News and Analysis

MarTech Firms Pivot to Meet Post-Pandemic Demands

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The marketing automation company Act-On Software is relaunching today with an affordable solution for companies that are bogged down by budget cuts and lay-offs due to Covid-19 shutdowns, but they’re not the only company making big changes.

In fact, Act-On is just one of a number of martech firms gunning to help businesses as they emerge from Covid-19 shutdowns. Jungle Scout has released a solution for brands leveraging the power of Amazon, Agora.io is expanding its reseller partnerships, and BounceX is using SMS to help retailers recover revenue lost because of Covid-19. Act-On is refining its approach to marketing automation, with new product capabilities meant to drive personal product engagement and a tighter focus on helping marketers evolve their businesses.

With Covid Insights Tracker, GroundTruth Looks to Democratize Location Data

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GroundTruth’s new Covid-19 Insights tracker gives brands a way to track foot traffic down to the zip code level. The tracker is updated weekly, with the ability to search for daily foot traffic across a number of categories, like auto dealers, banks, restaurants, and retail.

Data comes from the 30 billion annual global visits GroundTruth observes on its platform. The company uses indexed foot traffic to demonstrate the relative increase or decrease in visits to different places of interest, with weekly and daily charts depicting foot traffic indexed against average weekly/daily visits starting from December 30, 2019.

As Retail Reopens, Voice Tech Takes Center Stage

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Voice technology has been on the verge of going mainstream for nearly a decade. Despite big players like Amazon and Google launching their own smart speakers, and millions of consumers using the devices in their homes, investors in the voice technology space have been patiently waiting for the spark that would set off a new touchless world.

That spark is Covid-19.

Commentary

The Bifurcation of the Local SEO Services Market

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“The changing nature of search and the increasing localization are making “traditional SEO” harder, more expensive, and less productive of ROI, and that should lead every agency to assess what they are delivering and to whom,” Mike Blumenthal tells David Mihm in their latest biweekly column.

LBMA Podcast: RetailLoco, Adsquare, PlaceIQ, Bluedot

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On this week’s podcast from the Location-Based Marketing Association: A RetailLoco Recap, Adsquare’s Footfall, PlaceIQ + IRI, Bluedot raises $5.5M from TransUrban, Waze + Carto, Amex ends Plenti, DAC Group launches ConvergenSEE.

LMC Aims to ‘Think Completely Differently’ About Future of Local News

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“The biggest challenges for the LMC and the local news industry are concerns around transparency, viewability, and fraud, which produce disconnects between buyer and seller,” says Local Media Consortium Board Chair Chris Loretto.

Latest Posts

Street Fight Daily: DoorDash and Postmates Test Robot Delivery, Lighting Tech Helps Retailers Sharpen Location Data

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Postmates and DoorDash Test Delivery by Robot with Starship Technologies… Retailers Leverage Lighting Communication System to Sharpen Location Data… As Alexa Becomes Ubiquitous, Amazon Must Craft a Consistent User Experience…

Making Sense of Amazon’s Push Deeper Into Local

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Clearly Amazon is positioning itself in the sales funnel aggressively, Mike Blumenthal tells David Mihm. “And unlike Google their presale efforts lead directly to sales that they control. ”

Sponsored Content: Using Your Website as a Customer Engagement Tool

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Websites remain a foundational marketing element for companies of all sizes and they are likely the “home base” for customers finding the detailed information they desire as well as the basics, like store hours, contact information, product details and links to social channels. While on the surface it may seem like websites are the opposite of engaging—static, one-size-fits-all, impersonal—the fact is with a little bit of strategy, businesses can create a website that provides customers with a truly engaging experience with clear calls to action as part of the customer’s journey.

Why Mobile Payments Will Heat Up in 2017

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Mobile payments have been inhibited by point-of-sale hardware upgrade requirements and the lack of a killer pitch for either users or merchants. But the movement to chip-based credit and debit cards in the U.S. could help.

Street Fight Daily: Here Helps Baidu Expand Mapping Service, Retailers Use Tech for Personalization

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Here Partners with Baidu to Expand Its Mapping Service to Europe and Beyond… How Retailers Use Personalization — If They Do At All… Facebook Measurement: The Walled Garden is Cracking a Window…

Surefire Social Rebrands, Acquires Franchise Marketing Firm in Hyperlocal Push

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Surefire Social has announced this morning that it is rebranding as Surefire Local, as it looks to more strongly emphasize its hyperlocal focus. The new name is just one of many changes at the company, which recently purchased the local marketing automation vendor Promio.

Openings and New Hires at Search Influence, Urgent.ly, Kantar Media

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Every two weeks, Geoff Michener covers some of the latest job changes taking place in this dynamic industry. This week’s edition includes moves and new openings at Pandora, Branded Entertainment Network, and DialogTech.

Raise Report: New Funding for ezCater, Gravy Analytics, CloudCar

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Every two weeks, we round up some of the biggest fundraises taking place in hyperlocal marketing, commerce, and tech. This edition includes funding for Flytrex, CloudCraze, NG Data, and Choozle.

Street Fight Daily: Google Launches Website Builder for SMBs, Amazon Go’s Potential Impact on Retail

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Google Testing Website Builder Within Google My Business… Amazon Go, Deep Learning, and a Better Retail Experience… Toyota Leverages Mobile Location Firm NinthDecimal’s Data to Establish Attribution for Dealer Visits…

Sponsored Content: Jewelers Battle for Holiday Retailers

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While some shoppers went online to buy gems this holiday season, many went to their local jewelry stores. Winning brands this holiday season had their store location information readily available. But there’s more to reaching the local customer.