BOULDER, Colo. (BRAIN) — For years, Buy Local Now has allowed brands to push consumers from their brand website to nearby bike shops that stock a particular product (or can get it from a wholesaler's warehouse). Now SmartEtailing, which launched the program in 2012, is taking it another step: The new BuyLocalNow.com site lets consumers browse an array of products that are available from nearby shops, which appear as shopping options on the site.
"We are doing everything we can to help the IBD channel compete," said SmartEtailing president Ryan Atkinson. "Most bike shops invest the majority of their marketing budget into their website itself and do not allocate resources to drive traffic to the website. Buy Local Now is a way for us to take an active role in driving qualified buyers to our clients."
SmartEtailing will invest in marketing the site so that it appears near the top of search results for specific products, something most brick-and-mortar retailers are unable to achieve through their own websites. SmartEtailing will allocate 1% of its website subscription revenue to the campaigns.
"This gives us a single web property to advertise and generate traffic," said Atkinson. "Once a shopper has found the product they want, we seamlessly refer them to a local bike shop to buy."
The site content also will include new product announcements, like those that are posted on many consumer media sites, but, unlike those articles, which often appear near the top of search results, the announcements on Buylocalnow.com will include links to local shops that stock the item.
The SmartEtailing Buy Local Now database is populated with over 500,000 cycling items with inventory status from more than 2,000 bike shops and more than 40 supplier warehouses.
Any qualifying local bike shop with a compatible point of sale system can join the Buy Local Now network for free. While not required, retailer sites built by SmartEtailing are optimized for the program.
Cycling suppliers who provide product content with UPC numbers to SmartEtailing are automatically enrolled to display products and refer buyers to local bike shops. SmartEtailing is also encouraging suppliers to connect their warehouses to the data network and utilize the consumer reviews service Powerreviews, which syndicates review content to the SmartEtailing and Buy Local Now network.
SmartEtailing also plans to use buylocalnow.com as a test platform to add new features and refine functionality of its retail websites.
More information: SmartEtailing press release.
