Minutive, Vol. 29: Winners/Losers in a Digital Age, The AI Era, and More.

Winners/Losers in a Digital Age

BY SCOTT GALLOWAY
Perhaps the best synthesis of digital trends (and their impacts on society) I’ve ever seen. And it’s two and a half years old!

If you like Mary Meeker’s annual State of the Internet report, you’ll love this video. (As an aside, Scott’s presentation style is one of my all-time favorites.)

Google: Our Assistant Will Trigger the Next Era of AI
BY STEVEN LEVY

More remarkable than its Assistant’s current intelligence is that Google is actually succeeding with a major PR campaign for the first time in company history. There’s not much new information in this interview, but the reminder of the trove of GOOG-411 data upon which Google is still relying for its voice recognition is a good one.

The Customer Funnel: A new framework for local marketing

BY GREG STERLING / CAMILYO
There are a TON of interesting data points in this whitepaper. Most remarkable: the substantial disconnect between “reputation management” supply and demand, and the lack of supply around retention (as opposed to acquisition) products for small businesses.

Local Consumer Review Survey
BY BRIGHT LOCAL

Not much has changed in this year’s edition, but the breakdown of verticals in which reviews play a more prominent vs. less prominent role is always interesting.

Four marketing mega trends nobody’s talking about

BY MARK SCHAEFER
I’m not sure “nobody’s” talking about them, but Mark’s is a good synopsis of the content landscape, both present and future.

GoDaddy Beefs Up SMB Offerings With WordPress Websites

BY STEPHANIE MILES
Something I’ve advised media companies and various local platforms, at BIA/Kelsey, Borrell, and similar conferences to offer for a looonnngggg time. This product should be a slam dunk success for GoDaddy if it’s well-executed–i.e. a custom dashboard that hides WordPress’s more complex features and focuses on key pages and metadata.

Slightly Off-Topic:
How Trumpism Threatens Silicon Valley

BY KHAN SHOIEB
Silicon Valley is becoming almost as hated as the “east coast liberal media” by a lot of middle-American voters, and with good reason. Many companies are unabashedly designing products that displace the economic dignity of these voters, and the oligopoly of information dissemination held by Google, Facebook, and Apple has become far more powerful than the editorial boards of the New York Times and Washington Post ever were.