Foursquare, Groupon: Square Has You in Its Crosshairs
Square is on a roll. The company is now handling $11 million in transactions each day. The majority of those transactions are coming from small businesses who love the simplicity of the system. Square is not the cheapest way to take credit cards but it is probably the fastest. And part of that roll is the announcement of customer loyalty programs wrapped into their existing POS platform…
Paid Content – Income Source or Booby Trap? 5 Tips for Getting it Right
Last week, we alerted our readers that the Federal Trade Commission was cracking down paid endorsements and advertorials that appear as if they are objective news content. This week, we review some steps hyperlocal publishers can take to provide transparency between editorial content, and content paid for by advertisers…
Local Data DJs Can Spin Their Own Around Locationary’s ‘Saturn’
Locationary is now unveiling Saturn, its shiny new beta product referred to as a “Federated Data Exchange Platform.” I queried Ritchie recently about what the system can do, and how location-based startups can use it. Things get a little wonky here, but bear with us — Ritchie’s new release might actually have something for everyone…
Pending IP Laws Could Squeeze Hyperlocal News Sites
Two new bills in Congress designed to combat rogue sites selling counterfeit goods or distributing copyright-infringing content (like movies) may put a squeeze on hyperlocal news sites, strangle innovation, and impede free speech and investment in start-ups, according to experts at Stanford University and the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
Oink: A Help to Yelp?
With Oink (“Rate the Adventure”), Digg founder Kevin Rose has chosen to address a glaring problem in the existing world of online (and offline ratings). Namely, what do I buy when I’m there? Or what do I do? Or what should I try? The idea is, with this nifty mobile app, Oink users can give a thumbs up or a thumbs down to anything at all.
Tuning into Consumers’ Digital Signals
At the Street Fight Summit in October, sponsor GeoIQ unveiled a report it co-sponsored, Tuning into Consumers’ Digital Signals, which was prepared by Dr. Phil Hendrix, director of immr and GigaOm Pro analyst. An introduction follows, including a link to the full 27-page PDF at the bottom of this post.
Drawing the Line on Advertorial Content for Hyperlocals
One way to boost revenue for a hyperlocal news site may be to supplement editorial content with paid content — such as advertorials, sponsored reviews, or endorsements. But a hyperlocal publisher who takes this path may walk into a legal landmine unless they’re completely transparent in distinguishing its editorial content from its paid content…
How Dating’s Personalized, Localized Future is Good for Groupon
Groupon’s long awaited IPO was wildly oversubscribed, according to AllThingsD – by a factor of $10. The stock priced initially at $20 per share, well over the target pricing of $16 to $18. Considering all the bad press Groupon has endured and slings and arrows from wary small businesspeople and grumpy old CPAscalling for an […]
A Conversation With Ted Leonsis on Social, Local and Mobile
Ted Leonsis understands social media better than you. Let’s just start there. And he doesn’t just understand it academically, or as a learned practitioner, or even as a social media services innovator (which he was). I’d like to think social media is visceral to Leonsis, but that would miss the mark, too. The truth is […]
How to Market to Local Moms
As publishers of websites for suburban moms and advocates for the main street merchants trying to woo them, we spend a lot of time thinking about what matters to the maternally minded. Since women are responsible for 85% of household purchases, reaching the “Chief Household Operator” is a key objective for most local merchants. While these tips are squarely directed at local business owners, many apply to hyperlocal news and blogs as well…
Could Siri Make Hyperlocal Hypervocal?
The audible realm in my mind is a better communications medium for brain processing than the symbolic realm — which is The domain of text-based or even much video advertising. Only the very best ads cross over into true pattern recognition where our minds shine. Sounds, however, are something we are far better wired for than words. Which is why Pandora has done extremely well with its advertising response rates as compared to other forms of online media.
History’s 3 Hints for the Future of Daily Deals
The CEO of Tippr thinks Groupon’s success will legitimize the daily industry, encourage other players to stay in the game, and open an opportunity for a top deal commerce technology provider to take the market lead…