News and Analysis

Google Reviews Hit with Massive Spam Attempt

Google reviews, increasingly essential to the online search presence of brand and SMB brick-and-mortars alike, were hit by a massive spam attempt last week. At least 2 million fraudulent reviews were posted, according to ReviewFraud.org.

Kroger Pushes Boundaries with Mobile Holiday Strategies

Feeling the pinch from online-only grocers, many brick-and-mortar supermarkets are beginning to dip their toes into mobile marketing this holiday season. Kroger, on the other hand, is jumping all the way in.

New Hires at Nextdoor, Airbnb, Applift

Every two or three weeks, guest columnist Geoff Michener rounds up some of the latest hires in local and digital marketing. This week’s roundup also includes new hires at TapClicks, Affinio, Tealium, Vistar Media, and Motista.

Commentary

Where Do My Friends Fit Into My Local Search?

The social graph alone won’t be a silver bullet for local. It’s just not big enough. And its value to local is overstated. My friends are great for party pics and snappy news feed dialogue — they don’t yet excel at plumber reviews.

Why Mobile Could Make or Break Your Back-to-School Campaign

The school year is right around the corner, which means that back-to-school shopping is already in full swing. Aside from the holidays, back-to-school is the second-largest selling season, so if retailers are not participating, they’re missing out. To be successful this school year, you need to know what trends are affecting how consumers are finding […]

Facebook’s Ad Platform for SMBs Has Come a Long Way, But Still Has Room to Grow

More and more local businesses are turning to Facebook to launch hyperlocal ad campaigns. And for good reason — the company has greatly enhanced its SMB ad offerings in the past year. As a relatively young ad medium, though, Facebook hasn’t really mastered the game yet.

Latest Posts

MULO & Meta & An Amazing Speaker Line-up! StreetFight

#SFSW15 VIDEO: 3 Companies That Are Rethinking Brick-and-Mortar Business

The web is not a just a place for offline business to wrangle consumers anymore. Increasingly, technology is changing the way we actually build businesses in the real world. Representatives from a trio of companies that are revolutionizing the way their industries do business in the physical marketplace came together at Street Fight Summit West earlier this month to share their success stories.

Street Fight Daily: Snapchat Capitalizes on Local, Uber Nabs Ex-Google Maps Chief

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Snapchat Turns Geofilter Digital Stickers Into Revenue Source (LA Times)… Uber’s Ambitions Grow as It Hires Google’s Former Mapping Boss (Skift)… Starbucks Mobile Ordering Expands To 21 More States, Now Live In Over 4,000 Stores (TechCrunch)…

5 Ad Tools for Targeting Consumers Based on Offline Behavior

Offline behavioral data is becoming easier for businesses to track and manage thanks to a growing number of advertising marketplaces. Here are five examples of tools that brands can use to target consumers based on their offline behaviors or activities…

#SFSW15 VIDEO: Here’s What Google Looks for in a Small Business Channel Partner

At Street Fight Summit West earlier this month, Google business development executive Jon Sofield broke down the search giant’s strategy for identifying small business technology partners and maximizing the impact of co-op market development funds…

Street Fight Daily: Uber’s $50B Question, Ford Tests Showroom Beacons

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Gannett shuts down Atlanta’s BLiNQ Media (Atlanta Business Chronicle)… Ford to Use Beacons to Beckon Buyers (Wards Auto)… The $50 Billion Question: Can Uber Deliver? (Wall Street Journal)…

Movie Theaters Missing the Mark on Local Advertising Battle

A recent data analysis by digital marketing company Where2Get, for its “Brand Battle” series on Street Fight, compared the success of AMC Theaters and Regal Cinemas. A winner between the two did emerge — AMC, by a hair, as both companies could do better to address their local marketing strategies across the country.

After 2 Spinoffs, Journal Media Group Looks to Strengthen Digital Offerings

The new Journal Media Group includes the 17 dailies that used to be part of E. W. Scripps and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, which used to be owned by Journal Communications. We asked the company’s president, Tim Stautberg, about what JMG will be doing to succeed in both print and digital…

#SFSW15 VIDEO: Tying TV and Mobile to Measure Real-World Store Visitation

Far more than being just another media channel on which to advertise, mobile represents a “new connective element that allows you to build [a] new model for consumer behavior,” said PlaceIQ’s CEO Duncan McCall earlier this month at Street Fight Summit West.

Street Fight Daily: Square Eyes IPO, Thumbtack’s SEO Struggles

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Square Expected To Go Public This Year (Forbes)… Thumbtack, A Startup Backed by Google, Returns to Google’s Graces After SEO Hiccup (Re/code)… Dunkin’ Donuts CMO Discusses the Risky Move to Mobile Loyalty (AdAge)…

How SMBs Can Capitalize on ‘Micro-moments’ in the New Path to Purchase

A new Google and Ipsos study indicates that consumers use mobile devices more often, but for shorter periods of time. These short periods of time have been dubbed “micro-moments” and they are changing the ways consumers research and buy…