News and Analysis
The Drive-Thru Keeps Growing (Literally)
A new Chick-fil-A concept store offers six-second meal prep and a four-lane drive-thru. After all, we live in a fast-paced, impatient world, and getting your food faster without leaving your car is a common practice these days. During the pandemic, the drive-thru became a regular part of our lives. Operators now realize that this model […]
Why is Waffle House So Successful? An FSR Conversation with Danny Klein
Danny Klein is the Editorial Director of FSR (full-service restaurant), a media company covering the food industry. A recent study on the top brands in the FSR world has implications for any MULO (multi-location) brand—restaurants, retailers, and service businesses. The study, created in partnership with Datassential, ranks the brands based on their number of units. The […]
AI in Advertising, According to Criteo
Romain Lerallut, VP of Engineering at Criteo, believes that AI will play a fundamental role in advertising for MULO (multi-location) brands. Enabling marketers to “speak” directly to consumers at all stages of the decision-making and purchase process, AI will not only result in more effective campaigns but also save companies advertising dollars and resources. What […]
Commentary
How Post-Pandemic Shopping Habits Affect Black Friday and Cyber Monday
Consumers aren’t holding off on gift purchases until the day after Thanksgiving. Retailers who’ve always counted on Black Friday in particular and the Cyber Five (Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday) in general to push them into profitability for the year need to develop new strategies based on data.
Latest Posts
BOOM: Beyond the Barbells (MULO Specialty Gyms Abound)
We live in a world obsessed with longevity and fitness. Exercise has long been a big business. The fitness industry had its renaissance in the 1970s and 80s when the widespread adoption of TV and insights into the role of working out in battling heart disease gave rise to the practices of aerobics and yoga. […]
Bombas Sees Opportunity in Mission-Driven OOH Strategy
When Randy Goldberg and David Heath launched Bombas back in 2013, the direct-to-consumer sock startup was primarily known for its focus on charity — famously donating a pair of socks for every pair sold. Although Bombas has remained dedicated to that mission in the years since, the company has also expanded to become a complete […]
3 Tips to Help Marketers Modernize and Maximize Marketing Technology
According to Gartner, the average marketer only utilized 42% of their marketing technology (martech) stack’s capabilities last year, a 16% drop from the 2020 figure (58%). Specifically, the research identified consistent overlap of martech elements, a shortage of marketing talent with comprehensive martech knowledge, and the overall complexity of marketing technology as key contributors to […]
‘Sludge Content’ Creates Opportunity for Brand Marketers
What do you know about sludge content? The latest trend on TikTok gives viewers a split-screen look at two or more videos at once. It’s a form of escapism for consumers — and an untapped opportunity for brand marketers. As consumers’ content consumption habits evolve, advertisers are being forced to take new factors into account […]
To Market, To Market: Trends in the MULO Grocery Store Industry
The multi-location grocery store industry is no longer just traditional grocers. Target, drug stores like CVS and Walgreens, and convenience stores now stock shelves with household staples. “Traditional” grocery stores have expanded their product offerings to include greeting cards, flowers, and hardware items. Specialty grocers abound, and many niche brands are expanding to new geographies […]
Microsoft Advertising Honors Tinuiti
Now that Microsoft Advertising has named Tinuiti its Global Client Partner of the Year for the first time. Josh Brisco, Group VP of Acquisition Media at the largest independent performance-marketing firm in the U.S., reflected on this latest recognition. Although being named Global Client Partner of the Year is a first for Tinuiti from Microsoft, […]
Data Clean Rooms Won’t End the Identity Battle
Since Google’s first date for the end of third-party cookies, the industry has continued to search for viable alternatives. Among the plethora of proposed solutions, data clean rooms have sprung to the top of industry-leading agendas as a potential solution for the eventual depreciation of third-party cookies. And the theory makes some sense – it’s […]
Back-to-School Shopping Is Happening Earlier Than Ever — Retailers Prepare
As kids across the country empty their desks and prepare for a long summer break, brand marketers are working overtime to solidify their 2023 back-to-school campaigns. With back-to-school sales seeming to start earlier and earlier each year, researchers at the digital insights firm Cint recently conducted a survey to gauge consumer interest around back to […]
Curb Wants Brand Enthusiasm for DOOH
Generating more than two billion impressions annually across 25,000 in-taxi media screens in most major DMAs, Curb (formerly Verifone Taxi Systems), a DOOH advertising and payment platform for car services, reaches “captive” audiences of millions. Its Taxi TV screens offer geotargeting, real-time RSS data integration, dayparting, and POI targeting to clients. Curb has been a […]
BOOM: Hair Care for Men…Beyond Shaves and Haircuts
Hair care post-pandemic is a rapidly-growing multi-location (MULO) category. As we reported recently, the industry was up 17 percent in 2022 and is expected to hit $41B by 2026. Women still spend more on hair care than men. They invest an average of $228 yearly on haircuts and $24 per month on hair products versus […]
Street Fight’s Big 3
Street Fight Columns
Street Fight Categories
Why TV Remains the Heartbeat of Local Connection