News and Analysis

How The Canucks Use Chat to Optimize the Fan Experience

Telephone surveys are notoriously unreliable. So are email questionnaires. When it comes to engaging consumers in two-way market research, companies are increasingly looking toward chat-based technologies as a potential solution.

Case and point: the Vancouver Canucks. The ice hockey team has started using chat-based technology to capture fan feedback in real-time during home games in the team’s Vancouver stadium.

PUMA Goes Big with OOH Ad Campaign

With consumers today asking for more authentic, personalized experiences, the German apparel manufacturer PUMA recently launched an outdoor campaign that involved audience targeting, programmatic capabilities, and situationally aware screens with hologram technology. PUMA worked with Havas Media and the outdoor ad platform Firefly to design a weekend-long campaign during the 2020 NBA All-Star Weekend in Chicago. Together, the companies outfitted smart media displays with hologram projectors to display 360-degree images of PUMA’s newest sneaker on the roofs of parked cars in front of multiple Chicago landmarks.

Street Fight’s March Theme: Word of Mouth

One of the oldest and still most influential drivers of local commerce is word of mouth. Though that’s sustained at a high level, the delivery vessel for local chatter has evolved. Social channels like Facebook and Yelp now shape the reputations of brick-and-mortar businesses, not to mention the kingmaker authority of Google.

This month, we will delve into the latest trends and insights driving reputation management, taking Word of Mouth as our theme.

Commentary

The New Local Ecosystem: An Interview With Darren Shaw

As of this year, the task of updating the Local Search Ecosystem has been handed to Darren Shaw of Whitespark, who also inherited David Mihm’s other well-known brainchild, the Local Search Ranking Factors report. Last week, Darren released Local Search Ecosystem 2017, a bold departure in visual design and a much-needed update to the last edition, from 2014.

Google Elevates Local Marketing to Prime Time

Many industry watchers and practitioners correctly perceived the GMB API as a sign of how important it is for businesses to manage their location data properly. But the progression of the API represents something even bigger: empowering businesses to elevate and measure the value of local search marketing.

Cultural Shifts Underlines Google’s Local Enterprise Play

“Google at one time talked about a suite of GMB products called the Business Builder but it got left on the cutting room floor of the forced march to Google Plus and the subsequent ugly separation,” Mike Blumenthal tells David Mihm. “It’s refreshing to see a similar strategy finally coming to fruition. I think we are seeing them being slowly tied together.”

Latest Posts

John Oliver Delivers a Valentine (And a Warning) to Newspapers — But Will They Listen?

John Oliver’s tribute to newspapers on HBO’s “Last Week Tonight” highlighted the challenges for the country’s dailies, as well as the dangers of making online news all about clickbait. To combat this dismal future, publishers should focus on making their sites as engaging as possible, which could ultimately help sell digital subscriptions.

How Online Lenders Can Refine Their Targeting of SMBs

The combination of doubling down on the minority of SMBs that are most likely to be receptive to capital and making it easy to engage these SMBs across on/offline channels with personalized, automated campaigns can make all of the difference.

Street Fight Daily: Gannett Ups Offer for Tronc, QSRs Boost Business with Mobile

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Gannett Sweetens Bid for Chicago Tribune Parent Tronc… Quick-Serve Restaurants Use Mobile to Boost Order Value… Why Local Auto Dealers Are Steering Marketing Budgets To Digital…

Tech Takes the Battle for SMBs to Your Appointment Book

The unassuming calendar is emerging as a multi-billion-dollar gateway for companies trying to capitalize on the giant business of processing payments for small and medium-sized businesses.

Foursquare’s Location Analysis Digs Into Brand Preferences of Festival Attendees

Location data is increasingly being used to market to consumers beyond traditional store walls. Whether the data comes from Foursquare or other competing location intelligence firms, it’s being used to demonstrate which mobile ads drive people to physical stores with real-time feedback.

Street Fight Daily: Ford’s Ride-Hail Ambitions, Yik Yak Shifts Focus to Local Connections

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Ford Plans to Have a Full Fleet of Autonomous Cars Operating in a Ride-Hail Service by 2021… Yik Yak Yearns to Be Local, Not Just Anonymous… Retailers Should Perfect In-Store Pickup or Not Offer It At All…

Back to School

How Marketers Are Localizing Their Back-to-School Campaigns

With back-to-school and back-to-college spending forecasted to reach $75.8 billion this year, brands and retailers are getting more strategic — and creative — with their localized marketing campaigns. Here are six examples of recent campaigns aimed directly at back-to-school shoppers.

Local Loyalty: Klosebuy Plans to Bring Powerful Marketing to Main Street

New loyalty entrants are looking to make life simpler for the thrifty with suites of services that stretch from the marketer all the way to a consumer’s wallet. And some of those, like Klosebuy, are focusing local — targeting the SMB by giving them the power over loyalty programs once reserved for the big guys.

Sponsored Report: Optimizing Local Presence for Mobile Search

This free report looks puts a focus on key areas that will give marketers an edge: mobile-optimized websites; mobile-optimized SEO; and an attention to basic name/address/phone number information, particularly as it pertains to those “near me” searches. The report also features actionable takeaways with a “7 Strategies for Local Search Success” tip sheet…

Street Fight Daily: Snapchat Will Acquire Vurb, Local Sites Fill Traditional News Void

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Snapchat is Acquiring Mobile Search App Vurb for Over $110 Million… As Legacy News Organizations Cut Back, Local Sites Are Cropping Up to Fill the Void… Omnichannel May Never Catch On, But It’s the Next Big Thing for Local…