News and Analysis

Efficacy of Google Posts Drops Following Relegation to Bottom of Knowledge Panel

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Following a seemingly arbitrary choice on Google’s part to move Posts to the bottom of the Knowledge Panel, their efficacy in boosting businesses’ local search presence seems to be dropping.

Retail as a Service: Amazon will Create (and Destroy) with Cashierless Checkout Solution

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Mike Boland: The innovation including and surrounding cashierless checkout goes beyond payments to affect a broader set of functions like supply chain, inventory management, and store layouts. It’s like a retail toolkit in a box, with cash-flow friendly pricing, à la SaaS. You may have heard of it: It’s called retail as a service (RaaS), and it could transform the next decade of retail. Amazon will lead the way.

Digital Ad Trends to Watch in 2019, Mobile to Account for 71% of Digital Ad Spend

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Programmatic SSP Pubmatic released on Tuesday morning an elaborate report detailing digital ad trends to watch in 2019. The highlights include a look into how mobile, video, and of course programmatic itself will continue to evolve in the coming year, reshaping the way brands reach customers.

Commentary

Is the Humble Phone Call Actually the Killer App for Local Businesses?

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It turns out reports of voice calling’s death are greatly exaggerated. Despite an explosion in data usage and mobile messaging, voice calling — facilitated by search and virtual assistants — remains a popular activity among mobile users. A lot of those calls are going to local businesses, where they are more likely to convert to revenue than web forms or emails.

6 Reasons Why Hyperlocal Tech Initiatives Continue to Elude Consumers

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Hyperlocal is a totally logical concept in the minds of technologists, analysts, and investors, but many hyperlocal tech initiatives have yet to catch fire with consumers. Part of the challenge is people are creatures of habit. Here are six reasons why hyperlocal tech will continue to elude consumers’ grasp in 2016.

5 Reasons Why Local Marketing Will Mature in 2016

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The past few years have seen the introduction of a whole universe of new tools designed to address individual aspects of digital marketing. In 2016, we will see a shift away from many of these discreet, single-purpose tools toward more comprehensive marketing solutions, DataSphere’s Gary Cowan predicts. Here’s a look at five ways SMB local marketing will mature in the coming year.

Latest Posts

Street Fight Daily: Uber Will Return Your Online Purchases, Samsung Preps for Mobile Payment Launch

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… How Uber Is Fixing Online Shopping’s Most Annoying Problem (Refinery29)… Samsung Pay to Launch September 28 in U.S. But Will Businesses Accept It? (Recode)… Stores Suffer From a Shift of Behavior in Buyers (New York Times)…

Study: Local Advertisers Are Leaving Behind $14 Billion in Co-op Marketing Every Year

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According to the report from Netsertive and Borrell Associates, 38 percent of local businesses cited “too much paperwork” as the greatest barrier to co-op marketing, and another 38 percent cited “too many rules.”

Why Local News Sponsorships Are More Relevant than Ever

How the Local Media Consortium Is Leveraging Its Relationship With Google for Higher CPMs

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The Local Media Consortium is working to turn “digital dimes” back into the dollars. To see how the group is progressing, we recently spoke with Tobias Bennett, LMC’s “programmatic advertising champion.”

Street Fight Daily: Macy’s and Alibaba Join Forces, Amazon Changes Retail Ad Terms

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Alibaba Lands Macy’s as the First U.S. Department Store For Its Online Portal (Fortune)… Amazon Changes Terms for Retailers Advertising on Its Site (AdAge)… Layoffs Hit Groupon’s Restaurant Software Unit as Breadcrumb Founder Leaves (Recode)…

How SMBs Can Respond to the ‘Uber Effect’

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If the past 15 years have taught us anything, it’s the resilience of brick-and-mortar businesses. Effective enterprises sense and respond to change by incorporating new technology and business models while relying on their distinct advantages, such as face-to-face service and distinctive ambience.

6 Platforms for On-Demand Doctor House Calls

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Using location-based mobile technology, vendors are modernizing the concept of physician house calls. For a price, consumers in most metropolitan areas can order up a doctor just like they would a pizza. Here are six platforms that consumers can use to bring healthcare providers to their doorsteps.

Street Fight Daily: Facebook’s New Ad Features, Retailers Will Start Testing MCX Payments App

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Facebook Is Trying to Make It Even More Tempting for You to Buy Products from the News Feed (Business Insider)… Retailers to Begin Public Tests of MCX Mobile Payment App But Face Hurdles (Wall Street Journal)… Amazon’s Dash Buttons Hint at a Future of Interface-Free Shopping (The Verge)…

Mapsense CEO: The Rise of On-demand, Location-based Apps Is a ‘Huge’ Opportunity

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Smartphone users are familiar with consumer-facing map services such as Google Maps, which consistently ranks among the most frequently used apps. But companies depending on maps are far more numerous than map services apps. Countless mobile apps that use location services such as delivery-oriented Instacart and transportation-oriented Uber rely on mapping software, and still more […]

Revived Daily Voice Expands Into North Jersey With 22 New Sites

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Pushed to near death two-and-a-half years ago by heavy losses, regional community news network Daily Voice has resurrected itself, expanding in suburban Connecticut and New York State — and now the network is about to cross the Hudson River into northern New Jersey.

Street Fight Daily: Google Introduces New Parent Company, Amazon Launchpad’s Challenges

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Meet Alphabet, The New Conglomerate Absorbing Google (Marketing Land)… Amazon’s Next Big Challenge: Getting You to Buy Stuff You Didn’t Know You Wanted (Recode)… Startups Vie to Build an Uber for Health Care (Wall Street Journal)…