News and Analysis
Brands Struggle to Keep Up When Promotions Explode in Popularity
When the Popeyes Chicken Sandwich was released last summer, the effect on sales was almost immediate. Customers filled Popeyes locations and waited in long lines to get a taste of the buzzy new sandwich. A Twitter feud between Popeyes and Chick-fil-A caused those lines to grow even longer, and the viral frenzy ended up draining the supply of “little chickens” to the point where a nationwide shortage ensued.
For GSD&M, the agency that handles Popeyes’ social media, the rollout was initially seen as a huge success. From a logistical perspective, though, it quickly turned into a nightmare as Popeyes struggled to keep up with demand.
Womply, FundRocket Launch SMB Stimulus Program
While Congress continues to deliberate on a stimulus package that will provide as much as $400 billion in aid and loans for small businesses, tech companies that serve SMBs are stepping in to offer their own assistance packages. Among them is reputation management, CRM, and email software firm Womply, which has launched an SMB stimulus program in collaboration with its capital partner, FundRocket.
Location Leaders Step Up to the Plate
During the Covid-19 outbreak, we’re seeing tech companies step up to the plate in a mixture of altruistic and opportunistic moves. That’s everything from Comcast removing data caps to Amazon removing its paywall for streaming kids shows. But what about local specifically? Again, that’s where businesses are getting hit most.
We’ve seen moves in the local space over the past week from Facebook, Yelp, and Foursquare. Though there are several others, we’ll drill down on this representative sample. We’ll also give a shoutout to Google for its work to free up human and compute resources for local listings updates, covered Monday by Damian Rollison.
Commentary
With Data and Local Guides, Google Maps Stays Ahead of the Rest
Justin O’Beirne marvels that, with the AOI initiative, Google has figured out how to “create data out of data,” meaning that AOIs are a mashup of 3D modeling and data extraction from images. Looked at more broadly, this is not the only example where Google has built features on top of features within the Maps universe.
Latest Posts
LBMA Podcast: Waze’s Brands, EatStreet/PingUp, and McDonald’s.
This Week in Location Based Marketing is a weekly video podcast from the Location Based Marketing Association with Asif Khan and Aubriana Lopez. On the show: Skedaddle, Netclearance, Marriott’s #Mgravityroom, Under Armour, Sears + Uber, Google Trips, Sito Mobile + Blue Bite, and Verizon buys Sensity.
Street Fight Daily: Facebook’s Virtual Reality Web Browser, Millenials Prefer Text-Delivered News
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… What Brands Should Know About Facebook’s New Virtual Reality Web Browser… Pew Research Shows Young Adults Prefer Text-Delivered News Over Video… Snapchat Parent Working on IPO Valuing Firm at $25 Billion or More…
Lyft’s Melnick: ‘No Magic Bullet’ for Building a Multi-sided Marketplace
Conjuring up up a community of drivers and passengers for a ride-hailing service from scratch is no easy feat. We recently caught up with Lyft’s New York City manager Seth Melnick to talk about the challenges of multi-sided local marketplaces and about what the company is doing to extend its reach in the city.
McClatchy Strategy: Go Big and Small to Create ‘Moments’ With Each Reader
Like other chains of dailies, the company is pouring resources into how to make the long leap from a no-longer-secure print past to an alluring but uncertain digital today and tomorrow. In this recent Q&A McClatchy’s Chris Hendricks and Dan Schaub detail how their company is planning to meet that future.
Local Visionary Awards Finalists Announced
Over 175 entries were received in the Local Visionary Awards, and 35 companies have emerged as finalists, on their way to the awards ceremony, to take place at Street Fight Summit 2016 on Oct. 25th in New York City. The caliber of the entrants across the board was remarked upon by the judges, who delivered close results for the top half of the entrants…
Street Fight’s Big 3
Street Fight Columns
Street Fight Categories
Scaling Seasonal SEO Across Locations With AI Insights