Running a deal with sites like Groupon and LivingSocial can be a risky venture, but it doesn’t mean local merchants have to feel like they’re following in Felix Baumgartner’s Red Bull-sponsored free-fall trail in the sky when they’re about to offer one. Here’s some guidance from a handful of experts on what local businesses should…
Groupon’s staff turnover, increased investments, competition and slowing sales are reasons for lowered expectations for the daily-deals company’s revenue, according to Edward Woo, senior research analyst at Ascendiant Capital Markets. Woo said Groupon’s near-term earnings might be weighed down by its investments in Breadcrumb and Savored, along with its introduction of Groupon Payments. He also…
Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer is trying to nab Henrique De Castro, a top advertising executive, away from her former employer Google. De Castro could be named COO of Yahoo or have a leading role in its advertising and media units. However, De Castro has denied woos from Yahoo before: former Yahoo CEO Scott Thompson attempted…
By Richie Hecker, Chairman of inSparq It has been widely believed that the in-store social experience of shopping with friends and asking for recommendations has been replaced with endless online page views, countless inventory and indecisive shoppers.
Pinterest has emerged as a significant platform this past year, essentially ushering in a new mini-ecosystem a la Instagram. But one thing has been glaringly missing: analytics. Enter Pinalytics, a social media monitoring tool (still in closed beta) that helps users track and evaluate content and interactions on Pinterest. The tool doesn’t require an account…
Marketers who use Facebook apps to collect data from prospects must be aware of the ins and outs of Facebook permissions. “Facebook Permissions are a Facebook feature that allows the social network and businesses that use Facebook for marketing purposes to collect information about users.” For starters, marketers should note that (according to a Facebook…
Foursquare’s shift in emphasis from its location-based social networking aspects to its strength in local search is about to become much more evident. Later this afternoon, Foursquare is unveiling a new home page for its desktop users who aren’t logged in, and it features a prominent search box smack dab in the middle of the…
Marketers who decide to use blogs to generate leads will have a multipurpose tool in their hands. Once they understand the ins and outs of blogging, it’s time to sit down and consider what the meat of this delicious sandwich will be
Facebook’s apparent intentions of building a killer search engine are well-known by now, but it might just be a ploy at appeasing Wall Street. But let’s say that the social network is serious about launching a full-fledged search engine. If Facebook is serious about this venture, it needs to address the way it serves ads,…
According to Kenshoo, a digital marketing software firm, global paid search budgets were notably higher in the first three quarters of 2012. In the third quarter, spending grew 24 percent year-over-year. Meanwhile, the Yahoo-Bing network (YBN), while handling a fraction of the traffic Google does, boasted a return on ad spend in the third quarter…
