News and Analysis

Can Yelp Extend Its Moment in the Sun?

“[Yelp has] not been very innovative in approaching the many needs of the SMB markets,” Mike Blumenthal writes to David Mihm. “It would seem that there could be (or should have been?) a raft of functionality that they could provide from appointments to customer follow-up that would be a natural fit.”

LinkedIn Focuses on Revving Up Its SMB Efforts

“There is a huge market of smaller companies, and it is a fast-growing segment. There is definitely momentum,” says LinkedIn’s independent agency head Ryan Wilson. “But they are often made to feel like second-class citizens. Enterprise companies have been getting all the love.”

Street Fight Daily: Facebook Explores Offline-to-Online, Foursquare Partners with InfoScout

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology… Can Brands Create Facebook Custom Audiences Based On Brick-and-Mortar Visits?… Foursquare Partners with InfoScout to Offer Fuller Picture of Customer Journey… Postmates Relies on Streaming Data to Deliver Positive Experiences on Demand…

Latest Posts

Investment Newsletter Says Yext Valuation Points to Search Shift

In the latest issue of Street Fight’s monthly Hyperlocal Invesment Report, editor Steven Jacobs writes that “part of what is driving the valuation [behind Yext and SinglePlatform] is the shift in the local web from a search to discovery engine.” Read more insights and analysis on key deals in June 2012, plus an in-depth look at Constant Contact’s $65 million acquisition of SinglePlatform; investments and deals in June; and more…

As Content and Commerce Merge, Gilt Comes Out Ahead

Gilt Groupe gets that shopping and magazines (or what used to be magazines) are rapidly merging. Rather than make an nod to editorial with stupid puns and obnoxious copy (not naming names, but), Gilt took a different approach, hiring journalists or writers with expertise or knowledge in the field. And they gave those writers a mandate to create useful content that not only plugs the wares but also, equally, is useful and interesting…

How Marketers Can Connect With Moms on a Hyperlocal Level

For brands, it would appear that mobile is the way to a busy mom’s heart: usage of mobile for product/brand recommendations nearly doubled in 2011 to 33 percent. With moms relying on smartphones more than ever before, brands may want to think about upping their mobile targeting ad campaigns to reach moms directly at the point of purchase through apps like RedRover.

PODCAST: This Week in Location-Based Marketing — Apple, Facebook, Yelp

In this week’s episode, hosts Rob Woodbridge and Asif Khan look at what the iOS maps and Yelp integration means for Apple; Facebook’s “Friends Near By” folly; Yammer winning the Microsoft lottery; and are smartphones helping in-store sales? Plus special guest Holger Leudorf of Foursquare talks about find vs. search…

Street Fight Daily: ‘Daily Deals’ Profit, Yelp Surges

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal content, commerce, and technology.Report: Most Daily Deals Now Profitable for SMBs, but Not Restaurants (Screenwerk)… Yelp Rises on Speculation of Smaller iPad (Bloomberg)… Community-Powered Traffic Navigation App Waze Hits 20 Million Users, Doubles Up in 6 Months (The Next Web)…

For Troubled News Industry, Is It Enough to ‘Pivot’?

“Let’s just assume that the traditional newspaper organization is a loss and will not survive, and come up with other plans to produce local journalism,” said the AP’s Jonathan Stray. “I may or may not be right about the possibility of survival for the former news industry, but I think this point of view forces the right questions.”

Case Study: Massage Therapist Uses Scheduling to Propel Online Marketing

Massage therapist Lisa Bedoya knew there had to be a better way to schedule client appoints than via email or phone. Since turning to Full Slate late last year, Bedoya has noticed an increase in repeat clients. She attributes this boost in business to the ease with which clients can now make appointments online, as well as the email newsletters and special coupons she sends out…

Why Square Is Succeeding in the Hyperlocal Payments Space

Square’s biggest advantage is its founder, Jack Dorsey. Not because Dorsey’s a genius — he is that, too — but because he’s (understandably) a media darling. For a company that needs visibility, there’s nothing better than having a leader magazines want to profile…

Street Fight Daily: Groupon Retail, Journatic Fallout Continues

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal content, commerce, and technology.Groupon Opens Concept Store in Singapore (CNet)… The Uncomfortable Truth Behind the Journatic Byline Scandal (GigaOm)… Rumor: Twitter To Acquire Sense Networks To Better Target Local Ads (TechCrunch)

6 Email Marketing Tools for Hyperlocal Publishers

By sending out email newsletters with links to the most important stories of the day, hyperlocal publishers can help their content go viral and build a loyal readership with low acquisition costs. Here are six email marketing platforms with built-in tools to help online publishers automate the process of creating and publishing daily email newsletters, as well as other important marketing materials…