to TikTok, IG, digital billboards, and streaming TV ads to promote products and places. Agencies are making bold moves to incorporate UGC in their media […]
Sneak Preview: A Chat With Steph Hadas About the New PR
Steph Hadas is a Vice President at 5WPR, one of the largest independently owned public relations firms in the U.S., and will be one of our featured speakers at Street Fight LIVE on November 7th at Meta’s Chicago headquarters. The firm was founded in 2003 and has an incredible roster of clients — from major […]
Commentary
In the Age of AI, 3 Must-Have Skills for Digital Marketers
Everything changed in November 2022. That’s when OpenAI’s ChatGPT launched to the public, and having a clear understanding of how to harness generative AI instantly became a requirement for digital marketers around the globe. In the eight months since generative AI went mainstream, the field of digital marketing has undergone a metamorphosis. Marketers today find […]
From Google to Social to Generative AI: The Evolution of Search Journeys
Remember when search ads were just a bunch of blue links? Believe it or not, that wasn’t that long ago – when a mention of search conjured a near-identical image in everyone’s minds. If you asked 100 people to describe their search journeys today, you might get 100 different answers. Those answers would almost certainly […]
Impossible? How to Actually Get a Return on Your Technology Investments
Technology investments have been a priority for most companies since before the pandemic, which brought new urgency to the implementation of new solutions. However, fully implementing a digital transformation is surprisingly uncommon – a new study found that only 15% of businesses with digital transformation programs have completed them. That low success rate is concerning because […]
Latest Posts
Beware the “Brobot?” The Women of AI
At CES (where AI was the buzzword this year), a group of women gathered to discuss the role of women in technology, and specifically in artificial intelligence. AI is already having an impact on all aspects of the MULO (multi-location) retail and restaurant ecosystem — from real-time analytics to inventory management and security. According to […]
An Infusion of Franchise Savvy from Dana Kupper of PrimeIV
Dana Kupper was inspired by her husband (a brand ambassador for PrimeIV since 2019) to become the owner/operator of an IV franchise. (She also has a corporate job at American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts.) We’ve written about the BOOM of the needle and how MULO (multi-location) businesses that provide health-related infusions are on the […]
Get in the Game: Jeff Michaels of Mobivity Talks Mobile Gaming
Mobivity is a provider of technology connecting mobile gaming audiences to real-world brands and products. While mobile gaming includes casual games (like Solitaire, Candy Crush, etc.), gamification traditionally means turning regular tasks into games to increase fun and enjoyment. Mobile gaming (Mobivity’s focus) has become an effective tool for customer acquisition and engagement. MULO (multi-location) […]
The Privacy Arms Race May Kill Ad Tech
A dangerous digital advertising arms race is brewing as browser makers try to prevent cross-site tracking. The desire of digital ad companies to keep tracking users, despite browsers’ preventative privacy measures, is leading our industry down a hazardous path for users, browser makers, and ad tech. In an effort to protect user privacy, browsers are […]
BOOM: Courting the Racquet Sports Industry With Robyn Duda
Tennis remains popular, badminton is having a moment says Pinterest, and paddle is, according to the Washington Post, the next big multi-location winner is racquet sports. We met with Robyn Duda, the co-founder of RacquetX, a new festival for both business and consumers that involves ALL racquet sports, to ask her about the trend. Why […]
GenAI : Where Brand Marketers Need to Upskill for the Future
Generative AI (GenAI) was one of the most talked about technologies in 2023. We saw it support Google searches, streamline A/B testing efforts, and even play center stage in last summer’s SAG-AFTRA strike. With the ability to automate repetitive tasks and streamline processes, GenAI is becoming an invaluable tool in marketing – and its potential […]
BOOM: Ramen Graduates From Dorm Room to MULO Brand
Many of us know ramen as the instant noodles that served as an inexpensive and fast meal when we were students or recently-graduated professionals, with limited budget for restaurants and limited home cooking skills and equipment. Elevated ramen was introduced to the U.S. in 2004 with the opening of the Momofuku Noodle Bar. The brand […]
Unity – Walmart Partnership Redefines Gaming and Retail Collaboration
In recent years, we’ve seen an increasing comfortability with traditional retailers and the gaming industry. Fortnite may have been the first to really make this big business – through can’t-miss concerts and exclusive in-game and IRL shoe sponsorships with Nike – but the industry has certainly grown its ability to attract high-end partnerships like Unity […]
Yelp If Ya Hear Me
Whether you’re looking for pizza, pozole, or a plumber you can find some of the best local destinations on Yelp, a review site that crowd-sources recommendations from actual customers. For businesses, Yelp.com promises a reach of 80 million visitors per month, more than half of whom have a household income exceeding $100k. This year marks […]
Pre-gaming: MULO Brands at the Super Bowl
When Super Bowl LVIII kicks off in Las Vegas on February 11th, marketers will be on their couches and in the stands, eager to critique the advertising campaigns (and surrounding digital buzz). Just as CES is the “see and be seen” of technology brands (and the companies that use their products and services), the Super […]
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