News and Analysis

Google’s Latest Privacy Play Has Big Implications for the Open Web

The Local Customer Journey is Omnichannel

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A robust online presence is table stakes for even “local” businesses, as the local customer journey is thoroughly integrated into online search and selling. The Uberall study also suggests local businesses should capitalize on the greater trust and emotional connection they command with customers in an era when a product from Amazon is two clicks away.

Snap Doubles Down on Immersive Ads

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Snap has been doubling down on AR — mostly seen through updates to its Lens Studio AR development platform and the evolving formats it offers to brand marketers. This recently culminated in two new programs to further stimulate AR marketing: Snap’s AR Lab and its Arcadia creative studio.

virtual reality metaverse

5 Ways Retail Brands Are Embracing the Metaverse

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As retail brands jump into the test-and-learn phase, the concept of what it means to be involved in the metaverse is already evolving. Here’s how top retail brands are embracing the metaverse as they look for new opportunities for marketing growth and innovation.

Commentary

LBMA Vidcast: Sam’s Club and Instacart Partner on Alcohol Delivery

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On this week’s Location-Based Marketing Association podcast: Brands form “Voice Coalition”, CherryPicks navigation + translation app, Paytronix + FriendShip loyalty, Signify’s new LiFi, Coca-Cola Italy drives recycling, Sam’s Club + Instacart for alcohol delivery.  Special – new white paper from Digital Element.

12 Years After the iPhone, Marketers Need to Lean Into Digital Wellness

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Once upon a time, “getting a Starbucks coupon as you walk by a Starbucks” was the Holy Grail example of the potential power of mobile marketing. With the iPhone turning 12 years old this week, it’s a great time to observe how drastically more sophisticated digital relationships between consumers and brands have gotten thanks to the supercomputers in our pockets.

Mobile is now about building a customer journey and taking patrons to the next level rather than a single, location-based transaction. You hear it a lot: the customer journey reigns supreme, but there’s a good reason for “customer journey” becoming like the Greek chorus in marketing. Consumers are inundated with messages from brands, so marketers need to be judicious about how, when, where, and why they reach out to customers.

What’s a Cloud Kitchen? Amazon’s Next Move to Revolutionize a Major Shopping Sector

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Jeff Bezos likes to say, “Your margin is my opportunity.” Like with Whole Foods and grocery, Amazon moves into new verticals and applies its logistics-first approach to carve out margins, then undercut competitors. It is even getting into shipping, in a move to own its delivery infrastructure.

The next local conquest could be restaurants. For Amazon, it’s not just about serving food, but doing so in a way that aligns with its forte: delivering things to your home. The biggest clues and synergies lie in its established delivery and logistics playbook as well as its recent $575 million investment in Deliveroo.

Enter the cloud kitchen.

Latest Posts

Street Fight Daily: Reputation.com Acquires SIM Partners, Placed Open-Sources Its Platform

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Reputation.com Acquires SIM Partners… Placed Opens Up Location Analytics Platform for Free Public Use… BrandMuscle’s Paul Elliott Talks New Report on How Brands Can Go Local with Precision…

BrandMuscle’s Paul Elliott Talks New Report on How Brands Can Go Local with Precision

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“Local business partners want to increasingly execute in digital, but there is a reluctance or slowness in the brands or enterprises in shifting their dollars from traditional coverage in marketing and media to digital tactics,” said Paul Elliott of BrandMuscle.

How to Turn Alternative Data into Alpha

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The need for real-time data is critical, as it enhances the speed and accuracy of key decisions and enables investors to detect any defects before making a choice.

Localized Insights Mean More Precise Campaigns and Better ROI

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While creating at scale makes economic and operational sense, the danger in going with a one-size-fits-all approach is not insignificant. Evidence suggests over half of such “national” initiatives fail.

Street Fight Daily: Facebook Invests in Local News, Ford Plans to Enter Local Delivery

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Facebook Announces Support for Local News Subscriptions… Ford Lays Foundation for Autonomous Ride-Hail and Delivery Service… CPGs Focus on Marketing in Tough US Retail Landscape…

How Publishers Can Survive Facebook Churn: Top Expert Weighs In — Part I

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To help make sense of this sometimes-chaotic state of affairs and find solutions for local news publishers, I went to an expert who I think would be on just about any short list of Facebook demystifiers, Grzegorz Piechota.

Walmart Reimagines In-Store Shopping Experience with Mobile Update

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Walmart’s new Store Assistant is an all-encompassing mobile app solution that includes features such as Walmart Pay, a product search bar, and a product scanner that shoppers can use to double-check prices inside stores.

Momentum Builds for Third-Party Location Data; Brands See Correlation with Marketing Effectiveness

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Third-party customer location data isn’t used widely by multi-location brands, but those that use it appear to have better success with local digital marketing.

Street Fight Daily: Duopoly Shares Data with Brands, Third-Party Location Data Boosts Brands

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Duopoly Shares More Data with Brands, But There Are Snags… The Next Big Threat to Consumer Brands (Yes, Amazon’s Behind It)… Walmart Reimagines In-Store Shopping Experience with Mobile Update…

Unpacking the Increasingly Complex Local SERP

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“While I think [these local ad changes] might be better for many small businesses AND consumers, it gives Google a great deal of power to approve or disapprove participants,” Mike Blumenthal tells David Mihm in their biweekly column.