News and Analysis

Who Owns What in the MULO World? Street Fight

Who Owns What in the MULO World?

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Darden recently made a huge acquisition in the MULO (multi-location) food world, gobbling up Chuy’s fast-casual Mexican locations (100+) in a $605M deal. According to FSR Magazine, the holding company has also made some major acquisitions over the last decade. “Chuy’s marks Darden’s sixth acquisition in 15 years. In 2007, the company acquired RARE Hospitality […]

Mobility Data Optimizes Marketing for Retailers Amid New Lunch Trends Street Fight

Mobility Data Optimizes Marketing for Retailers Amid New Lunch Trends

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The working crowd still eats lunch. They just don’t do so at restaurants and take-out near their offices as much. Instead, they are saving their money to splurge on lunch out and drinks with friends on the weekends. A story on NBC.com went so far as to declare that “the lunch rush is dead,” citing […]

The MULO Dozen: July Brands in Review Street Fight

The MULO Dozen: July Brands in Review

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Given the M&A activity that’s been going on in the MULO (multi-location) world these days, we’ve added a new section to our monthly dozen — DEALS. The reality of MULO is that unless brands listen to consumer voices, have strong leaders, and do the right deals, they may go BUST. The keys to BOOMING in […]

Commentary

GrabMaps Launches Local Mapping Tech

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In this episode of Location Weekly, the Location-Based Marketing Association covers whether Apple & Google will get rid of IP address tracking, GrabMaps launching and licensing their own local mapping technology, Walmart partnering with senior care app Avanlee Care for grocery delivery, and NTT Data launching Mobicomma in Okinawa, Japan.

The Value of Business Agility

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Business agility is not just a talking point; it’s a worldview that informs all of your organization’s decisions and allows the business to continue evolving amid unpredictability.

SPYR Technologies acquires GeoTraq from JanOne

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In this episode of Location Weekly, the Location-Based Marketing Association covers Apiip expanding IP to Location API services to verify 1M+ requests, SPYR Technologies acquiring GeoTraq from JanOne, Google StreetView getting even better with a new camera, and Pacsun linking its physical and virtual metaverse stores.

Latest Posts

Why It Matters that Home Depot Reportedly Gave Meta Shopper Data Without Consent

Why It Matters that Home Depot Reportedly Gave Meta Shopper Data Without Consent

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The Home Depot-Meta incident imparts a broader lesson about the limitations of basing a data privacy strategy on the collection of first- or zero-party data.

Is Sustainability the Latest Retail Marketing Fad?

Is Sustainability the Latest Retail Marketing Fad?

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While countries like France are laying down the law regarding sustainability in fashion, retailers across the U.S. are preparing to capitalize on consumer interest in eco-friendliness as a marketing tactic.

Why the US Government's Google Lawsuit Matters

Why the US Government’s Google Lawsuit Matters

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For marketers, the big question here is whether Google’s tools are more useful or harmful — are the convenience and scalable audiences they enable worth the cut Google takes out of the digital ad market, raising prices? This is among the questions Google will have to answer.

With AI for Shelf Checking, Google Gives Retailers What They Want

With AI for Shelf Checking, Google Gives Retailers What They Want

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Google’s announcement that it would be enhancing Google Cloud for Retailers with shelf checking got people talking at the National Retail Federation’s conference in New York earlier this month, but the push to turn physical stores into digital assets has been underway for years.

How Brands Are Using Interactivity to Shorten the Purchase Cycle

How Brands Are Using Interactivity to Shorten the Purchase Cycle

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With brands expected to pull back on media spending during the first half of the year, media buyers are looking at stretching their ad budgets to activate in more meaningful ways. 

Why and How Retailers Are Dropping Very Generous Return Policies

Why and How Retailers Are Dropping Very Generous Return Policies

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COVID ushered in a period of free and limitless returns as retailers scrambled to keep shoppers at a time when stores were closed. But the worst days of COVID are in the rearview mirror, and the 2023 macroeconomic environment provides no succor for overly generous policies.

OpenFortune Cuts Through Digital Clutter with a Physical Media Format

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The biggest action in brand marketing is happening online in 2023, but as digital channels proliferate, one agency is moving in the opposite direction. OpenFortune, a New York-based agency, is leveraging ​​fortune cookies to bring branded content to restaurant customers across the U.S. 

How Advertisers Can Combine Contextual and Local Targeting

How Advertisers Can Combine Contextual and Local Targeting

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Many marketers who run multi-location campaigns run into the same pain point: “I need to create a campaign that has localized messaging that resonates with the specific regions I’m targeting while still remaining true to the overall brand voice.” Enter contextual advertising.

Is Super Bowl Advertising Still Worth the Investment for National Brands?

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Is advertising during the Super Bowl still worth the seven-figure investment? That’s the question national brands and agencies are asking, just weeks away from the biggest advertising event of the year.

Mailchimp Introduces Single Source of Truth for Marketers

Mailchimp Introduces Single Source of Truth for Marketers

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A single source of truth. The concept has become a holy grail for digital marketers as companies look for better ways to aggregate data from multiple systems into one location. A new marketing tool from Mailchimp promises to deliver on the idea, providing brands with a way to pull their tech stacks together into one centralized, visual environment.