News and Analysis

Tools to Address Labor Shortages

6 Retail Tech Solutions for Addressing Labor Shortages

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Retail technology platforms that may have been overlooked before the pandemic are now coming into focus as businesses begin to understand their true value. Using a combination of artificial intelligence, machine learning, IoT, and big data, a number of startups have started positioning their platforms as possible solutions to the labor shortages that retailers and restaurants are facing in 2021. Mobile ordering kiosks, autonomous checkout systems, and even machine vision algorithms are all being used to help businesses greet customers, restock shelves, and even clean messy areas with more efficiency.

Fisherman Pioneers the No-Effort Web for Small Businesses

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Fisherman is pioneering what CEO and co-founder Ameet Kallarackal calls the “no-effort Web.” Beginning with a focus on restaurants, which still make up about 90% of its customer base, Fisherman is aiming to be the simplest, most automatic option available for small business owners and operators to create websites. The company claims to get the job done in just two minutes and typically has a website ready for a potential customer, often based purely on the business’ name and address, before approaching them.

Is Amazon Primed for the Data Privacy Era?

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In a world that favors first-party networks — especially those with ample web traffic outside of iOS apps — it doesn’t get much bigger than Amazon. The question is if the e-commerce giant can attract advertisers en masse with the reach of its ad network plus the unfettered targeting and first-party contextual relevance of the world’s largest online store.

Commentary

LBMA Vidcast: Kroger, UberEats, MoviePass

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On this week’s Location-Based Marketing Association podcast: MoviePass goes PreShow, Sainsbury test cashierless stores, Let’s Bab for social recommendations, Kroger’s QFC launches DogSpots, UberEats tests food delivery at Toronto Pearson Airport.

Restaurant POS System Trends to Look Out for in 2019

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2019 is all about connectivity when it comes to POS systems. The role of the POS system, used primarily for billing, has evolved into an operations hub that connects all your online order sources, guest-facing technology, and your kitchen (via Kitchen Display Systems). It’s the foundation of a technical system that helps you manage your restaurant operations better on the whole. Here are the cutting-edge trends.

The Promise of XR and 5G

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As we approach the 5G era, the dramatic quantum leap of 5G service enhances many creative capabilities in XR, providing richer user experiences and giving marketers and developers a larger digital playground to expand their creative talents.

Still, there’s confusion in the market over how these innovations work and, critically, how they can work together. Let’s take a closer look.

Latest Posts

Bklyner Announces It Will Shut Down Unless It Hits Subscriber Goal by Dec. 31

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The Brooklyn-based hyperlocal network has announced it will close down coverage of its 11 neighborhoods unless it can attain 3,230 digital subscribers by the end of December. In this Q & A Bklyner founder Liena Zagare, presents the stark facts about her publication’s 11-hour predicament.

Survey: Small Retailers Struggling to Compete this Holiday Season

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The holiday season isn’t just an important time for small businesses, it’s the important time. Nearly one-third of store owners say they are completely dependent on revenue earned during this period, according to a new survey by Vistaprint.

Street Fight Daily: Retailers Can Win Big After Christmas, Brand Safety Trips Up Publishers

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Search Data Suggest Retailers Stand to Win Big Week After Christmas… Publishers Find Themselves Caught Up in Brand Safety Nets… Brands Are Learning How to Master Push Notifications Like Publishers…

With Tapad Partnership, Freckle IoT Extends Scale of Audience Data

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Until now, Tapad’s Device Graph has primarily been used by media companies looking to understand and measure their audiences. With this new partnership in place, however, Freckle’s large retail clients will have the ability to monitor consumer behaviors and determine which channels are most successful in driving sales.

Google My Business Looks to the Future

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Aditya Tendulkar is about as close to the source as you can get when it comes to the strategic direction of Maps and Google My Business. We asked him a few questions about the quick pace of feature releases in recent months and the new openness Google seems to be showing toward listing management companies and crowdsourcing.

Street Fight Daily: Google Assistant Fuels Hyperlocal Biz, Inside the Digital Content Bubble

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Time Out Plans to Use Google Assistant to Grow to Connect Users with Local Businesses (Digiday) City guide Time Out has developed an app for Google Assistant through which people can ask up to 100 questions about what to do in their city. Time […]

Street Fight Launches Third Annual “State of Hyperlocal” Survey

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We’re kicking off our third annual executive survey about the state of the local marketing ecosystem. We welcome readers to share their thoughts on the state of the industry by filling out a short survey on what their companies are prioritizing and what challenges they’re facing. As a thank-you, we’re offering a free report or a discount on Summit tickets.

Street Fight Daily: Amazon Adds Local Artisan Products to Prime Now, CPGs Go Digital

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Amazon Brings Its Handmade Local Items to Prime Now Through Holidays (TechCrunch) For the first time, handcrafted items from local artisans – including things like home décor, jewelry, art, and more – will be available on Prime Now today all the way through […]

SMB Index: Local Stocks Keep Climbing in November

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After a scorching gain in October, the SCP SMB Index continued to rally, climbing another 3.3% in November, outpacing all other major indices we track. The S&P 500, Nasdaq and Dow Jones all experienced gains during the month of 2.1% and 1.9% and 2.5%, respectively.

How Closetbox Is Using Location Tech to Disrupt the Self-Storage Industry

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The company uses excess capacity in the existing logistics network to pick up and deliver storage in real-time. When consumers order movers via Closetbox’s mobile app, the company finds the nearest moving trucks with available space, and customers’ items get picked up and stored at private storage warehouses right away.