When Does AI Fly or Die?
Like many emerging technologies, AI is being thrown against several walls to see if it sticks. The result is some fitting applications and some that
Mike Boland
September 14, 2023
Mike Boland
Mike Boland, senior analyst with Localogy, was one of Silicon Valley’s first tech reporters of the internet age as a staff reporter for Forbes magazine starting in 2000. His comments have appeared in The New Yorker, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.
Hibu Acquires Signpost to Reinforce its Digital Marketing Platform
Hibu announced this week that it will acquire martech innovator Signpost. This broadens and deepens Hibu’s suite of digital marketing products, particularly when it comes to marketing automation.
Mike Boland
September 12, 2023
Do SMBs Utilize the Full Capabilities of SaaS?
Benchmark Bytes is a series that examines Localogy’s original data on SMB tech deployment. Based on its recent Small Business Trends report, each installment drills down on a data excerpt and draws out meaning for Localogy Insider readers.
Mike Boland
September 11, 2023
Intuit Wants AI to Do Your Taxes
It was only a matter of time. As AI continues to reach into every corner of the business and tech worlds, the latest conquest is SMB accounting and financial software., Intuit has integrated a conversational AI agent into its ubiquitous suite.
Mike Boland
September 8, 2023
Food Delivery Follows AI’s Herd Mentality
AI continues to expand as its herd mentality drives nearly every corner of the tech world toward the shiny new thing. The latest subsector sprinting toward AI is the local on-demand economy. We examine a few examples.
Mike Boland
September 7, 2023
Shopify Offers Amazon’s ‘Buy With Prime’
In a surprise move, Shopify will now offer its merchants the opportunity to integrate Amazon’s ‘Buy with Prime.’ This is Amazon’s program that lets merchants outside of Amazon.com tap into its payment processing, shipping, and returns functions.
Mike Boland
September 6, 2023
How Do SMBs Benefit from SaaS Products?
Benchmark Bytes is a series that examines Localogy’s original data on SMB tech deployment. Based on its recent Small Business Trends report, each installment drills down on a data excerpt and draws out meaning for Localogy Insider readers.
Mike Boland
September 5, 2023
Do Average Folks Care About ChatGPT?
One key question around any emerging tech is if average folks are using it… or even care about it. The latest subjects are generative and conversational AI. New research from Pew sheds some light on this question.
Mike Boland
September 1, 2023
Starbucks Goes Scanless
The latest in contactless checkout has arrived, and it could stick given its influential adopter: Starbucks. The coffee giant has begun to roll out what it calls “Scanless Checkout,” which goes a step further in reducing transactional friction.
Mike Boland
August 31, 2023
Yelp Reports Record U.S. New Business Openings
Yelp reports in its New Business Openings Report that the first half of 2023 saw a record number of SMBs open in the U.S. – a strong health indicator for the U.S. economy.
Mike Boland
August 30, 2023
How Do SMBs Find SaaS Products?
Benchmark Bytes is a series that examines Localogy’s original data on SMB tech deployment. Based on its recent Small Business Trends report, each installment drills down on a data excerpt and draws out meaning for Localogy Insider readers.
Mike Boland
August 29, 2023
Who’s Most Impacted in the Streaming Age?
New insights from Wells Fargo Securities paint a picture of the high stakes and impacted parties from cord-cutting. Specifically, it reports that local TV station groups – as opposed to major cable operators – could bleed the most.
Mike Boland
August 25, 2023
Is TikTok Moving into Search Marketing?
TikTok is getting into paid search. Known as “Search Ads Toggle,” the new program offers a paid search option for brand marketers to get in front of TikTok users for the first time.
Mike Boland
August 24, 2023
Amazon Amps Up its ‘Inspire’ Feed
Amazon is showing signs that it wants to accelerate engagement around its new Inspire feed – its scrolling content feed that contains TikTok-style short videos that showcase Amazon-sold products.
Mike Boland
August 23, 2023
What Features Attract SMBs to SaaS?
Benchmark Bytes is a series that examines Localogy’s original data on SMB tech deployment. Based on its recent Small Business Trends report, each installment drills down on a data excerpt and draws out meaning for Localogy Insider readers.
Mike Boland
August 22, 2023
Streaming TV Crosses the Chasm
This month, cable and broadcast channels dipped below 50 percent of U.S. viewers for the first time according to Nielsen. It’s a practical and symbolic loss for linear TV and a big win for streaming.
Mike Boland
August 18, 2023
Will AI Take Over Local Business Reviews?
Amidst a wave of excitement around the generative and conversational AI, the tech and media words continue to reach around and speculate it applies to their products. Now the latest area of applicability has emerged: reviews.
Mike Boland
August 16, 2023
Is Cortana the Latest Casualty of Conversational AI?
Microsoft has decided to kill off its legacy AI assistant, Cortana, effective this month. In terms of integration and investment, it will be replaced by Bing Chat, which is based on ChatGPT and lives in several Microsoft products.
Mike Boland
August 15, 2023
How Quickly Do SMBs Plan to Adopt SaaS?
Benchmark Bytes is a series that examines Localogy’s original data on SMB tech deployment. Based on its recent Small Business Trends report, each installment drills down on a data excerpt and draws out meaning for Localogy Insider readers.
Mike Boland
August 14, 2023
Apple: A Lesson in Big-Tech Revenue Diversification
After a decade and a half of runaway growth, global ubiquity, massive revenues, and planet-scale value creation, the iPhone has matured. So how do you keep satisfying massive growth requirements? Adjacent markets.
Mike Boland
August 11, 2023