News and Analysis
More Brands Are Scaling Digital Channels for Customer Engagement — Here’s Why
Communicating with brands on social media has become the norm for consumers. Surveys show that roughly half of all consumers who engage with brands on social media are reaching out about customer care concerns, and more than 65% of social media users across all platforms expect brands to respond, regardless of whether the initial outreach was via private messages or public posts.
Those expectations have only heightened over the past six months, and many brands have had to pivot their customer support and engagement priorities on the fly.
Earnings Season Teases Retail’s Next Normal
Earnings results that rolled out from retail giants over the past week further demonstrate what our next normal will look like. Specifically, Walmart and Target both hit record numbers. This is partly a function of Covid-era circumstances, but it is also due to each retailer’s active e-commerce momentum.
The earnings validate consumer acclimation to digitally infused local shopping. What’s more, other retailers and down-market businesses will look to replicate this success. This can all therefore be viewed as a leading indicator for retail’s next normal.
More Americans Are Using Delivery. The Change Is Here to Stay
Delivery has perhaps been the industry most clearly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. When physically going to brick-and-mortar stores became a life-or-death exercise, delivery, which had already grown under the rise of e-commerce, became an even more essential part of how local commerce functions.
Khaled Naim, co-founder and CEO of delivery software company Onfleet, touched on how delivery has changed in the past months, how long those changes will persist, and what technologies are fueling the widespread increase in deliveries.
Commentary
What Happens When Knowledge Panels Aren’t Actually Knowledgeable?
In the latest of their biweekly columns, David Mihm and Mike Blumenthal explore what they find to be a troubling practice on Google’s part: granting select platforms the power to insert themselves into a local business’ knowledge panel without any recourse for the business or verifying that the information is accurate.
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Case Study: Georgia Cleaning Service Uses AI Assistant for Targeted Promotions
“We cannot afford for a campaign to be ineffective, which to us means that we need every campaign to bring in enough money to at least pay for itself,” says My Amazing Maid owner Royce Ard . “Almost all of our marketing expenses are for acquisition-type campaigns to attract new customers.”
Street Fight Daily: How Brands Fare on Snapchat, Facebook Reaches Out to Local Newsrooms
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… New Report from Snaplytics Breaks Down How Brands Fare on Snapchat… Facebook is Beginning to Reach Out to Local Newsrooms… Google Maps Adds Feature Allowing Users to Plan and Share Itineraries…
Here’s How Marketers Can Capitalize on Valentine’s Day Foot Traffic Trends
According to a new analysis of Valentine’s Day foot traffic trends conducted by the location intelligence company Foursquare, movie theaters are the place to be on Valentine’s Day. Theaters see an incredible 255% lift in foot traffic, compared to the week before — and 64% of moviegoers opt to eat out before or after the show.
Street Fight Daily: Yelp Sees Growth in Local Ad Accounts, Facebook Agrees to Audit
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Yelp Stock Plunges After Sales Outlook Misses Mark, But Local Ad Accounts Grow… Facebook Agrees to Audit of Its Metrics Following Data Controversy… Lyft Has Hired the Head of Google Street View to Lead Its Mapping Team…
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