• restaurants Freebies + Social Media = Hot Restaurant Strategy by Karlene Lukovitz

    Brands could benefit from more compelling Facebook pages, perhaps incorporating surveys, polling and a restaurant locator, Vitrue's Reggie Bradford says. Providing franchisees with the tools to tap their online social circles to market local events is another opportunity, as is capturing event RSVPs to go back to individuals with coupons and other loyalty-building offers, he adds. ...Read the whole story

  • retail Appliance Makers See Hope In Rebate Program by Karl Greenberg

    "We like this program because it immediately spurs consumer spending on efficient appliances, since they get both a rebate and the efficiency savings," says Jill Notini, VP communications and marketing at the Washington, D.C.-based AHAM, says the Energy Efficient Appliance Rebate Program will jump-start a market frozen by the housing crisis. ...Read the whole story

  • telecom Consumers Spend Nearly $100 Per For Mobile Apps by Aaron Baar

    "Compared with the cost of most of these devices, it's the first time we've seen applications exceed the cost of the phones," says Jeff Orr, ABI's senior analyst for mobile content. The level of spending is even more considerable when taking into account that many of the applications come at a low cost--as low as 99 cents apiece in Apple's iPhone App Store, ...Read the whole story

  • research CMOs Look To Web For Improved ROI by Les Luchter

    Companies plan to increase marketing efforts that highlight their social responsibility and what they are doing to minimize environmental impact, the study found. The study's author also says there has been a significant shift in reasons for such marketing--what once was just good publicity has now become key to earning consumer trust. ...Read the whole story

  • retail Sears Slashes Advertising, Gains From Layaways by Sarah Mahoney

    Categories tied to housing fared the worst: Home and household goods, appliances, and lawn and garden. Margins declined, as the company cut prices to stay competitive, which were partially offset by lower expenses, including $94 million whacked from its advertising and display expenses in the fiscal year. ...Read the whole story

  • trends BIA: Local Advertising Continues Downward Spiral by David Goetzl

    A well-known researcher is projecting that the local ad market will continue to experience revenue dropoffs. More startling: the forecast covers the next five years, during which, some experts have predicted, the economy will presumably begin its turnaround. ...Read the whole story

rant Can Bankers Still Bank On Golf To Build Business? by James R. Gregory

Unless we want to see a gray curtain of paranoia descend over our country, we had better take a breather. Let the bankers get back ... ...More

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