News and Analysis

home services

6 Lead-Generation Platforms for Local Businesses

Share this:

More than a quarter of consumers say they use the internet to find local businesses every day, and yet a whopping 29% of small businesses still don’t have websites. Here are six examples of lead-generation platforms that small businesses are using right now.

GMB App Adds Support for Service-Area Businesses

Share this:

As of late last week, Google is offering an update to the Google My Business app that adds support for service-area businesses. Earlier in November, a Local Search Forum blog post indicated that Google would be adding features to help such businesses with local customers.

Starbucks Partners with Uber to Launch On-Demand Delivery at 2,000 Locations

Share this:

Starbucks announced on Friday that it’s partnering with Uber to launch on-demand delivery at 2,000 locations. The partnership is a sign of the “near me” local search era for retail, one in which proximity and convenience have become paramount, outweighing even loyalty.

Commentary

Rating Street Fight’s 2015 Predictions

Share this:

At the end of each year, Street Fight invites staffers, friends, and luminaries from the industry to share their predictions for what’s in store for the coming year. Today, we take a look back at some of the predictions for 2015 to see who was on target and who missed the mark.

Street Fight Hyperlocal Analyst Predictions for 2016

Share this:

With 2015 drawing to a close, it’s time again to look ahead to what we can expect in the hyperlocal space in 2016. This year, we did things a little differently. We invited our regular analyst contributors to 1) weigh in on what they felt would be a “sure thing” in the coming year, 2) offer a prediction on something that might get big (but might not happen), and 3) identify something that hyperlocal marketers and merchants really don’t need to worry about. This is the first of several predictions pieces we will feature this week.

Ad Blockers: One Big Distraction from the Real Issue

Share this:

In a year of overblown topics, the grand prize goes to mobile ad blockers. The backlash is not only disproportionate to real impact but also has fueled the wrong conversation. Instead of fighting ad blockers — or fueling them in the case of biased reports — the ad industry should ask itself how it got in this position to begin with.

Latest Posts

Street Fight Daily: Amazon Might Crowdsource Delivery, Square Introduces Apple Watch App

Share this:

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Amazon Flex Could Be a New Way to Get Your Packages, Report Says (Mashable)… Square Cash for the Apple Watch Lets You Send Money From Your Wrist (The Next Web)… Here’s How the Post Office is Taking On UPS, FedEx, and Amazon (Fortune)…

Why Online Marketplaces Will Continue to Beat Word-of-Mouth Platforms in the Battle for Local Business

Share this:

People seek the opinions of their friends. They care what they think, and they trust them to make recommendations on everything from a good meal to a good mechanic. It’s word of mouth marketing — the most prized of its kind since the Stone Age. And its staying power undeniably supports the rationale for a […]

7 Ways For SMBs to Maximize the Benefits of Online Scheduling

Share this:

Before adding new platforms to the marketing mix, merchants should fully utilize the scheduling systems they’ve already implemented at their businesses. Here are seven examples of ways that merchants can maximize the benefits of online booking tools.

Street Fight Daily: Uber Launches Food Delivery, Facebook’s Ad Tech Strategy

Share this:

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… UberEats Comes to San Francisco, Where Food Delivery Is Hot (Recode)… With Retooled Atlas Under the Hood, Facebook Closes in on Linking Ads to Sales Across Devices (AdAge)… Retail Tech Meets Consumer Reality: Cracking the Consumer Path to Purchase Code (PYMNTS.com)…

What Local Marketers Can Learn From the Trials of Google Plus

Share this:

With Google’s recent announcement that Google Plus will be decoupled from YouTube and other services, industry watchers are predicting that this may be the beginning of the end for the social network. Here are a few lessons a local marketer might learn from the social network’s challenges.

Case Study: Restaurant Group Integrates Data for Targeted Customer Marketing

Share this:

Fig & Olive’s guest management system has been set up to match reservations to POS data, which allows marketer Matthew Joseph to track the dining habits and visit frequency of guests. This information is then used to run automated marketing campaigns.

Street Fight Daily: An Inside Look at Amazon, Can Facebook Finally Conquer E-Commerce?

Share this:

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Inside Amazon: Wrestling Big Ideas in a Bruising Workplace (New York Times)… Facebook’s Last Push Into E-Commerce was a Disaster, but It’s Gearing Up to Try Again (Business Insider)… Location Inaccuracy is a Bigger Problem Than Fraud (AdExchanger)…

Openings and New Hires at 4Info, Matchcraft, Foursquare and Yieldbot

Share this:

Every two weeks, Geoff Michener covers some of the latest job changes taking place in this dynamic industry. In this week’s column, Triangle Business Journal gets a new president, Verve Mobile staffs up, and the Daily Voice hires a new publisher.

LBMA Podcast: Forbes Partners With Tinder, Proxbook’s Thomas Walle Jensen

Share this:

On the show: Peaceful walking by Walkonomics; Blind French hikers trek 80km without a guide; AwareCar helps you avoid parking tickets; Embarcadero Technologies launches BeaconFence.