News and Analysis

What Does Customer Experience Mean in a Voice-First World?

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The trend of moving customer experience beyond the screen has been dubbed “conversational customer care.” It’s still unclear just how many channels are included under this umbrella or how the future of conversational customer care will look. Brands that are dealing with demanding customers can’t afford to sit back and wait for this to play out. Screen-free customer experiences could be the future. They could be just a single touchpoint in the broader context of customer experience strategy. Or, they could just be a passing fad.

But the chances that voice-first customer experiences are a fad seem to be shrinking.

5 Ways to Reduce Errors in Voice Ordering

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Restaurant chains like Wingstop, Domino’s, Panera, and Round Table have created their own skills to make it easier for people to place orders through voice assistants like Amazon’s Echo and Google Home. But before voice ordering can truly disrupt the restaurant industry, restaurants have to find ways to reduce the friction and eliminate the kinds of errors that lead to the wrong orders being delivered.

Here’s how some of the country’s top restaurant chains are overcoming the challenges associated with voice ordering and developing more frictionless customer experiences.

96% of Companies Say They’re Losing Subscribers for Fixable Reasons

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Ninety-three percent of companies that rely on subscribers say retaining existing customers is as or more important than acquiring them, and 96% say they are losing subscribers for reasons they should be able to ameliorate. That makes pooling industry resources and determining means of improvement urgent, and that is the precise subject of a new report by Brightback, a customer retention software firm.

Commentary

How Voice Assistants Could Transform Local (Part II)

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Voice assistants continue to evolve as a medium for local search, as I examined here last month. But what does it mean for local media players and startups? If consumers are increasingly searching with voice, how do you wedge your way into that conversation?

Facebook Local: The Launch We’ve All Been Waiting For?

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Last week’s rebranding of its Events app as Facebook Local could be Facebook’s long-awaited foray into serious competition with the Googles and Yelps of the world for market share in local search. Meanwhile, another Facebook local product, Marketplace, has proved to be a sleeping giant.

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..

Latest Posts

Case Study: Portland Retailer Reaches New Customers with At-Home Try-On

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EcoVibe Apparel is working with a hyperlocal startup called Dorrbell and giving local shoppers a way to try on items from the comfort of their homes. Customers go online and choose products they would like to try on, they then schedule a time for them to be dropped off.

Street Fight Daily: Instacart Aims for Positive Cash Flow, Google Drives App Installs

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Instacart Looks to Build an Empire with Promoted Ad Business… Google’s App Ad Business Drivers Billion Installs in Last Four Months… Ads Help Businesses Stay Afloat, But Slows Load Times End Web Visits…

6 Click-to-Text Tools for Local Businesses

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Seventy-five percent of millennials prefer to text versus call on their mobile phones, according to a survey by the mobile engagement platform OpenMarket, and 76% prefer to receive texts from businesses because they say texting is more convenient and less disruptive.

Will the ‘Physical Web’ Help Retailers Reduce Annoying Ads?

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While still in its infancy, and not yet realized, the physical web will prove to be an asset to franchisees looking to connect, and engage with, potential customers from their surrounding neighborhood ­– without barraging them with untimely and irrelevant messaging.

Street Fight Daily: Inside the Self-Driving Uber Experience, Billy Penn’s Sister Site Launches

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Uber Starts Self-Driving Car Pickups in Pittsburgh: Here’s a Peek Into the Experience… The Incline, Billy Penn’s New Sister Site, Launches in Pittsburgh… Amazon’s Echo Is Finally Being Released in the UK and Germany…

HomeAdvisor CEO: The Marketplace for Home Services Is ‘Operationally Intense’

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“If you’re going to get into [the home services] space, you better be prepared to really invest and for the long haul,” says Chris Terrill. “There are no quick fixes or technology that’s suddenly going to turn this thing around.”

App Connects Travelers With Revelers, Parties Ensue

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Thanks to the recently refreshed Party With a Local app, this lonely planet of ours may become just a bit less so — or a least more social. “The idea … came from my own experiences of finding that a night out anywhere is better with a local, but it’s not always easy to meet locals,” CEO Dan Fennessy said of the service.

Street Fight Daily: Google Data Supports Mobile-First Ads, Brands Infiltrate iMessage

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Google’s Mobile User Data Shines Light on Consumer Purchasing Habits… As Apple Opens iMessage Store, Brands from Burger King to Betty Boop Want In… Verizon Buys Connected Lighting Company, Adding More Location Capability…

Join Top Thinkers — Get Your Ticket Now!

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Street Fight Summit explores the dynamic innovation taking place in the way businesses market to, transact with, and stay connected to consumers at the local level. Get your ticket now and join thousands of innovators and influencers in local who have experienced Street Fight Summit! Click for tickets, topics, speakers, sponsors, & more!

Street Fight Launches 2nd Annual ‘State of Hyperlocal’ Executive Survey

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In last year’s State of Hyperlocal report, over half of our survey respondents said they were investing in mobile. Respondents also deemed their own company’s brand awareness as their biggest challenge, even more than proving ROI to customers. What investments will make sense in 2017? With your help, we’ll find out, and present the results at our upcoming Street Fight Summit NYC next month…