News and Analysis

Patch’s Leader Says the Network Today Is Proof That Local Can Scale

Share this:

Warren St. John, who has led Hale Global’s Patch since its 2015 takeover from Aol., says the network has evolved into a workable model for scaled local news — editorially, financially and as a community asset. In this Q & A, he presents his case.

Street Fight Daily: Brands Benefit from Voice Revolution, Placed Unveils New Attribution Tool

Share this:

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… As Voice Has Its Moment, Tech Giants Give Brands a Way Into the Conversation (AdWeek) Voice is having its moment. People are talking, devices are listening and brands are attempting to insert themselves into the conversation, using Amazon Alexa voice skills and Google […]

SMB Index: Local Stocks Make Gains in September

Share this:

After a flat month in August, the SCP SMB Index gained 2.1%, consistent with the S&P 500 and Dow Jones. Xero led the gainers, up 17.7% in the month of September, while GrubHub led the list of losers down 7.8% during September.

Latest Posts

Street Fight Daily: LivingSocial Losses, Facebook Offers Pick Up

Share this:

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal content, commerce, and technology.LivingSocial records net loss of $650 million for 2012 (The Washington Post)… Facebook Offers Have Been Claimed By 42M Users (TechCrunch)… Time to Retire the Term ‘HyperLocal’ (Screenwerk)…

What We Mean When We Talk About ‘Hyperlocal’

Share this:

When we launched Street Fight, we expanded the term “hyperlocal” from its traditional use pertaining only to passionate, driven, highly local publishers who were the first to act on the erosion of local media’s business. We have applied it to include anyone who is disrupting and taking market share from traditional media and offering local businesses new ways to reach consumers…

Edo Bucks Trend, Expands Into Local

Share this:

As firms like Group Commerce pull out of the local market, others like Edo are moving in the opposite direction.The company, which syndicates card-linked offers to financial institutions like Ally Bank and Fifth Third, has hooked up with local reseller 2Go Media to open its network to local merchants through a simplified version of its enterprise platform…

The Local Conundrum: Rich Content or Accurate Information?

Share this:

Google may have thought that situating local within Google+ would somehow obviate the need to fix it, but the presence of engaging content does nothing to modify the basic requirement that information services provide useful information. Perversely, information services spend too much time pretending they are content services but offer none of the openness of those services where it’s really needed…

With Abraham Out, What’s Next for eBay Local?

Share this:

Earlier this week eBay announced that it had parted ways with Jack Abraham, the founder of Milo (which eBay acquired two years ago) and a centerpiece of the web giant’s blistering push into the local space. Abraham’s departure leaves a vacancy at one of the more important positions in the hyperlocal ecosystem and presents questions about the evolving structure of eBay’s off-line commerce efforts….

Why OpenTable’s Foodspotting Buy Is Good for Restaurants

Share this:

Foodspotting, a provider of a food-sharing and recommendations app, announced yesterday that it would be acquired by reservations company OpenTable for $10 million. While the two services seem quite different (one is for reservations and the other is a social network organized around food) the acquisition could mean good things for both companies as well as local restaurants….

Street Fight Daily: Intuit’s New Direction, Fousquare’s New Business App

Share this:

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal content, commerce, and technology.Intuit’s New Payments Directions In NFC, Passbook And Facebook Revealed In 20+ New Products (TechCrunch)… Foursquare’s New App Is Open for Business (AllThingsD)… Belly Bites is Free Sampling for Local Merchants Done Right (PandoDaily)…

#SFSNYC VIDEOS: Panels and Presentations From Our Recent NYC Summit

Share this:

It’s been a couple of weeks since we gathered hundreds of hyperlocal industry execs in New York at the Street Fight Summit, but we’re still sifting through a lot of the ideas and inspiration that emerged from those few days. We’ve uploaded video clips of nearly all the onstage presentations and panels and are happy to share them with you…

6 Indoor Navigation Platforms for Retailers

Share this:

Nearly three-quarters of consumers with smartphones say they would rather use their mobile devices inside a store than ask an associate for help. Here are six platforms that merchants of all sizes can use to help customers find products on store shelves and perhaps complete more transactions…

Street Fight Daily: Abraham Leaves eBay, Opentable Acquires Foodspotting

Share this:

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal content, commerce, and technology.eBay Loses Head of Local Jack Abraham (Fortune)… OpenTable to Acquire Foodspotting for $10 Million (The New York Times)… Why the Future of Local-Mobile Advertising Is Not What You May Think (Screenwerk)…