News and Analysis
GumGum’s Grimace: The Ads that Stole Christmas
Forget privacy issues. Re-targeted ads are in cahoots with the Grinch, stealing the joy of surprise from Christmas. Nobody can be blamed when opening up a gift and thinking, “Now where have I seen that before? Oh yes, ads for it were sprayed across all my social-media accounts and everywhere I went on the Web.” […]
BUST: The Party is Over for Party City
Although we’d love to keep things festive and bright this holiday season and report just on future trends and greatest hits of 2024, the sad reality is that some retailers can’t keep the lights on. According to CNN, Party City is the latest retailer to announce that it is closing all its stores and going […]
ARound Uses AR To Bring Live Events to Life
Imagine sitting in a stadium, watching your favorite sports team compete when suddenly the whole place is transformed into an Alaskan wilderness. That actually happened during a Rams game in SoFi Stadium earlier in the fall when ARound created one of its shared experiences. The augmented reality company owned by Stagwell, combines broadcast and mobile […]
Commentary
Apple’s Search Ad Business Triples in Market Share
AppsFlyer reports in its latest mobile advertising Performance Index that Apple Search Ads tripled in market share since 1H 2020. During the same period, other search ad competitors’ market share declined, the most consequential (read: billions in revenue) being Google and Meta.
Identity is Table Stakes, But There’s More Than One Table
Since first-party cookies and login-based user targeting have now become key marketing elements, and new platforms are continuing to evolve and emerge, all marketers should be identifying people across multiple platforms — not just tracking various click patterns.
The Creator Economy Accelerates
Adobe’s annual Max event is happening this week in LA, its first physical rendition since Covid lockdowns sidelined the event world. Max is all about the creator economy, the emerging crop of individuals and SMBs that create content. This has been Adobe’s target market for two decades. This all manifests in the ever-growing Creative Cloud… […]
Latest Posts
‘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 […]
Thumbtack, Scorpion Partnership Streamlines Marketing for Home Services Pros
The digital martech provider Scorpion is partnering with the home management platform Thumbtack, in a first-of-its-kind integration announced just this week. With the deal in place, Thumbtack’s customer base of small business owners and solopreneurs working in the home services industry will be able to utilize Scorpion’s advertising and communications tools to get more leads […]
Simon Says “Your Product is In-Stock!” The Rise of Product Search Today and How Brands Should Respond
Simon Property Group recently expanded its Simon Search technology, enabling mall-goers to determine if the brands they want are in-store, before they head out to shop and spend. Product search before visiting a multi-location (or other) business is nothing new. Google reports that 74 percent of brick-and-mortar shoppers will do some online sleuthing before they […]
How Audio Advertising Became a Blindspot for U.S. Brands
With the state of the U.S. economy still unclear, more advertisers are tightening their belts and re-evaluating their media mix. In a recent study by WARC, 96% of retail and CPG marketers said they’re evolving their advertising approach and tapping into digital audio advertising as a way to ensure a smooth path-to-purchase. According to Paul […]
Street Fight’s Big 3
Street Fight Columns
Street Fight Categories
Google’s New AI Search Rules Create a Challenge for MULO Brands