News and Analysis
Retailers Wooing Holiday Shoppers Try AI On for Size
What if e-commerce retailers could use technology to replicate the role of the in-store sales associate, providing people at home with the type of personal attention that really drives sales?
Technology vendors are working feverishly to make that a reality. Using artificial intelligence and voice assistants, like Amazon’s Alexa, Google Home, and Siri, online retailers are beginning to imagine a world where shoppers can ask their voice companions for recommendations on product fit or gift suggestions in specific price ranges. There may even be a time, not too far in the future, when shoppers can get personal feedback during try-ons inside their own closets, thanks to “smart” mirrors and other virtual reality technology.
Holiday Discounts Don’t Necessarily Lead to Loyal Customers — Here’s Why
When brands go in on discount-focused events like RetailMeNot’s Cash Back Day, which was held earlier this month, there’s concern that the long-term impact might be negative and that brands might be training customers to expect discounts. That expectation can reduce the perceived value of the brand’s products, and it can diminish brand equity over time.
95% of Consumers Plan on Buying Most Holiday Gifts Online
While brick-and-mortar sales remain a robust part of the holiday shopping experience, online shopping is asserting clearer dominance than ever before this year. A walloping 95% of consumers plan to do the majority of their holiday shopping this season online, according to multi-channel engagement platform Leanplum.
Commentary
Are Website Builders the Next Big Growth Market in Local?
Website builders have been around almost as long as the internet itself. As you would expect, this is a busy market. Sitebuilderreport.com tracks 35 vendors. There are many more. Interestingly, only 4 of the 35 vendors get a good rating. Clearly, this is a large market that is ready for new and better solutions.
Google’s Next Local Conquest: Visual Search
Indoor mapping continues to be one of those “holy grail” topics in local. It picks up where GPS drops off, tracking consumers all the way to the cash register. The latest move comes from Google, with an approach that could leapfrog beacons by using the positioning capability already in your phone (or soon will be).
Understanding Facebook’s Place as a Small Business Marketing Vehicle
“While [Facebook is] not yet anywhere near Google’s ability to generate leads, I have, over the past 6 months, started to see them surpassing Yelp in driving local key performance indicators on the pre-sale side,” Mike Blumenthal tells David Mihm.
Latest Posts
Sussing Out Google’s Master Plan in the Post-App Era
Google’s counter-attack to the world of apps can be seen in several places. In fact most Google moves are to drive mobile behavior through its front door. This principle underpinned nearly every announcement at Google I/O.
Sponsored Post: Infographic—How SMBs Need to Do Local Marketing
There is no better way for a local business to get its digital marketing in place than through a full understanding of key tools; by linking up with a digital agency; and focusing efforts on one channel that delivers powerful results. For the past four weeks in this space, LocalVox has delivered those insights and hands-on tactics, plus resources to provide SMBs a clear path to getting started and succeeding…
Street Fight Daily: Apple Working on Major Siri Update, Facebook to Boost Branded Content
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Apple is Working on an AI System that Tops Google’s and Everyone Else’s… Facebook Set to Foster Popularity of Branded Content… The Facebook Papers Part 4: What’s a Publisher to Do?…
Street Culture: Glympse Builds an Open Community to Empower Staff
The company has relied heavily on employees to be efficient outside of their comfort zones. Co-founder and CEO Bryan Trussel said that he hopes Glympse is a fun and challenging place to work, and he believes empowering employees is one way to make sure that happens.
5 On-Demand Platforms for Lawn Care
Hyperlocal technology providers believe they can be the conduit to connect homeowners with landscaping professionals, and they’re using the same on-demand model as startups like Uber, Handy, and Instacart to make it happen. Here are five examples.
Street Fight Daily: Facebook Starts Selling Off-Site Ads, Snapchat Scores $1.8 Billion
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Facebook Starts Selling Off-Site Ads Targeting Non-Users Too… Snapchat Raises $1.8 Billion In New Funding Round… The Future of Voice-Related SEO for Local Business…
Connecting Dots in the Path to Purchase, Empyr Focuses on Pay-Per-Sale for SMBs
The company’s CEO Jon Carder says that when you can prove attribution to local marketers, their rate of attrition drops dramatically: “It just gets incredibly better because there’s proof of how well the advertising’s working.” Empyr’s solution for attribution connects credit card information with mobile impressions.
New App From GoDaddy Wants to Help Entrepreneurs Brainstorm Business Ideas
The app is a community space that fields and vets ideas from its users. People can log on and anonymously enter a concept they have for say, starting a local gardening service and receive support and advice in the form of “loves” — which is sort of like a Facebook like.
Local Papers’ Love-Hate Relationship With Facebook Is Proving a Heartbreaker
What if local newspapers, instead of chasing after ever-bigger traffic numbers via platforms like Facebook, cultivated fewer but more receptive users — the kind that would be more attentive to advertising messages, especially if the messages had less blare and more flair. Could going deeper on community coverage result in higher CPMs?
Street Fight Daily: Uber and Foursquare Join Forces, Twitter Disbands Commerce Team
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Uber and Foursquare Team Up to Make It Easier to Find Your Destination… Heavy-Hitter Investors Plan a For-Profit Launch Next Month in Denver… Twitter Disbands Commerce Team, Ceases Product Development on ‘Buy’ Button…
Street Fight’s Big 3
Street Fight Columns
Street Fight Categories
Meta Is Automating Ads, But Brands Still Face a Bigger Problem