News and Analysis
Rakuten Ready Gives Merchants Access to Advanced Pickup Technology
Industry-wide curbside pickup has surged 208%, but statistics alone do not tell the complete story. Although large retailers were quick to pivot to a pickup-only strategy, small and mid-size retailers were largely boxed out. That’s because the ordering technology used by many large retailers comes with a price tag that small retailers cannot afford, and implementing the most sophisticated programs requires a level of technological sophistication that SMBs don’t usually have.
Rakuten Ready believes it has the answer to this problem.
Street Fight’s June Theme: Retail Recovery
As the country starts to re-open and recover (some places more quickly than others), we’ll shift our focus to cover specifically how that’s happening. And what better vertical to represent local business recovery than retail? It will be a leading indicator for several other local commerce verticals.
So we introduce our June editorial theme: Retail Recovery. The goal: to chronicle the steps local businesses are taking to reemerge from locked doors and empty streets. Who’s doing what, and what can we learn from them? By “them” we mean businesses and the tech providers that support them.
Commentary
Who’s Using Local AR? And How Often?
According to a recent survey, AR users like what they see, with a whopping 73% reporting high or very high satisfaction. But non-users report explicit disinterest, with the biggest reason being the rather daunting “just not interested.” This presents a big hill for AR app developers to climb.
Latest Posts
Who Should Rate Communities: Experts, the Public — or Both?
One emerging group that might be able to help publishers answers tough questions is the nonprofit group STAR Communities, which “works to evaluate, improve, and certify sustainable communities.” The company helps cities and counties “achieve a healthy environment, a strong economy, and well being for their residents.”
Street Fight Daily: Spectacles Give Brands Location-Based, AR Marketing Tool; Indoor Location Tech to Rise
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Spectacles Offer Brands an Advertising Opportunity Combining AR and Location… Indoor Location Tech Predicted to Gain Widespread Usage in Coming Years… Case Study: Amazon Didn’t Kill Macy’s. Macy’s Did…
How to Keep Customers Loyal in 2017
Trends and fads are common in the quickly-evolving local marketing industry, but it appears that loyalty programs are here to stay. So what’s the secret to keeping customers loyal in 2017? To find out, we went directly to the experts and asked what trends they’re seeing within the local merchant community.
Waze Says Its Crowdsourced Navigation Data Brings Clarity for Marketers
Tapping into geolocation data has become essential for hyperlocal marketing strategies — but according to the folks at navigation app Waze, understanding what consumers are really up to when they travel around is a crucial next step. It can be easy for brands to make presumptions based solely on the fact that a specific person […]
Why Location-Based Machine Learning Is the Smart Path to Personalization
With the right data, a brand can keep the relationship with the customer warm while they’re off-property, out-of-town or on a budget. Offering the right deals and communications that are relevant to real interests means that the relationship between man and machine is getting better all the time.
Street Fight Daily: Deliveroo Faces Potential Lawsuit, GrubMarket Charts Profitable E-Grocery Path
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Deliveroo Couriers May Take Company to Court Over ‘Absurd’ Business Model… Online Grocery GrubMarket Breaks Even, Defying Trend of Difficulties for E-Grocery Field… Millenial Holiday Shoppers Did Their Research Online Before Buying In-Store…
7 Startups Vying to Become the Uber of Pot
So-called “Uber for pot” startups are in high demand, not just among consumers but investors, as well. Marijuana-focused private equity firms and VC firms are diving in headfirst, paving the way for growth in the industry. Here are seven examples of on-demand cannabis vendors serving the market right now.
Streets Ahead: Google Chat, and Instagram Reels