News and Analysis

With Investment in Geo, Foursquare Focuses on Improving Data Access

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When it comes to location data specifically, Senior VP of Product Josh Cohen is seeing Foursquare’s partners put more emphasis on the quality of data. The company’s partners are developing more sophisticated understandings of the range of data quality when it comes to location, which means Foursquare has to dedicate more resources to make sure new industry-wide expectations are met.

Telnet Passwords Leaked for Half a Million IoT Devices, Servers, Routers

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The breach is particularly significant given the rapid expansion of smart or IoT devices. Given that consumers already struggle to secure basic electronic devices including laptops and smartphones, the Telnet breach indicates how much larger the security risk for personal devices may become in coming years as smart speakers, TVs, and fridges join the legion of devices open to hackers.

Roundtable: How Google’s Third-Party Cookie Announcement Will Disrupt Search, Ad Tech

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Google indicated it is making the change to boost user privacy on the Web, and the company believes digital advertising can survive on the back of evolving, more privacy-aware data sources. Chief among those sources, at least in the case of Chrome, will be Google’s privacy sandbox, which will offer advertisers and ad tech companies personalization opportunities based on browser data without granting them direct access to user-level information.

To size up the impact of Google’s announcement on ad tech and hyperlocal marketing, we turned to a slate of industry professionals for their takes on the move.

Commentary

Google Local Service Ads: Ready for Primetime

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“While I do think this is about a new revenue stream in new categories and cleaning up spammy industries the rebranding might just also be an effort (unusual for Google) brand clarity around their Google Home product,” Mike Blumenthal tells David Mihm in their bi-weekly column..

Why DNAinfo’s Shuttering Isn’t a Reflection on the Hyperlocal Digital Opportunity

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The shuttering of these sites was a failure of a business, not a failure of opportunity. The opportunity is there. A multi-billion dollar opportunity. It just needs the right model and good execution to grasp it.

Local Marketing on Alexa? The Real Estate Industry Gives It a Shot

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There are almost 40 real estate “skills” currently listed in Alexa’s directory. This is greater than those related to lawyers/attorneys, doctors/dentists, and a host of other SMB categories, and overall there doesn’t yet appear to be much adoption of voice technology at the local business level.

Latest Posts

As 10-Year Mark Approaches, West Seattle Blog Sticks to Profitable Basics

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In December 2005, West Seattle Blog was a “personal project” with no news or advertising. A major windstorm that struck West Seattle and King County in December 2006 changed all that, and in the nearly 10 years since, WSB has become a highly regarded inspiration for independent digital community sites.

Street Fight Daily: Washington Post’s Digital Rise, Snapchat Ends Local Stories

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Leaked Memo Supplies Details on the Washington Post’s Digital, Financial Success… Snapchat Ends Local Stories to Focus on Live Events… Amazon Adds Food Delivery in London…

XPlenty CEO: Pokemon Go Data’s Usefulness Depends on Integration and Visualization Strategies

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“It’s pretty difficult to get access to location data,” says Yaniv Mor. “There are quite a few companies today that are starting to provide products for smaller businesses that will help them take advantage of location data, but at this scale — hundreds of millions of users — that’s something that we haven’t seen yet.”

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Case Study: Rhode Island Spa Looks to Automate Repetitive Marketing Tasks

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When Alayne White first started using an online booking portal at her eponymous Rhode Island spa, her goal was to get just 10% of clients to book online. Eight years later, she’s inching closer to the 50% threshold, as nearly half of her clients are booking their appointments through desktop and mobile devices.

Street Fight Daily: Uber Tried to Buy Lyft, Google Helps Brick-and-Mortar Biz

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Uber Tried to Buy Lyft in 2014 But Negotiations Fell Apart Over Price… Google Helps Brick-and-Mortar Retailers Turn Mobile Scrolling Into In-Person Buying… With Facebook’s Power Growing, Publishers Scramble to Connect Directly with Audiences…

Why Data Attributes Power the Long Tail of Local Search

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The mandate for brands is simple: manage data attributes as a crucial element of your location marketing strategy. But it’s not enough to create attributes. You need to constantly monitor the ever-changing nature of your business and your customers and be ready to act on your attributes as needed.

5 Predictive Ordering Platforms for Restaurants

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One area where restaurant owners struggle is inventory management — that is, predicting how many diners will show up at a given time and how much food they’ll consume. But many restaurant owners don’t realize that a number of hyperlocal platforms are already offering solutions to help with this issue.

Street Fight Daily: Google Updates Analytics App, Ad Buyers Talk Digital Platforms

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Google Updates Analytics App, Providing Insights in Five Minutes… What Ad Buyers Think About Facebook, Twitter, and Everything In Between… To Run a Killer Loyalty Program, Retailers Need to Think Big…

Street Culture: Rebuilt After Layoffs, Extole Keeps Culture at the Fore

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“When you have a transition where there’s a new CEO and the company is basically in crisis, it seems like, ‘Oh, this is a perfect time for values,’” said Extole’s Matt Roche. “But it’s unbelievably hard to implement new core values when everyone’s afraid.”

xAd Foot Traffic Data Reveals QSR Trends, Maps Audience Segmentation Opportunities

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At a high level, the report, based on 37 million visits xAd observed on its platform from April 1 to June 30, gives us the inside track on which brands have been the most successful in driving foot traffic to their premises — and which brands have a way to go.