Geolocation data is becoming an increasingly important field of tech, and its business applications are almost limitless. We’re seeing geolocation data used in dozens of industries, from tourism to healthcare, fitness, sport, retail, finance, and more.
Location data works by harnessing the power of location-based tools and services in modern devices like smartphones, using that information to essentially track where people go.
It can help to prevent financial fraud, make it easier for consumers to find goods and services in their local areas, allow fitness enthusiasts to keep detailed recordings of their running and cycling trips, and so much more.
What are the benefits of location data?
There are many ways in which businesses can use location data to their advantage, and this guide will go over just some of the key benefits your company can enjoy with investment in geolocation technology.
1Ad Targeting
Location data is particularly important when it comes to marketing, and one of its best benefits for businesses of all kinds, from retail to real estate, is that it can be used for effective ad targeting campaigns. With the help of location data, it’s possible for businesses to make sure that their ads are seen by the right people.
If your business serves a local community, for example, you can use location data in your marketing campaigns to get your ads seen by people in the local area. Or, if you run a fitness business, you could use location data to target your ads towards people who tend to do lots of exercise and have “checked in” at gyms and fitness studios often in recent weeks and months.
2Stronger Segmentation
Segmentation has been a cornerstone of effective marketing for many years. It’s all about dividing your audience into different categories, based on their needs, desires, or habits, and then catering your marketing efforts accordingly in order to suit those different groups.
A popular example of this concept is a toothpaste company. The company knows that people buy toothpaste for many different reasons, so it runs different ads focusing on those reasons, like whiter teeth, fresher breath, less chance of cavities, oral health for children, and so on.
Location data can be of huge benefit for stronger segmentation in your business too, as it’s possible to link behavior with location and place your audience into even more specific groups. For example, you can see people who spend the most amount of time in your stores or physical locations, those who haven’t visited for a while, those who live nearby, those who live far away, and so on.
3Real-Time Marketing
Another marketing benefit of location data is how it can be used for real-time campaigns. For example, if a person is in a particular location, like near one of your stores or even in one of your stores, you can target them with relevant ads encouraging them to buy products or enjoy the benefits of unique promotional offers.
This concept, known as real-time targeting, is becoming increasingly prevalent in many modern marketing campaigns and is proving highly effective too, with many businesses reporting strong results from targeted social media ads that make use of some sort of location component.
4Building Customer Bonds
Another big way in which location data can start to work for your business is in helping you build better customer bonds, thereby increasing brand loyalty, as well as making it more likely for people to recommend your business to others and to choose your company in the future when they find themselves in need of the relevant goods and services you provide.
This is all thanks to the marketing concepts and ideas mentioned above. As brands make use of location data to provide more customized, tailored, specific ad campaigns, customers tend to feel more valued as a result and more likely to shop with that same brand in the future.
In essence, good use of location data can give customers the impression that your brand knows them best and can be there for them in any situation, responding to their needs and appealing to their desires with effective, targeted, well thought-out marketing, rather than bland, universal messages that fail to establish that same connection.
Final Word
It’s clear to see that location data has a lot to offer for businesses of all kinds, and it can make a real difference when it comes to connecting with customers, generating new leads, building your brand, and cementing your status as an industry leader. Any company wanting to take marketing to the next level should strongly consider an investment in geolocation.
