News and Analysis
Using Smartwatches to Join Marketing’s Vanguard
Spending on wearables is predicted to hit $52 billion this year, according to forecasts from the research firm Gartner, and spending on smartwatches specifically is expected to increase by 24%. Smartwatches represent the merging of physical and virtual worlds, and they provide marketers with a direct line for reaching consumers.
Here are five examples of how tech-savvy brands can put smartwatches to work and develop better strategies to take full advantage of the new opportunities that exist for reaching consumers through these wearable devices.
QR Code Generators for Cannabis Businesses
If the California Bureau of Cannabis Control’s proposed regulations are passed, state-licensed cannabis businesses will be required to display unique QR code certificates in their store windows. They would need to have their QR codes handy when transporting cannabis as well. In the long term, lawmakers are hoping the regulation will help consumers avoid purchasing cannabis from unlicensed vendors. In the short term, though, the proposed regulation is forcing dispensaries and other cannabis businesses to search for ways to create compliant QR codes for their stores.
Retailers Succeed at Listings, Struggle on Rankings, Review Response
Retailers scored best on average on listings, suggesting that management is succeeding at getting multi-location stores to optimize the fundamentals of their online presence. The poorest average category score, rankings, indicates brands are failing to pop up when consumers search for unbranded items. At a time when consumers are increasingly searching for items “near me” instead of brand-name stores where they could find those items, businesses stand to gain if they invest in non-brand-specific keywords.
Commentary
Foursquare Data Shows Up Today in More Places Than You’d Think
It’s remarkable to see how often Foursquare data is popping up today in the apps that garner the most consumer traffic and press attention. These votes of confidence would seem to solidify Foursquare’s position as the forefather of natively digital location data.
Report: Matching Up With Local Merchants’ Marketing Objectives
Our analysis of local merchants shows that SMBs are spending more money on digital marketing — particularly social media and email — because they find those channels most effective. But there appears to be some missing links between new customer acquisition and their favorite tactics.
Is Your Local Dealership Prepared for a New Era of Car Buying?
The automotive space is extremely competitive and with automotive sales down 13.2 percent, the competition could not be fiercer. In order to remain afloat in today’s challenging sales environment, auto marketers need to rethink how they get high-intent buyers to their stores.
Latest Posts
5 Self-Serve Platforms for Location-Based Mobile Campaigns
Although there’s still debate within the ad tech community over whether SMBs are best served by self-serve platforms, the demand is certainly there. With limited budgets and a strong desire to get the most bang for their buck, local business owners are searching for self-managed advertising and marketing solutions.
Telmetrics CEO: A Phone Call to a Business Is Really a ‘Data Call’
Andrew Osmak talks with us about how the company has been evolving under his leadership over the past six months, where he sees the white spaces in call and data analytics, and why a tracked phone number can be a more valuable data point than a form-fill on a website.
Street Fight Daily: Zenreach Emerges from Stealth with $50M, Uber Partners with DigitalGlobe
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… WiFi Startup Zenreach Emerges from Stealth with $50 Million and Peter Thiel on its Board… Uber is Partnering with a Satellite Imaging Company to Help Drivers Find You… IBM’s Watson and Macy’s Team Up to Make In-Store Shopping Assistant…
TRAY Cooks Up Ways to Make Restaurant Checkout More Mobile and Social
The startup is seeking to reinvent service businesses for both customers and proprietors by bringing a different experience to the table with cloud-based “self-service checkout made easy.” The company’s beta launched at the beginning of the year.
Placed’s Attribution Platform Expands as More Partners Demand Proof of ROI
“Based on the growth and adoption that Placed is seeing across its clients, we’d expect that by the end of 2016, attribution will be a default on status for the majority of advertisers where they have an offline conversion event,” said the company’s CEO David Shim.
Street Fight Daily: Facebook Launches Tool for App Engagement, SMBs Draw Non-Local Searches
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Facebook Launches Dev Tool Focused on Mobile App Engagement… Case Study: 33% of Local Search Business is from Non-Locals… Yahoo Reveals Testing of Conversational Search, Virtual Assistance…
Survey: Many Opportunities to Connect Local Media With National-to-Local Marketers
National brands and retailers remain wedded to traditional media and marketing for their local branches, franchises, and resellers. However, they are increasing their spending on digital channels, and over half of them feel it’s important to associate their campaigns with local media and content.
Pokémon Go and Local: Why Now?
The lesson from the phenomenon isn’t for local tech companies to try and build the next Pokémon Go — but rather to build a similarly justifiable value exchange for sharing location. Advertisers and ad networks should likewise work with apps that have that higher likelihood of user opt-in.
Street Fight Daily: Yahoo Hits Major Roadblock, Amazon Eyes Food Delivery in London
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Yahoo’s Recent Revenue Driver, Mavens, Hits Major Growth Roadblock… Amazon Eyeing Up London Restaurant Delivery Launch… Facebook Woos Publishers Back with Instant Articles Feature…
Openings and New Hires at Acquisio, Newsday, SproutLoud and GroupM
Every two weeks, Geoff Michener covers some of the latest job changes taking place in this dynamic industry. This week’s edition includes moves and new openings at Unacast, Yelp, Niantic and more.
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