News and Analysis

Automated Ad Targeting Ensnares Facebook in a Discrimination Lawsuit

Share this:

The lawsuit is big news not just for Facebook or for housing-related ads but for the digital advertising industry as a whole. That’s because it marks the first major federal attempt to use the resources of the law to curb ad targeting on the basis of racial discrimination. As interest in regulating broad tech spreads across the country and political spectrum, the lawsuit could prove a harbinger of harsher laws to come.

3 CRO Techniques That Actually Convert Visitors

Share this:

The web is filled to the brim with quick conversion rate optimization tips. These include changing the color of your CTAs, making headlines catchier, and changing the background image of your landing page, among many others. While these strategies have shown results, there are a few effective CRO techniques that are often overlooked. In this article, I discuss less common CRO techniques that have the potential to drive significant results. 

Mobile Video Struggles Persist While Tolerance for Them Decreases

Share this:

It looks like the quality mobile content experts say we can expect from 5G will be much appreciated by consumers. Mobile video is more popular than ever, among both consumers and digital advertisers, but the medium is plagued by slow load times and suboptimal ads. That’s per a new report out from mobile video vendor Panthera.

Commentary

How Automotive Marketing Is Evolving in the Digital Age

Share this:

Car dealerships are an appealing target for hyperlocal media and suppliers of digital marketing technology and services. They’re relatively big spenders compared with many local businesses, and they’re adopting digital marketing faster than most.

How Local Businesses Can Survive and Thrive in the Age of RankBrain

Share this:

A great site with proper titles, tags and meta descriptions alongside good and relevant ad copy, and an intelligent approach to drive the maximum number of relevant clicks, is the best defense for the local business against the self-awareness of the RankBrain machine.

As Local’s Complexity Grows, What Does It Take to Build a Sustainable Agency Business?

Share this:

“There are two paths for consultants or small agencies today,” writes David Mihm. “Either be a generalist who’s aware of all the major channels, and the kinds of businesses that are good fits for those channels, or develop an incredibly deep focus in a particular channel, and make a name for yourself as the go-to resource within that channel.”

Latest Posts

Case Study: Children’s Center Uses Scheduling Platform to Streamline Administrative, Marketing Tasks

Share this:

Almost half of small business owners say they’re being overrun by basic administrative tasks. When Roo’s World of Discovery owner Michelle Pollak Landwehr found herself in that same position, spending hours each week on basic administrative tasks like tracking member visits, scheduling classes, and managing recurring payments at her Washington-based children’s indoor play space, she began looking for digital solutions.

Street Fight Daily: Yahoo’s Search App Gets a Big Update, Postmates Moves Further into Commerce

Share this:

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Yahoo Search App for iPhone Gets a Bit More ‘Now’ with Personalized Content (Search Engine Land)… Postmates Digs into Commerce with Curated ’12 Days of Postmates’ Campaign (TechCrunch)… Procter & Gamble’s New Strategy Shows Agencies Still Needed for Programmatic (Digiday)…

LBMA Podcast: UberMedia Introduces LROI Concept, Soundpays Launches Mobile Wallet in Canada

Share this:

On the show: UberMedia introduces LROI concept; Soundpays launches mobile wallet in Canada; Mobify Buys DĂ³nde; bfonics launches Wi-Fi beacon; racist tweets on billboards in Brazil; Tyrers Department Store tests “Digital Clothing Rail.” Plus, news from Aruba Networks; Domino’s; Placemeter; Krispy Kreme and NCR; and Blue Bite and Rouge Media.

Raise Report: Netsertive, EatStreet, Factual Secure New Funding

Share this:

Every two weeks we round up some of the biggest fundraises taking place in hyperlocal marketing, commerce, and tech. In this edition, new investments include rounds for Netsertive, EatStreet, and Factual.

The Power of Pairing: 4 Reasons Matching Is Gaining Traction in Local Home Services

Share this:

When variables such as trust, uncertainty, availability, and geography are at the core of decision-making — as they so often are when it comes to hiring professionals to perform home services — matching, especially when coupled with ratings and reviews, offers consumers peace of mind. It also provides an immediate connection in an often urgent and sometimes complicated time of need.

Street Fight Daily: Twitter Will Show Ads to ‘Casual Viewers,’ Location Startup Factual Raises $35M

Share this:

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Twitter Aims to Show Advertising to Much Wider Audience (New York Times)… Startup Factual Knows Your Commute, and Much More (Wall Street Journal)… Billy Penn and Knight Foundation Want to Build ‘Yelp for Mobile News’ (Poynter)…

6 Ways Local Merchants Can Use Rewards to Bring in Holiday Shoppers

Share this:

Consumers are expected to spend $630.5 billion this holiday shopping season. Local merchants are fighting tooth and nail to take back a larger share of that revenue from their ecommerce competitors. Here’s what industry leaders said about the types of incentives that work best for encouraging shoppers to make holiday purchases at local retail businesses instead of big-box stores or ecommerce sites.

Why Location Management Matters in the Age of Mobile and Social

Share this:

If SEO is about websites and marketing is about brand awareness, location management is about brick-and-mortar businesses and removing friction along the customer journey from online search to offline purchase. Ignore it at your peril.

Street Fight Daily: Uber Launches Food Delivery App, Walmart Develops Own Mobile Payments Service

Share this:

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Uber Tests Standalone Food Delivery App (TechCrunch)… Walmart to Offer Smartphone Payments in Stores (Wall Street Journal)… Facebook Is Updating Instant Articles to Help Publishers Make More Money (Adweek)…

Street Fight Daily: Yahoo Will Spin Off Core Businesses, Pinterest Buys Two Search-Centric Startups

Share this:

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Yahoo Is Said to End Plan to Spin Off Alibaba Stake (New York Times)… Pinterest Buys Two Startups to Bolster Image Search (Wall Street Journal)… Uber Is Testing a New Service That Sounds Exactly Like a Bus (Business Insider)…