News and Analysis
Amazon Pursues Retail-as-a-Service, Looking to Sell Go Tech to Cinemas, Airports
This time, it’s not Amazon Web Services, the cloud underpinning Amazon’s operations and those of other companies around the world, but Amazon’s Go technology that is being peddled to new clients. Bezos’ e-commerce behemoth is in talks to sell the flashy cashierless solution to movie theaters and airports, CNBC reported.
If Amazon is successful, the play to sell Go to other businesses may some day turn what now appears a revolutionary technical advance (with potentially devastating consequences for cashiers) into a commonplace asset. Just as AWS, the B2B play partially financing Amazon’s low-margin retail biz, supports thousands of businesses unbeknownst to their customers, Go-as-a-service could come to change all of retail without many consumers even realizing Amazon is behind changing checkout norms.
These Retailers Are Using Mapping Tech to Change the Shopping Experience
Over the past few years, a number of national retailers have added mapping technology into their mobile apps. Even more retailers have given store associates handheld devices with integrated indoor location features, putting the answers to frequently asked questions—like where products are located and how to get to certain store departments—at their fingertips.
Even though location and mapping technology is embedded into many consumer-facing shopping apps, and it’s used by retailers to fuel both their marketing initiatives and back-end operations, publicly explained use cases from retail brands are rare. Here are five examples of how retailers are applying the technology and using mapping to fundamentally change the in-store shopping experience.
What Comes Next for Indoor Navigation? Enterprise Success, SMB Struggles
Gimbal COO and CMO Matthew Russo says that at scale, indoor location technology is advanced enough that it works incredibly well. Russo says that at Gimbal, he has worked with major brand clients who are able to understand when a VIP walks into their lobby. They also know if the customer has waited too long at a check-in line, and they’re able to present customers with special offers or keyless check-ins at their rooms.
“But if you’re a pizzeria owner with a single storefront looking to send a push notification to people walking by, you probably won’t see the results you’re hoping for,” Russo says.
Could those scaling issues be holding back the indoor navigation industry, and if so, what’s the solution?
Commentary
The Coming Polarization of the SMB Software Market
Strangely, despite the size of the opportunity you don’t find too many SMB companies in most VC portfolios. You see plenty of consumer and enterprise-focused startups, but much fewer on the SMB side. The reason for this is that it’s “hard” for companies serving SMBs to grow at the rate that can deliver “venture” returns.
Mobile Payments: Does Local’s Holy Grail Have Holes?
Mobile payments continue to be equally opportune and elusive. The potential benefits are huge, but I’m skeptical that mainstream consumers will alter their entrenched habits when they still don’t see cash or credit cards as a pain point.
The Coming DIY Cataclysm
“It seems like the agency business of the future — both large and boutique — will largely add value around integration of best-of-breed point solutions, which I don’t see many large entities like YP attempting to tackle yet,” David Mihm tells Mike Blumenthal.
Latest Posts
Street Fight Daily: Local News Publishers Form Ad Company, Google Still Betting on Beacons
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… 4 of the Biggest Media Publishers in the U.S. Form an Advertising Company (Business Insider)… Google May Have Found a Way to Make the Real-World Web Work (Wired)… Apple Pursues New Search Features for a Crowded App Store (Bloomberg)…
Case Study: Fashion Retailer Boosts Engagement With Data-Driven Initiatives
Customer acquisition has never been a problem for the team at fashion consignment retailer 2nd Time Around. But generating the type of data that’s necessary to get a complete picture of customers had been a challenge, according to CEO Kristin Kohler Burrows.
The Rise of Text Messages as a Political Ad Medium
The 2016 election will be remembered for many things, but for marketers it will be the emergence of text messages as a medium. Text messaging has become an essential tool in running a political campaign and every candidate now uses SMS/MMS to get the word out.
Street Fight Daily: Kayak to Debut Restaurant Search, How Brands Can Use Chatbots Effectively
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Kayak to Launch Restaurants, Tours, and Activities Comparison-Shopping Features (Skift)… Can Brands Turn Real-Time Facebook Messenger Chats into Meaningful Engagements? (Mobile Marketer)… Ride-Hailing Start-Ups Compete in ‘Uber for Children’ Niche (New York Times)…
Survey: How National-to-Local Marketers Plan to Grow Their Digital Budgets
Street Fight recently surveyed decision makers at over 200 national-to-local marketers and found nearly half of them spend a third or more of their digital marketing budget in support of their franchises, branch offices, and distributors.
Publishers Finding Success With Tech Niches Within Their Local Markets
“Traditional media has national reach because if something has a big enough dollar sign next to it, it will get covered,” Streetwise Media’s Reid Snyder said. “We have national reach because we have this narrow and deep knowledge of local markets.”
Street Fight Daily: How Apps Are Changing Shopping, Facebook’s Plans for Messenger
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Shoppers Flock to Apps, Shaking Up Retail (Wall Street Journal)… Facebook Bets on a Bot Resurgence, Chattier Than Ever (New York Times)… The Newest Rainmakers at Publishers: Ecommerce Editors (Digiday)…
TableHero Serves Up Restaurants, But Can it Be the OS of Local?
“There’s an entire layer of mission critical technology that small local business owners know they need, but absolutely abhor their current relationship with technology,” says TableHero’s Deap Ubhi. “And at the foundation of that is digital presence, their Websites.”
8 Branding Strategies for Hyperlocal Vendors
A strong brand strategy is the foundation of a winning launch, even though developing the strategy can increase the time it takes to get a new product to market. Here are eight brand development strategies for hyperlocal vendors, from founders and executives who’ve been in the trenches themselves.
Street Fight Daily: Facebook and Ticketmaster Partner, On-Demand’s Limitations
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Ticketmaster Will Sell Tickets Directly on Facebook in Coming Weeks (BuzzFeed)… The Looming Limits of On-Demand Delivery (Retail Dive)… Billy Penn Owner Narrows Search for Second City (Politico)…
Street Fight’s Big 3
Street Fight Columns
Street Fight Categories
Why AI Describes Locations Differently