News and Analysis
Yext Scout: AI-Powered Search & Competitive Intelligence Agent
Yext officially launched Yext Scout, its new AI-driven search and competitive intelligence agent, designed to help multi-location brands navigate an increasingly complex and fragmented search landscape. With consumers turning to a mix of traditional search engines (Google, Bing) and AI-powered platforms (ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Grok) to discover businesses, brands must understand where they appear, how […]
Keeping the Shelves Well Stocked: A Conversation With Joe Spisak
Joe Spisak is the CEO and Founder of Fulfill.com. Supply chain issues are certainly not as sexy and creative as that new ad campaign, AI-powered marketing system, or redesign of a MULO (multi-location) brand footprint. But they are critically important to brands and customers alike. After spending a small fortune on SEO and media campaigns, […]
BOOM: Brands & Concepts On the Rise in 2025
Who would have ever guessed that the bookstore would make a comeback? Barnes & Noble plans to open 60 new stores this year. Once considered a dying retail category, the bookstore is back and on the rise, selling more than just reading materials. Although physical books remain the brand’s main revenue source, stores have tapped […]
Commentary
How to Increase Social Media Engagement in 2024
Brands have a bigger marketing challenge today arguably than ever before because consumers are more skeptical about advertising than previously. Not only are they turning away from brand-created content on social media, but most of them also no longer trust influencers. That’s why increasing social media engagement and using social media effectively to promote brands […]
The Demise of Third-Party Cookies is CTV’s Opportunity to Shine
On January 4th, we finally reached the beginning of the end of third-party cookies (for real this time?) On that date, Google Chrome began removing 3rd party cookies from 1% of traffic. By the end of the year, 3rd party cookies will be completely eliminated from Chrome and opening a new opportunity for CTV. This […]
Navigating the Post-Cookie Landscape: Challenges and Opportunities for Brands
Google’s long-awaited post-cookie world is now here, with the company officially turning off cookies for 1% of Chrome users last month. The loss of third-party cookies means that brands will lose one of the most frequently used ways to identify potential target audiences on the open web. Post-cookie, brands will have to find different ways […]
Latest Posts
Back-to-School Shopping Patterns 2024
Most holidays seem to have moved up in the calendar as opportunities for retailers and manufacturers to get a jump on back-to-school sales activities. In some warmer states, school starts in August. Parents sending their kids off to college need ample prep time to stock dorm rooms (and the closets and refrigerators within them). Amazon […]
SOCi, Dominating the CoMarketing Cloud Revolution
SOCi, Inc., the CoMarketing Cloud tailored for multi-location enterprises, has reached a significant milestone: $100 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR). This achievement places SOCi among the exclusive ranks of global centaur companies, a status that is seven times rarer than the coveted unicorn status. Unlike unicorns, which are often valued based on speculative projections, […]
What’s Old was New at This Year’s Upfronts
This year’s Upfronts mirrored the changes taking place in the industry as there was a greater focus on streamers, with Netflix, Amazon and YouTube dominating headlines and generating more buzz than their broadcast and cable counterparts. Despite the industry’s desire to embrace new technologies and fully enter the streaming era, progress from years past appears […]
Streets Ahead: Google DOJ Ruling and Google’s Search Dominance
In this week’s Streets Ahead update from SOCi, we learn about the Google DOJ ruling and AI’s effect on Google’s search dominance Google Ruled a Monopoly in DOJ Case In a 2020 lawsuit, the Department of Justice and several state attorneys general accused Google of maintaining a monopoly, leading to a ruling by federal judge […]
Hallmark Launches its Own Media Channel
In the MULO (multi-location) retail world, Hallmark is one brand that has consistently been able to flex and scale — beyond the brick-and-mortar card store. Now, Hallmark is “joining the streaming fray.” The new media channel will (of course) be called Hallmark+, and it will make its debut in September. Hallmark has been way ahead of […]
Who Owns What in the MULO World?
Darden recently made a huge acquisition in the MULO (multi-location) food world, gobbling up Chuy’s fast-casual Mexican locations (100+) in a $605M deal. According to FSR Magazine, the holding company has also made some major acquisitions over the last decade. “Chuy’s marks Darden’s sixth acquisition in 15 years. In 2007, the company acquired RARE Hospitality […]
The Cookie Crumbled: Deprecation is Out, First-Party Data is (Still) In
While Google backed of its cookie deprecation plans, now is not the time for brands to become complacent. Smart marketers continue to prioritize third-party cookie alternatives to effectively and efficiently reach their audiences—and future-proof their targeting strategies, which are still likely to be impacted by privacy changes and signal loss. Google users will soon have […]
Mobility Data Optimizes Marketing for Retailers Amid New Lunch Trends
The working crowd still eats lunch. They just don’t do so at restaurants and take-out near their offices as much. Instead, they are saving their money to splurge on lunch out and drinks with friends on the weekends. A story on NBC.com went so far as to declare that “the lunch rush is dead,” citing […]
The MULO Dozen: July Brands in Review
Given the M&A activity that’s been going on in the MULO (multi-location) world these days, we’ve added a new section to our monthly dozen — DEALS. The reality of MULO is that unless brands listen to consumer voices, have strong leaders, and do the right deals, they may go BUST. The keys to BOOMING in […]
Solving the Identity Crisis: The Next Frontier for CTV Advertising
Driven by viewer demand for variety and convenience in content, Connected TV (CTV) has become one of the fastest-growing major advertising channels globally. A recent report in eMarketer stated that in the US alone, CTV advertising spend is projected to grow by 22.4% and reach $30.10 billion in 2024. Presenting a plethora of opportunities to […]
Street Fight’s Big 3
Street Fight Columns
Street Fight Categories
The Road Ahead: What Autonomous Cars Teach Us About Marketing Automation