News and Analysis
Big Data Helps Predict Which Brick-and-Mortar Locations Will Thrive and Fail
While the Gap says its decisions are being made based on traffic trends and profits—the brand saw a 7% decline in quarterly comparable sales—data scientists from top technology firms are working feverishly behind the scenes to use big data to predict which store closures could come next. Having a heads up on which retail locations have a high likelihood of closing could benefit those in the commercial real estate sector, as well as retail brands looking to decide on future store locations.
After Amazon-Whole Foods, Microsoft-Kroger: The Grocery Revolution Is Happening
Microsoft and Kroger are teaming up, challenging Amazon’s dominance in grocery innovation and pushing back against its takeover of an increasing number of corporate verticals, including cloud infrastructure in the form of Amazon Web Services. (Street Fight’s Mike Boland has predicted that Amazon will sell its grocery tech just as it’s done with AWS, taking an in-house innovation and transforming it into a cash cow.)
How 5 Brands Leverage Voice Search Technology
Twenty percent of mobile searches now are voice-initiated, with voice technology users most likely to ask about business addresses, directions, and hours, followed by whether stores carry specific items. Let’s look at how five of these brands are taking advantage of voice search, and what other industry players could be learning from their approaches.
Commentary
How Multi-location Brands Can Keep Up with the Push for On-Demand
In the era of UberRUSH, Postmates, DoorDash, and others, every business with an in-house delivery fleet is feeling the pressure to provide the same kind of on-demand delivery experience. The driving force behind the demand for on-demand is time, or the perceived lack thereof. Consumers have shown they will pay a premium to save it.
Square Deal: Payments Startup Passes First Test as Publicly Traded Company
Square made its debut on the public markets yesterday. After its much-commented-on offering price of $9 per share, which some took as a shot across the bow for unicorn startups, the Jack Dorsey-helmed payments firm surged more than 45 percent in its first day of trading. The pressure may be off Square momentarily, but it won’t stay that way for long.
Targeting Consumers on the Holiday Purchase Path Means Reducing Friction
Around the holidays, consumers tend to spend a lot more time on multiple devices, altering standard shopping habits and behaviors. This means brands and businesses need to ensure they are accurately and competitively represented in search, social, and mobile channels, and that social engagement and advertising efforts are properly targeted to the right consumers at the right times.
Latest Posts
LBMA Podcast: Google Gets Into Beacons, Amazon Turns 20
On the show: Spotify’s musical map of the world; Enplug’s digital signage app marketplace; CrispMedia partners with Taste Of Home for hyperlocal content in grocery stores; Swrve and Plot Projects partner; NTT DoCoMo helps us shop with our eyes. Special guest is Ian Dallimore, Director of Innovation and Digital Strategy for Lamar.
Street Fight Daily: Payments App CurrentC Ready For Trial Run, TripAdvisor Transformed
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Retailers’ Answer to Apple Pay Is Said to Hit Stores in August (Bloomberg)… Get Ready For the ‘Big One’ (GeoMarketing)… TripAdvisor Transformed: The Booking Site Is Now in Full Swing (Skift)…
Street Culture: MomentFeed CEO Says ‘Don’t Work Here Unless You Absolutely Must’
“We only grow at a rate that guarantees that we can provide [our customers] the product and expertise that will drive that high level of customer success,” says CEO Robert Blatt. “We are growing rapidly, but we really limit our growth so we can always deliver client success.”
Hyperlocal News App Blockfeed Takes Another Stab at Geo-Aggregation
Hyperlocal news organizations can be necessarily limited by their neighborhood focus, but Blockfeed thinks local news has the potential to be far more viable, because the essential components — content, an audience, and advertisers — have already been brought together by geography.
Sponsored Content: Duplicate Listings Are Killing Your Business
Duplicate listings are one of the most common data problems plaguing small businesses and Fortune 500 companies alike. They can confuse potential customers, and cause your clients to lose business. But many marketers are uncertain about how duplicates are created, the problem they cause, and how best to address them.
Street Fight Daily: Macy’s Expands Same-Day Delivery Via Amazon, Angie’s List Misses Growth Targets
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Advertising Isn’t The Solution To The Media’s Problems — It Is The Problem (Fortune)… Macy’s Battle for the ‘Last Mile’ Leads to Amazon (New York Post)…
Study Finds Consumer Search Preferences Depend Heavily on Type of Business
A few categories like restaurants, physicians, and beauty salons consistently capture the greatest volume of searches, stretching out into a long tail of lower-volume searches for occasional needs like roofing, chiropractors, and house cleaning.
11 Tools SMBs Can Use to Manage Social Media
Instead of relying on agencies to manage their social media accounts, local merchants are increasingly using self-management platforms to post on multiple networks, optimize campaigns, and calculate ROI from their social investments. Here are 11 platforms that SMBs can try.
Sponsored Content: What to Know About SEO
In order to start seeing a positive ROI on their websites, businesses of all sizes need to find ways to drive traffic to their digital properties beyond online listings and digital offers. In most cases, that means relying on search engines to bring in the crowds.
Street Fight Daily: Auto Makers Move to Buy Nokia Mapping, Yahoo’s Q2 Struggles
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Audi, BMW, and Daimler Near Deal to Buy Nokia Mapping Service (Wall Street Journal)… Yahoo Posts Loss, Despite Rise in Its Display Ad Business (New York Times)… Amazon Expands Home Services to 15 Cities in Pursuit of Growth (Bloomberg)…
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AI Won’t Fix Advertising – It May Scale Its Chaotic Nature