Author Archive

Where Does AI Stick? The SMB AI Checklist

The last two years of AI’s rise have been scored by a chorus of punditry that goes something like: “AI is here, and it changes everything.” It’s a familiar tune in hype cycles that eventually morphs into “XYZ will change some things.” So jumping ahead, it’s a question of where AI works… and where it doesn’t.

Wix Brings Agentic Commerce to SMBs With Instant Google Bookings for AI Mode, Google Search and Maps

Wix Brings Agentic Commerce to SMBs With Instant Google Bookings

Wix is on a roll. After launching its Harmony vibe coding tool, and a recent integration with Quickbooks, the company’s latest move is to bring instant bookings to Google Search, Maps, and AI Mode. Searchers using those products can transact directly with businesses that run on Wix.

Yext Study Reveals AI Search visibility is Harder Than We Thought

Yext Study Reveals AI SEO is Harder Than We Thought

New research from Yext reveals the inner workings of the AI engines increasingly used by consumers in place of traditional search. Though this usage continues to grow, the rules of engagement for companies seeking visibility remain unclear. But according to Yext, AI SEO may be harder than it looks.

Snap’s Subscription Business Tops $1B, Driving Revenue Diversification

Snap’s Subscription Business Tops $1B, Driving Revenue Diversification

Snap has quietly built up to a new milestone that’s turning heads on Wall Street. Its subscription business – consisting of Snapchat+ and a few other things – has reached 25 million paid users. That brings with it an ARR of $1 billion – a well-timed diversification move as the broader ad world suffers. 

Wix and Intuit Just Made the SMB Website and Bookkeeping One Workflow

Wix and Intuit Just Made Websites and Bookkeeping One Workflow for SMBs

Now you can do your bookkeeping with your website builder. Wix and Intuit this week announced an expanded partnership that embeds core functions in the others’ familiar workflows. This is meant to offer one-stop-shop functionality for customers of both companies.  

Automated Lead Response: The Fastest-Growing AI Use Case in SMB SaaS

AI continues to morph into new forms and flavors as the enterprise software world figures out where it sticks. SMB SaaS is a subset or microcosm of that equation as AI is being applied to everything from email marketing to SEO gruntwork. The latest trend we’ve encountered is automated lead response. 

Tiger Pistol Examines the Art of Franchise Marketing Automation

Tiger Pistol Examines the Art of Franchise Marketing Automation

What are the top considerations and strategies for franchise-based multi-location brands? A new report from Tiger Pistol tackles this question. Entitled The Franchise Marketing Enablement Playbook, the thought-leadership resource is the latest in Tiger Pistol’s ongoing playbook series. 

Going Private: Clear Channel Outdoor Acquired for $6.3 Billion in Programmatic DOOH deal

Going Private: Clear Channel Outdoor Acquired for $6.3 Billion

Digital out-of-home giant Clear Channel Outdoor – a division of iHeart Media – has agreed to a $6.3 billion all-cash buyout. The buyer is a private equity investor group comprised of Mubadala Capital and TWG Global, which will pay CCO common shareholders $2.43 per share – a 71 percent premium.

Yelp & Housecall Pro Partner for SMB Home Services Lead Gen

Yelp Integrates Housecall Pro to Automate SMB Lead Gen

Yelp today announced a new partnership designed to help home services businesses streamline and automate their inbound lead management. By integrating Housecall Pro, it offers a Job Inbox that’s connected to existing Yelp tools like “Request a Quote” to automatically cultivate leads and save time. 

Precisely StreetPro Discover Unlocks Conversational Location Intelligence

Precisely’s StreetPro Discover Unlocks Conversational Location Intelligence

Precisely has launched a new product to help enterprises and multi-location brands better harness location intelligence. Known as StreetPro Discover, it goes deeper than most intelligence databases in unearthing place insights to support targeted marketing, physical expansion, and other purposes.

Snap Q4 Revenue Propelled by SMB Ad Growth

Beyond Snap’s financial performance in Q4, one thing that jumped out to us during the analyst call was pointed remarks about SMB advertising. In fact, ‘SMB’ or its spelled-out variations were said 11 times. The headline is that SMB ad growth is driving Snap’s top line.

Is Ring Local Media’s Next Sleeping Giant?

Is Ring a sleeping giant in the world of local media, advertising, and commerce? This is a field that’s led by the Googles, Yelps, and Metas of the world. But does the Amazon-owned Ring have an underutilized set of assets that it could activate any time to compete with these incumbent giants in Local?

Google Brings Gemini to Maps ... and Search Gets More Conversational

Google Embeds Gemini Deeper into Maps … and Search Gets More Conversational

As Google continues to flex its muscles with Gemini, the latest search product getting an AI infusion is mapping and navigation. By bringing Gemini to Google Maps, users can have conversational dialogues, a la AI Mode, as they’re out shopping or looking for something to eat in a new neighborhood.

Wix Launches Wix Harmony to Balance AI and Human Creativity

Wix Harmonizes Vibe Coding with New Tool

Wix this week launched Harmony, a new vibe coding tool that will help individuals and developers streamline the process of building websites. With lots of moving parts, one of Harmony’s hallmarks is balancing the right dose of AI for automated workflows, while preserving human agency and creativity.

HR for AI: How Can People Strategies Support AI Adoption?

HR for AI: How Can People Strategies Support AI Adoption?

Among the many angles surrounding the AI discussion these days, one that’s seldom discussed is how the technology is integrated into a given organization. We’re not talking about product integrations – though that’s closely related – but rather AI’s integration into company culture.

Can AI Tip the Scales Toward All-in-One SMB SaaS Platforms?

Can AI Tip the Scales Toward All-in-One SMB SaaS Platforms?

Among all the areas that AI could accelerate and elevate, another one occurred to us recently: All-in-one software offerings. These SMB SaaS platforms span several marketing and operational functions. How does AI align? The technology’s need for federated data compels platforms that process more stuff.

The Yelp Hatch Acquisition Unlocks SMB Lead Management

Yelp’s $300M Hatch Deal Signals a Bigger Bet on AI for SMB Operations

Yelp is expanding its push beyond marketing and deeper into SMB operations with the acquisition of AI-powered lead management platform Hatch. The $300 million deal strengthens Yelp’s ability to help local service businesses convert leads, automate customer communications, and reclaim time through AI-driven workflows—signaling a continued shift toward operational SaaS for SMBs