We’re out with our predictions for 2009. But what’s the final word for 2008? Truly, it was a very stimulating and thoughtful year for our local media and commerce industry. But speaking for myself, it’s hard to say whether it…
Online coupons are getting more attention, and even adding mobile channels. But no single company has really broken through at the local level. They’re largely for national franchises. Longtime Move.com execs Adam Leff and David Bay clearly recognize the challenge,…
There is a whole new wave of new Facebook apps, many built around the new Facebook Connect feature that lets users pull relevant data from Facebook profiles. That will change things. Up to now, however, Facebook hasn’t really had much…
Today at the Canadian Marketing Association’s Digital Digital Marketing Conference, there was quite a bit of buzz around Blyk, a Finnish mobile phone company with an interesting hybrid model for distribution. Blyk is a free mobile operator targeting young people…
Cox Enterprises has announced that it is putting most of its newspapers on the block, as well as Valpak, its direct mail giant. Newspapers, TV and radio currently now make up just 20 percent of the company’s revenues as it…
It is an awkward time for a company to be holding an affiliate meeting right after it has been sold. This week, ShopLocal was put in this position for its long planned meeting with 120 retail partners in Chicago (where…
IAC has sold Entertainment Publications Inc., publisher of The Entertainment Book, to MH Equity Investors. The deal puts $135 million on the books for IAC, although MH Equity, an Indianapolis company, probably paid only a portion of that in cash.…
Despite some traction by sites like Yelp -- OK, specifically Yelp -- the hybrid IYP/rating-and-review segment remains something of a question mark in the industry. It remains to be seen whether such sites can attract a large number of frequent…
Local retailers are increasingly going beyond store locators to drive sales. The extensions to store locators include brand locators, coupons, menus, trip planners, and even guides to where Wi-Fi, nonsmoking and RV parking can be found. A leading vendor in…
Spas have always been a leading advertising category for city guides and other local sites. In many cases, they are virtually the only breakthrough for “services.” The rest may be dominated by restaurants and bars. But the spas themselves have…
The balance between merchants and brands is being shifted by the increasingly common use of enhanced “product locators,” which adds store locations, maps -- and frequently promotions such as coupons -- to the mix, says Lauren Freedman, president of The…
Do you really need to have raised millions of dollars to succeed in selling search solutions to small businesses? It is a question that I often ask myself. Dan Hobin’s G5 Search Marketing in Bend, Ore., is profitable without having…
Local.com, which has previously relied on third-party sales, is going direct in a big way. The company has outsourced contracts for 50 salespeople, up from 10. “We plan to ramp sales staff to several hundred this year,” says CEO Heath…
One of the many reasons the Internet has bloomed in the U.S. is that the administration, under the leadership of Ira Magaziner, former head of U.S. Internet policy, allowed the World Wide Web to grow without putting unnecessary restrictions on…
BooRah, the Bay Area restaurant review site, has raised some seed funding from Storm Ventures and other investors (amount undisclosed) and plans to use the money to grow beyond its roots as a tech vendor for alternative newsweeklies. The…
Google is simultaneously the most open and most shut business I can think of. On one hand, it is amazingly transparent. You walk around the two campuses in Mountain View and you can walk right by Larry and Sergey's offices.…
Interactive Local Media: 07 is ready to roll Nov. 28-30 in L.A. That’s next Wednesday through Friday! The show, which is being produced in partnership with SES Local, has attendees from all over the world. One exec told me he…
Perhaps we have moved from a culture where small local publishers have gone from their own Web site to a blog to having a space on Facebook. That’s what Steve Gilberg at HappyHours.com has done. Steve -- the most knowledgeable…
The numbers are looking very, very good for the Interactive Local Media:07 conference in L.A. Nov. 28-30. Internally, we think this one is a record breaker. Register and book the hotel while you can. The latter tends to sell out.…
While I am in Reston, VA, attending Kelsey's Directory Driven Commerce conference, I thought it would be a good time to start talking about our next show, which I am co-producing: Interactive Local Media 2007. The show is being done…
