News and Analysis
Brick-and-Mortars Pivot to Logistics, Entertainment
Brick-and-mortar retailers are using storefronts as warehouses, logistics hubs, and entertainment venues in the wake of Covid-19 disruption.
After E-Commerce Gains, Retailers Struggle with Return Logistics
$70.5 billion worth of holiday purchases this year are expected to be returned, and 400 million square feet of additional warehouse space could be needed just to process those returns. For retailers already facing a deluge of products coming back into their warehouses, it could already be too late.
Brick-and-Mortar in a Post-Covid World
After months of shopping primarily online, and taking advantage of services like same-day deliveries and curbside pickups, can shoppers be persuaded to come back into physical stores?
Commentary
As Local Search Enters the Voice Era, Three Content Channels Dominate
You’re well covered today on the three top voice platforms if you have strong listings on Google, Apple, and Yelp. If you want to do even more, make sure your Bing listings are up to date for Cortana (note that Yelp reviews show up here as well), and submit your listing info to Here and Foursquare in order to be found in Samsung’s Bixby interface.
DexYP (and Other Publishers) Transition to Digital, But Limited Revenue Suggests Bleak Long-Term Prospects
“DexYP seems to be doing as many things right as one can expect from a huge Yellow Pages entity. But somehow they, and other publishers, need to transition to a more consultative higher-price point position,” David Mihm tells Mike Blumenthal in this edition of their biweekly column.
LBMA Podcast: Ninth Decimal and Branded Cities, Swrve, Burger King
On this week’s Location-Based Marketing Association podcast: Swrve’s Payload, UnDigital, Branded Cities + NinthDecimal, Tommy Hilfiger, Singapore Airlines, and Burger King France.
Latest Posts
Yext Shares Up Sharply in Initial Day of Trading, Portending Well for Local
Yext’s shares jumped nearly 22% in the company’s initial day of trading, with the price rising as high as $14.25 per share before settling to $13.41 at close. The strong opening was a hopeful message from Wall Street for the local marketing industry, which has been looking to Yext’s IPO as a bellwether.
Are We on the Brink of a Retail Revolution?
Revolutions often happen over short periods of time and leave death and carnage in their wake. What we are experiencing today in retail is more of an evolution — a sort of “survival of the fittest” as both local and big brand retailers either embrace shifting consumer shopping patterns or face extinction.
What We Talk About When We Talk About ‘Fake News’
“Fake news” is actually about stories written to win clicks (and potentially do harm). Losing the focus on this accurate definition to spin and political jockeying creates a challenge for the business of marketers, advertisers, and publishers.
Street Fight Daily: Yext Set to Raise $115.5M in Today’s IPO, Snap Offers Brick-and-Mortar Attribution
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Yext is Set to Raise $115.5 Million in IPO After Final Pricing… Snap Advertisers Can Now See if Their Ads Increase Foot Traffic… Will it Blend? Oath Will Combine Disparate AOL-Yahoo Ad Tech Assets…
Disney’s Deep Dive on Personality Research, and Its Potential Implications for Brand Marketers
A division of The Walt Disney Company has been working on a method to better target marketing by learning more about consumers’ personalities. Research scientist Maarten Bos spoke to us about how consumer personality can be understood and how the information can be used to tailor ads more precisely.
What Happens When Google Can Manipulate the Very News It Seeks to Protect?
A recent controversy finds the search giant caught in a contradiction. The company has strong financial interest in acting as the gatekeeper to the news. But Google also has a strong interest in portraying itself positively in the news that it effectively controls.
Street Fight Daily: Walmart Leverages Brick-and-Mortar to Win Online, Local Search Ranking Factors Rundown
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Walmart to Discount Some Online Orders When Picked Up At the Store… Just Released: 2017 Local Searching Ranking Factors Survey Results… Uber’s Head of Communications, Rachel Whetstone, is Leaving…
How Samsung’s Galaxy S8 Could Change Local Marketing
The new smartphone promises increased opportunities to bring local marketers closer to consumers with a new “intelligent interface.” Bixby, the phone’s voice assistant, has “contextually aware” capabilities that can help personalize location, retail and other user experiences.
CloudSponge: Soaking Up Your Contacts to Connect You Anywhere
The startup is touting tremendous success for at least one company using their service: local (under the radar) giant, Nextdoor, has seen a significant uptick in growth since deploying CloudSponge’s technology. How? We talked with Jay Gibb, the company’s CEO, to find out.
Street Fight Daily: Weather Channel Partners with Lyft, Alphabet Seeks Public Legal Fight with Uber
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… The Weather Channel Lets You Request a Lyft When Bad Weather Strikes… Alphabet Wants Its Lawsuit Against Uber to Play Out Publicly… Twitter is Expanding Its Video Measurement Partnerships to Help Marketers Gauge Ad Performance
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