Mel Taylor Hyper Local Marketing Blog

How to fix common website errors. This video features the KMIR-TV Palm Springs Website Review from July 2012.

For years, we warned against trusting Facebook and other 3rd party platforms to build a business. We watched in astonishment as newspaper execs, radio owners and small business operators thought the ‘free’ platforms of Facebook, Twitter & Youtube were a gift from heaven. These folks would ignore our warnings. Some would go so far as…

I spent 15 years as a Rock DJ in Philadelphia. Loved it. But then that damn inter-web thingy happened. In the late 90’s, I had my dream job; mid-days after Howard Stern. 94 WYSP, the biggest Rock station in Philly. That gig was so cool, that I didn’t mind filtering out the static coming from my…

What have we learned over the past 6 months of managing hyper-local news sites in the Atlantic City area? Glad you asked. Driving traffic to local news websites via social media is getting tougher. Unless you pay to boost. Even if you do, most of your followers / fans / subscribers will still NOT see…

Cities where newspapers shut down or downsize too much, see increase in government costs. Why? Lack of scrutiny over local deals, say researchers tracking the decline of local news outlets. When local newspapers scale back operations, local communities lose out. When the cat is away…. mice will play. Politicos take liberties when no one holds them…

Here’e a quick summary of best practices for those looking to succeed in the Hyper Local news & marketing space. Cut costs to the bone. Boot strap everything. Be cautious of vendors who re-package open source solutions. You will overpay. Enabling local commerce is job #1 Sharing local news and info is important, but a…

The dying legacy media. Sad to watch our former information gatekeepers called newspaper, TV and Radio bleed jobs. Local newspapers suffering sharp declines in circulation and AD revenue. They’re losing the bully pulpit too. Time to get crafty. Not much time left. Maybe the know-it-alls at Poynter can figure a way out… Of course, the…

We started our hyper local news and marketing journey back in 2007. While attending a NYC conference, speaker Jeff Jarvis asked me what my website address was. Uh-oh. Don’t have one. Even though I was trying to start a digital marketing company. You see, back in 2007, I was just getting started as an independent,…

Back in 2007 when we launched our digital marketing consultancy, local newspaper and radio were still fairly successful. While both of thee traditional media platforms were ramping up their internet based efforts, most were doing the bare minimum. At that time, there was still just way too much money to be made the old fashioned…

We know far too many businesses that do 99% of their marketing and advertising….using Facebook and other Social Media sites. Geez. It’s insane to build a business on land you can’t control. See: Digital Sharecropping. As readers of Get Smart Digital know, we’ve been warning those who leverage Facebook for business purposes. Facebook can cut you…