News and Analysis
Marketing Cycles & Trends With Rachel Noonan
Rachel Noonan is one of the 30+ thought leaders offering perspectives on MULO (multi-location) brands and marketing at Street Fight LIVE 2025. She comes to the stage with 14 years of experience in consumer brand strategy, digital product development, and strategic partnerships across entertainment, media, and tech. Having worked with Universal Pictures, Meta, and Samsung, […]
NBCUniversal Taps Guideline for Smarter, Data-Driven Advertising
Guideline and NBCUniversal have announced the expansion of their partnership to bolster NBCUniversal’s data-driven strategies across ad sales. The collaboration highlights how major media companies are leaning into predictive analytics to stay competitive in a fragmented advertising marketplace. Navigating a Fragmented Market The advertising ecosystem continues to be reshaped by cross-platform consumption, shifting budgets, and […]
The Skinny on FAT Brands with Elaine Patel
We all know that the relationship between a corporate MULO (multi-location) brand and its local operators can sometimes be challenging. How do you keep the integrity of your brand whole while supporting the entrepreneurial people who run your day-to-day and regional operations? Elaine Patel is one woman who has many of those answers. Elaine Patel […]
Commentary
What the Rise of AI Shopping Means for the Future of Marketing Strategy
A shift is underway in the world of digital commerce and media, and its implications go far beyond channel optimization or creative placement. Publishers and marketers alike are beginning to recognize the transformational potential of AI-powered shopping agents, not just as a user interface, but as a new ecosystem altogether. We are no longer just […]
Franchise Marketing Needs a New Playbook for the Post-Promo Era
Okay, we need to talk. Promotional marketing has been the go-to playbook for franchise brands for years. The “20% off” email, the last-minute BOGO social ad, the holiday-themed coupon barrage—we all know the routine. Why? Because it work s… or worked, at least. But here’s the hard truth: short-term wins won’t cut it anymore. Today’s […]
Cookie Loss Didn’t Kill the Web, But AI Overviews Might
The digital advertising industry spent years preparing for the demise of third-party cookies—an event that never fully materialized. But while we were focused on cookies, a much bigger transformation was quietly unfolding: the fundamental shift in how people interact with search engines. AI Overviews. Google’s AI Overviews and AI-driven chatbots are reshaping search behavior in […]
Latest Posts
Habit-Forming Content: Real Strategies from Brands Turning Videos Into Revenue
As businesses invest in expanding their social media presence, they should be clear about their purpose. Producing and sharing social media video content, even when that content goes viral, isn’t enough to justify their efforts. Businesses that benefit from social media marketing leverage their content to attract views, gain followers, and acquire leads by creating […]
Streets Ahead: OpenAI User BackLash, Google Preferred Sources
In this week’s Streets Ahead update, SOCi discusses OpenAI reinstating GPT-4o following user backlash to GPT-5 rollout and Google personalizing Top Stories with New ‘Preferred Sources’ features. OpenAI Reinstates GPT-4o Following User Backlash to GPT-5 Rollout The News OpenAI has rolled back part of its highly publicized GPT-5 launch after a wave of criticism from […]
New DoubleVerify Report Should Alarm Advertisers
Online advertising now represents nearly $800 billion in spending in 2025, up from a $374 billion market size in 2020. What else is up this year? A new report from DoubleVerify confirms the increases in fraud, AI bots, and ad blocking. Among the highlights for the North America market, based on a survey of 400 advertising […]
5 MULO (Multi-Location) Trends We Can’t Ignore
We’re more than halfway through the year, and the consumer (and its artificial intelligence equivalents) have spoken! The MULO (multi-location) ecosystem is poised for a significant transformation. MULO comprises restaurants, retail, home and personal services businesses, hospitality, convenience stores, groceries, branded housing complexes, and other companies that have multiple brick-and-mortar locations. Here are some of […]
Are Discount Stores and Outlet Malls Still Relevant?
Long before Amazon, consumers would make excursions to factory outlet malls and wander the aisles of stores like Loehmann’s, seeking the ultimate bargain. Bargain shopping remains a great American pastime, and thrifting and upscale second-hand stores have joined the mix, alongside big-box, high-volume membership stores like Costco. Among the MULO (multi-location) discount store brands today […]
Pop-up Retail Abounds
We already know that the “big box” store model has its challenges these days. And micro store footprints have become a widespread alternative to high rents and excess inventory. Even Ikea is getting into the mini-store game. But this summer, another retail format is trending. The pop-up (like a food truck for shopping) is everywhere. Big […]
Streets Ahead: Perplexity’s Ranking Logic, Instagram Metrics
In this week’s Streets Ahead update, SOCi discusses Perplexity ranking patterns and Instagram’s data update insights. Inside Perplexity’s Ranking Logic: Why Classic SEO Still Matters The News A recent deep dive into how Perplexity ranks content—led by independent researcher Metehan Yesilyurt—suggests that good old-fashioned SEO still matters, even in this new era of AI search. […]
The Adult Arcade: Two Trends Converging
We’ve covered the rise of eatertainment. Multi-location (MULO) brands have discovered that incorporating entertainment, sports challenges (sportainment), and activities into their converging retail and restaurant models enables them to appeal to a vast and growing segment of the market. Add to that model the newstalgia trend (a mash-up of new and nostalgia). Brands are combining […]
The MULO Dozen: July Brands in Review
Some things slow down over the summer, but this July the MULO ecosystem continues to heat up phygital enhancements, leadership changes, and creative new marketing approaches. Hot dogs are not just for family BBQs this summer! Wienerschnitzel is making a bold new leap, with the hot dog chain announcing its expansion to the East Coast, aiming to solidify […]
AI Is Changing Customer Discovery Forever. Who Wins?
Until today, search has been the enabler of the internet. It served as a powerhouse of digital economics, the foundation of the Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) business model, and the model for organic customer discovery. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) underpinned how brands and companies crafted their marketing and communications strategies. Artificial intelligence (AI) changes all of this. […]
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