News and Analysis
Netflix Takes on YouTube. Should Podcasters and Advertisers Rejoice?
If we’re “Netflix and Chillin,’” consuming movies, streaming series, and other entertaining and inspiring content, why don’t we listen, watch and learn from podcast content creators too? Now we can. Netflix is entering the podcast market, leveraging its massive database of more than 300M subscribers (and growing). Podcasts also show no sign of slowing down […]
Church’s Wants to Make Your Day
A new female buddy comedy is playing in theaters, and Church’s Texas Chicken not only has a cameo role, but a marketing tie-in. “One of Them Days” stars SZA, who had her own star turn in Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl half-time show earlier this month, and Keke Palmer (“Akeelah and the Bee)” playing roommates who […]
5 Reasons the Media Ignores (or Trashes) Your Brand
As someone who has sat on “both sides of the desk” (as a marketer and now a research analyst, trend spotter, and content creator), I have a unique perspective on media exposure. The right press — online, conventional, or some combination — feeds your public image when consumers search for your brand. What MULO (multi-location) […]
Commentary
5 Generative AI Tools for SMB Marketing
Staying ahead of the curve in SMB marketing is more than just a competitive advantage; it can be the key to survival. As the martech landscape evolves, more business owners are finding themselves dealing with the challenge of producing engaging, relevant, and unique content that can cut through the noise and capture the attention of […]
The Mall of the Future
The media love to show pictures of vacant and deteriorating malls. But the reality is that the mall isn’t dying. It’s just changing. Let’s think back to 1992 when The Mall of America opened and became a destination — not just for shopping but for dining and playing. It’s now a major tourist attraction and […]
Jordan Blakesley Answers the Question: Do You Really Need PR?
Jordan Blakesley is the founder of B Public Relations (BPR), a company that manages 24 PR professionals in five cities. In addition to SMB boutiques and independent hotels, destinations, and restaurants, the company works with many multi-location brands, including Snooze, an AM Eatery, Next Level Burger, and King’s Seafood Company. We have observed at Street […]
Latest Posts
GroupM, Incremental Partner on Neutral RMN Solutions
Fragmentation and poor measurement create a ton of inefficiencies for clients and agencies trying to plan and optimize retail-media investments. To address this issue, GroupM has expanded its retail (aka commerce) media offering and formed a partnership with Incremental, which provides neutral retail media solutions. The announcement was made on June 17 at the Cannes […]
Leap-ing Into a New Retail Model: An Interview With Amish Tolia
We’ve all seen founders with great ideas and/or products take the big step to brick-and-mortar stores and then crash and burn due to various factors. Amish Tolia is the Co-Founder and CEO of Leap, a company that has disrupted the traditional commercial broker/landlord/tenant model for retail brands. Tolia founded the company about six years ago […]
How to Pick the “Right” Retail Media: A Perspective from Skai
Nich Weinheimer is the EVP of Strategy at Skai, an omnichannel advertising platform focused on walled garden media. These networks (walled garden media) are their own ecosystem and keep their customer data close. As reported recently, major MULO (multi-location) retailers are taking a page from the Google and Amazon playbook and developing their own advertising ecosystems. […]
Retail Media – Enabling Brands to Shift to an Audience-first Mindset
While retail media can trace its history back decades to humble in-store signage, cardboard cutout displays, and sampling tables, the retail media networks of 2024 are some of the most advanced advertising channels ever created. And with this sector forecast to hit a staggering $140bn ad spend worldwide this year, it has yet to fully […]
Placer.ai and TapClicks Partner for Deeper Marketing Analytics
Placer.ai, the leader in location analytics, and TapClicks, the leading provider of Smart Marketing solutions, have partnered to integrate real-time foot traffic data into TapClicks’ omni-channel reporting platform. This collaboration advances the ability for marketers to gain deeper insights into consumer behavior and thereby more conclusively prove the effectiveness of marketing campaigns. In conversation with […]
RM + AI = $$ (Retail Media Gets Smarter)
RM = retail media. It’s booming now as retailers, airlines, and restaurants launch their networks to enable in- and out-of-store marketing to consumers and prospects. AI = artificial intelligence (of course). MULO (multi-location) brands can have huge amounts of data and numerous ways to monitor in-store behavior, but if they’re not using automation to inform advertising […]
MULO Brands With Soul: A New Mini-Series
The term “soul” is all relative. Many MULO (multi-location) brands today aim to stay in business and thrive. They incorporate new technologies into their operations, aim to hire and retain competent and loyal employees and ensure they are selling/serving the products/foods/services that today’s consumers want (and that their marketing is well-targeted and cost-effective). So, where […]
BOOM: Retail is Rising!
Shopping center occupancy rates have dropped for the first time in a decade. According to Cushman & Wakefield, the retail vacancy rate is 5.4%, as reported in the New York Times. The article goes on to report on new and expanded shopping centers and malls throughout the U.S. This is consistent with a recent Street Fight […]
Building Brand Trust Is Multi-Dimensional
In this post-truth era, when the public trust has eroded around news sources, government, healthcare institutions, and myriad other pillars of society, trust and authenticity are difficult to establish. Now add a layer of brand verticals. What happens to brand trust? Vevo, MAGNA, and media agency Initiative conducted a survey of 5,000 U.S. consumers this […]
30K Feet OOH! Targeted Airline Advertising
United Airlines just announced a new advertising program, targeting personalized ads to flyers based on demographics. Advertising to a captive audience on planes is nothing new. The original airline magazines and catalogs were popular back in the day. Pre-wi-fi, all we had to do was read paper media and watch and listen to whatever was […]
Why TV Remains the Heartbeat of Local Connection