> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.nearmedia.co/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Shopify Shop, SMB Saturday Help, Toxic Bros vs. the Gatekeepers - URL: https://www.nearmedia.co/shopify-consumers-smb-saturday-help-bros-vs-gatekeepers/ - Published: 2022-11-21T20:18:07.000Z - Updated: 2022-11-22T18:07:44.000Z - Author: Greg Sterling - Tags: News **We will be taking the remainder of the week off for the US Thanksgiving holiday. Amid the problems and challenges we all face, there's still a lot to be grateful for. Have a great week.** ### Shopify 'Search for Anything' Shopify has flirted for some time with being a consumer marketplace. While it's focused on B2B services and distribution, the company has created [various tools and apps](https://www.nearmedia.co/google-location-privacy-eu-antitrust-win-shopify-brand/), most visibly its Shop app, that are consumer-facing. However, Shopify [previously said](https://www.marketplacepulse.com/articles/shopify-tests-universal-search?ref=nearmedia.co) it doesn't see itself becoming a consumer marketplace. Yet it [has now added](https://www.marketplacepulse.com/articles/shopify-tests-universal-search?ref=nearmedia.co) improved search to its Shop app, which enables users to search across its entire merchant database. Whatever the company says officially, Shop is now the [9th most downloaded shopping app](https://apptopia.com/store-insights/top-charts/itunes-connect/shopping/united-states?ref=nearmedia.co) on iOS; Amazon is number four. Shopify reported 2.1 million merchants on the platform at the end of last year – although [churn is reportedly high](https://www.nearmedia.co/in-store-boom-waning-review-influence-shopify-churn/). Most of those are small businesses, although the company has been steadily moving up market with Shopify Plus now contributing 33% of monthly recurring revenue. It seems inevitable that Shopify will continue its organic evolution into a consumer brand. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/03/80/0380d96d-ef7e-450e-96b3-2963e18aaab5/content/images/2022/11/Screen-Shot-2022-11-21-at-10.58.14-AM.png) Source: Shopify **Our take:** - Shopify may be concerned about competition among customers, alienating distribution partners and/or diluting focus. - Building a consumer brand out of Shop, which it can do organically, seems like a net-positive for Shopify merchants. It's another channel. - Beyond Etsy, it's difficult to find efficient places to shop small merchants online. Shop could be that place, as a viable alternative to Amazon. ### SMB Saturday Challenges Small Business Saturday, which began in 2010 as a cynical marketing ploy by American Express, has evolved into a bona fide shopping event beside Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Amex [estimates](https://www.sba.gov/about-sba/organization/sba-initiatives/small-business-saturday?ref=nearmedia.co) that SMB Saturday sales ("at independent retailers and restaurants") reached $23B last year. A similar performance will be needed to help many struggling small retailers in 2022\. But that's far from guaranteed. Beyond existing, top-of-mind local merchants it's difficult for consumers to find small sellers online, whether for e-commerce or local shopping. There's the Local Pack of course, and Google has been pushing to get small merchant inventory online with Pointy, [but mostly to generate ad spend](https://support.google.com/business/answer/11423725?ref=nearmedia.co). Google Shopping offers a "nearby" filter but not an SMB filter, which it could offer. Amazon could also have an SMB filter, given how aggressively it touts its small business support [in PR](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/small-business/small-businesses-sold-100-million-items-during-the-lead-up-to-prime-day?ref=nearmedia.co). As discussed, Shopify's Shop app is a source of SMB e-commerce options. There's also Etsy, and Amex itself has its own [very weak directory](https://www.americanexpress.com/en-us/maps?ref=nearmedia.co) for Small Business Saturday. **Consumers Prefer to Support SMBs** ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/03/80/0380d96d-ef7e-450e-96b3-2963e18aaab5/content/images/2022/11/Screen-Shot-2022-11-21-at-11.55.08-AM.png) Source: Zendesk 2019 n=1,001 US adults **Our take:** - Multiple surveys show most consumers want to support SMBs, although they often wind up [shopping price](https://streetfightmag.com/2022/11/17/vibenomics-survey-retail-shoppers-prioritizing-price-above-all-else/?ref=nearmedia.co) (see Walmart, Target). - If big marketplaces and search engines made it easier to identify SMBs it would drive more sales their way, online and off. - Despite consumer demand, SMB online discovery remains a problem, more than 20 years after Google launched. ### Toxic Bros. vs. Gatekeepers Donald Trump is back on Twitter – or at least the door is open for his return. Kanye West [is also back](https://thehill.com/blogs/in-the-know/3744876-ye-returns-to-twitter-again-after-restriction-over-antisemitic-remarks/?ref=nearmedia.co) and [so are other Twitter exiles](https://www.businessinsider.com/list-of-twitter-accounts-reinstated-since-elon-musk-took-over-2022-11?ref=nearmedia.co). Elon Musk has sought to make good on his "free speech absolutist" pledge while avoiding the "hellscape" (or hatescape) outcome his critics envision. His tightrope walk is "[freedom of speech, not freedom of reach](https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/379944/musk-reinstates-banned-twitter-accounts-unveils-f.html?ref=nearmedia.co)." That sounds good but probably won't work in cases of extremists with large follower counts. Yet if the content on Twitter becomes too toxic Apple and Google [could remove Twitter](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2022-11-20/apple-google-to-serve-as-gatekeepers-and-beneficiaries-of-8-twitter-blue-laph0obf?ref=nearmedia.co) from their app stores. They'll also want a piece of in-app subscription revenue as Twitter pivots from ads. Until then, major advertisers represent a check on Musk's "absolutist" aspirations. Several agencies and brands have [paused or withdrawn spending](https://www.teamblind.com/post/i-told-my-team-to-pause-our-750kmonth-twitter-ads-budget-last-week-4dnbo1Ft?ref=nearmedia.co). GroupM, which controls $50B in media spending, [laid out specific conditions](https://www.theverge.com/2022/11/14/23459254/twitter-high-risk-ads-groupm-advertisers-content-moderation?ref=nearmedia.co) for its brand customers' return. Most of them surround brand safety. Musk may nonetheless defy them. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/03/80/0380d96d-ef7e-450e-96b3-2963e18aaab5/content/images/2022/11/Screen-Shot-2022-11-21-at-10.32.20-AM.png) Source: Stable Diffusion **Our take:** - Twitter is now a private company; it will be harder to gain visibility on the health of the company other than through hearsay and leaks. - There's a surprisingly large cadre of true believers who think that, while rough, Musk is doing necessary things to revitalize Twitter. - If Twitter traffic remains stable/grows, brands will probably [return](https://www.axios.com/2022/11/19/cbs-news-twitter-elon-musk-pause?ref=nearmedia.co). But Musk himself has become an obstacle to Twitter's future success. ## Recent Analysis - ****Near Memo episode 90:** [Google review bug saga, local business review impact, Google’s misguided Locator Plus store finder](https://www.nearmedia.co/ep-90/). ## Short Takes - Google testing new **Maps** GBP [overlay with images](https://twitter.com/b4k%5Fkhushal/status/1570288210378633216?ref=nearmedia.co). - **Yelp** offers [Local SEO advice](https://streetfightmag.com/2022/11/21/local-seo-strategy-4-tips-every-agency-needs-to-know/??ref=nearmedia.co), but do you agree? - **Google** appears to be testing [new GBP reviews presentation](https://twitter.com/cbrodzky/status/1593796024996630528?ref=nearmedia.co). - Terms **SMBs** use to describe themselves [vary by size](https://bredin.com/blog/2022/11/bredin-report-the-best-way-to-address-your-smb-customer/?ref=nearmedia.co). - Best practices for [offline conversion tracking](https://searchengineland.com/google-ads-tracking-offline-conversions-best-practices-389544?ref=nearmedia.co) for **Google Ads**. - Marketing during a **recession**: [What not to do](https://searchengineland.com/marketing-recession-common-mistakes-389542?ref=nearmedia.co). - New **Chromium-based Arc** [shakes up](https://www.theverge.com/23462235/arc-web-browser-review?ref=nearmedia.co) the traditional browser UX. - **Target** [observes](https://progressivegrocer.com/target-has-warning-retailers?ref=nearmedia.co) "significant changes" in consumer shopping for Q4\. - Salesforce [predicts](https://www.salesforce.com/news/stories/nline-discount-predictions/?ref=nearmedia.co) **BOPIS** "surge" during Cyberweek. - Spammers [exploiting](https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/google-search-results-poisoned-with-torrent-sites-via-data-studio/?ref=nearmedia.co) **Google Looker Studio** to boost visibility. - **Alexa** unit [suffering significant layoffs](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/amazons-alexa-unit-faces-layoffs-113600639.html?ref=nearmedia.co), future looking bleak. - Nobody knows what will happen with "**generative-AI**" [and copyright](https://www.theverge.com/23444685/generative-ai-copyright-infringement-legal-fair-use-training-data?ref=nearmedia.co). - Will **Tumblr** [get the last laugh](https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2022/11/elon-musk-twitter-tumblr-blue-check-marks/672165/?ref=nearmedia.co)? (Atlantic) Listen to our [latest podcast](https://www.nearmedia.co/memo/). [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/03/80/0380d96d-ef7e-450e-96b3-2963e18aaab5/content/images/2021/02/near_memo_banner.png)](https://nearmedia.co/memo?ref=nearmedia.co) How can we make this better? Email [us](mailto:gsterling@nearmedia.co) with suggestions and recommendations.