News and Analysis
Stop the Texting Madness! Jack Philbin on How to Not Get Blocked by Consumers
Jack Philbin is CEO at Vibes, a texting message platform many MULO (multi-location) brands use. We talked to him about how consumers view text messages and how to craft the right ones. Philbin stresses: “The most important thing marketers can do right now, especially as we enter the holidays, is to prioritize quality over quantity […]
‘Tis Swag Season: Year-Round Gifting Trends from Graham Walsh
This is the season of gifting for MULO (multi-location) brands and the suppliers, agencies and tech companies that support them. These brands: Give holiday and thank you gifts to their valued clients Buy giveaways for trade shows and conferences, and consumer activations Invest in employee incentives and keepsakes for team gatherings Stock their online shelves […]
SPB Now Stands for “Serve People Better”
Everyone loves a holiday miracle story! And that may be the turnaround of SPB, which took over a wide range of struggling brands. The abbreviation stood for “Steak, Pizza, and Beer,” but Josh Kern, the CEO, is now committed to changing its meaning to “Serve People Better.” That’s what he aspires to do with the […]
Commentary
Data is the Key to Knowing What You Don’t Know About Consumers
As businesses turn to what’s readily available to them, first-party data strategies have emerged as a powerful tool for understanding the buyer’s journey. But the challenge is effectively collecting, managing, and driving the most value from this data in order to understand both known and unknown consumers.
Why Diverse Talent Is Key to Digital Advertising Success
Advertisers need to speak to diverse audiences and adtech companies need to enable them to do so if the digital advertising industry is to be successful at its core goal: connecting advertisers with consumers to build relationships and drive business outcomes.
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.
Latest Posts
Meet the Robotproof Leader: An Interview with Matt Robison About Boosting Product Sales
Matt Robison is the Founder & CEO of a marketing agency called Robotproof. The company is aptly named because he has a unique perspective on how to boost product sales by entertaining and engaging humans — and training the people who sell to them — at multi-location retailers. Robotproof’s primary focus is experiential marketing — […]
How Retailers Are Getting More Mileage from Curbside Pickups
With the pandemic firmly in the rearview mirror, consumers have returned to stores en masse. Surveys show that shopping behaviors in 2023 are not all that different from 2019 — with a few big exceptions. Online shopping continues to be more popular today than it was before the pandemic, and BOPIS—buy online, pickup in-store—has also […]
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 […]
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