News and Analysis

How Google’s Review Attributes Expansion Impacts Local Businesses

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Businesses that understand these changes and find ways to harness review attributes stand to see major gains in search. Google’s new feature could be a big improvement for small and mid-size businesses, in particular, since it provides marketers with both comparative structured feedback and sentiment. But whether businesses benefit from Google’s decision to expand review attributes into new categories depends largely on how they capitalize on the changes.

Restaurants Are Using Technology to Bring Back Customers Post-Pandemic

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How do local restaurants implement coronavirus-driven changes, and what role will technology play in helping those businesses reemerge from lockdown status?

Statewide regulations, like sanitizing protocols and spacing between tables, are in many ways easier for restaurants to implement because they are clear-cut. Certain diner expectations are harder for restaurants to gauge, and that has presented a new opportunity for technology providers catering to the restaurant market.

Can a Pandemic Inflect Local Commerce Tech?

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Could forced adoption of alternative shopping methods like curbside pickup lead to user acclimation? Will millions of shoppers get exposed to the merits of these streamlined options and like what they see? Will new habits be born that sustain throughout normal times?

If so, these technologies — along with virtual-office enablement — could benefit from this period as a blessing in disguise for exposing their value propositions. But who stands to benefit most? We’ve identified five local commerce tech areas to which this could apply.

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LBMA Podcast: Thinknear, Facebook & Nike, Groupon Buys Vouchercloud

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On this week’s edition of the Location-Based Marketing Association podcast: Thinknear, Facebook + Nike, Groupon buys Vouchercloud, Clear Channel launches RADARView, Oscar Meyer’s Bacoin, Coca-Cola teams up with Cargo.

5 Location-Based Tips for Brands Looking to Boost Mobile Visibility and Sales

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Centralization of location data is key. With correct information at hand, a brand’s corporate office can effectively channel information to individual store/business locations for events like regional holiday sales. At the same time, stores can manipulate their own unique data and funnel that back up to corporate.

Four Years After GateHouse, Brad Dennison Has Become a Local News Rover

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There’s a new nameplate in hyperlocal news publishing, and just about everything about it is boldly different, including the name—Rover. This combination digital daily and print monthly was launched in suburban Nashville last week. In this Q&A, Tom Grubisich talks with one of Rover’s architects, Brad Dennison.

Latest Posts

Google Maps Holiday Controversy Reflects Deeper Issues in Local Search

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In cases where community values are not unanimous, public companies are faced with an ethical question, and their answers can help to shape perceptions among users. For many, the removal of a Confederate holidays from Google Maps signals that it is truly a thing of the past.

Street Fight Daily: Social Platforms Bring Pubs Limited Cash, GM Enables In-Car Data with New SDK

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Deals with Facebook and Snapchat Are Popular, But They’re Not Big Money-Makers… GM’s New SDK for In-Car Infotainment Apps Offers Access to Nearly 400 Data Points… For Retail, the Next Big Tech-Driven Shakeup is Organizational…

Why Developing a ‘Near Me’ Strategy Has Become Critical for Local Marketers

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Mobile is no longer just an important or necessary element of a marketing strategy — it’s vital for the livelihood and existence of a brand. And it has led to a critical shift in shopper behavior that brand marketers are rushing to understand and adapt their digital marketing strategies to.

Street Fight Daily: Mobile Ad Spend Could Double by 2021, Snap Courts Big Advertisers

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… U.S. Mobile Ad Spend Will More Than Double by 2021… Snapchat Is In Talks for Big Ad Deals Ahead of IPO… Big Data Adoption is Slow, But Benefits Are Beginning to Show…

Why 2017 Will Be the Year of the ‘Micro Moment’

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A micro moment is the point at which a consumer searches for nearby information, for things to do, buy, or learn in real-time. Essentially, it’s a description of a new consumer mindset: one that has switched from regularity to spontaneity in shopping and learning habits, due to ubiquity of smartphones.

Case Study: Restaurant Group Uses Spend Data to Analyze Customer Base

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For Good Food Guys, a restaurant group that owns and operates fast casual restaurant concepts in the Bay Area and Los Angeles, digital marketing platforms helped bring in customers over the holiday season who were already out doing their shopping, while also rewarding those who visit most frequently.

Street Fight Daily: Voice Assistant Sales to Skyrocket, Alibaba Local Commerce App Raises $1.1 Billion

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… 25 Million More Voice Assistants Coming This Year; Google, Amazon Dominate… Alibaba’s Local Commerce Platform, Koubei, Raises $1.1 Billion… Crate and Barrel COO Talks Bucking Brick-and-Mortar Trends…

5 Influencer Marketing Platforms for SMBs

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Without million dollar marketing budgets, many small businesses are unsure of how to launch their own influencer campaigns. Here are five examples of influencer marketing platforms that these small and mid-size businesses can try.

Local Media Consortium Signing 6 Revenue Partners, Adding More TV Stations

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The organization is making major strategic changes – and more are on the way — as it seeks to strengthen the revenue power of its members, who represent a big chunk of the embattled digital local news industry.

Street Fight Daily: Google Builds Cloud-Based Measurement Service, Uber Nabs Google Search Exec

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Google is Building a Cloud-Based Measurement Service for Advertisers… Uber Hires Google’s Former Head of Search, Stoking a Rivalry… Retailers Turn to Silicon Valley to Lure Customers…