The Dos and Don’ts of Location-Based Marketing
The world of online marketing is getting more and more sophisticated as time goes on. With innovative data-driven tools and strategies allowing marketers and advertisers to get a better grasp of what potential customers want. Understanding the wants and needs of your target audience comes down to tracking and analyzing user data to turn ordinary content into a well-tailored and personalized online marketing campaign.
This is where location-based marketing comes in. Location is a crucial source of data if you want to succeed in the world of online marketing. Location-based marketing allows advertisers to create much more personalized content that prospective consumers will be more inclined to engage with.
Let’s have a look at some eye-opening statistics from Factual’s 2019 Location-Based Marketing Report:
- ‘Location data continues to be an effective tool for marketers — almost 9 in 10 marketers said location-based advertising and marketing resulted in higher sales, followed by growth in their customer base (86%) and higher customer engagement (84%).’
- ‘Quality of data exceeds all other features — marketers rank it twice as important as the number two and three purchase criteria, ease of use (14%) and price (12%).’
- ‘When it comes to defining data quality, accuracy (32%), precision (18%), and privacy-safe methodology (13%) the top three important factors.’
- ‘Of the 24% of marketers using location data for measurement and attribution, 51% of those plan to increase their use of location data in the next year.’
- ‘The primary use of location data is for targeting (67%) and 52% use location data for audience engagement, campaign strategy and customer experience or personalization.’
According to BIA Advisory Services, by 2022 the forecast amount that businesses could spend on location-based mobile marketing is 38.7 billion dollars.
Location-based marketing is a highly effective strategy for nearly all types of industries. Let’s have a quick look at the basic dos and don’ts of this marketing technique.
Where does location-based marketing work best?
Businesses that have actual locations are best suited for location-based marketing techniques; this may seem self-evident but it’s just one of those things that is so obvious is can be overlooked. Brands with a physical location are most suited to geotargeting projects as location-based marketing can take advantage of geofencing to target consumers who enter the specified area.
What is geofencing?
For those of you who aren’t familiar with geofencing, and for those that are you can consider this a refresher.
Geofencing uses GPS (global positioning) and RFID (radio frequency identification) to set a geographic perimeter. After the geofence specifics are set, the marketer or advertiser sets up automated app notifications, emails and SMS messages that are sent to a user’s mobile device when they step into the geofenced area.
Location-based marketing gives brands the ability to build a clientele of people who actually set foot in the vicinity of the geofence. Instead of gathering a target audience from likes, shares, and follows from social media, geotargeting campaigns give advertisers the opportunity to send the right message to the right consumers at the right time.
Real estate companies could benefit greatly from geotargeting campaigns because prospective homebuyers could be reached at the right time and place.
What are the common pitfalls to location-based marketing?
For anyone familiar with targeting tools knows that each technique has a ceiling. Limits such as the type and quality of the data you collect as well as the compliance restrictions can sometimes stand in the way of reaping the desired results.
Locations that don’t deliver results…traffic is key!
Location-based marketing, especially geofencing, relies heavily on foot traffic for the campaign to become a success. Without an adequate flow of traffic coming in and out of your geotargeted boundary you wont be able to reach the prospective customer; much like any website or social media marketing campaign, traffic is key.
When it comes to geotargeting you need to make sure that the location you target has a strong flow of traffic to make sure that you are maximizing the reach of your marketing campaign.
On the other hand, identifying a location-based target audience can be somewhat difficult when companies and firms are situated close to one another. If your business is located on the top floor of a skyscraper in New York for example it may be difficult to differentiate between prospective clients and an indifferent passer-by.
Goods that are found universally
For products and services that are limited and cannot be found everywhere then location-based marketing works well. However, for products and services that can be purchased all over the place perhaps geotargeting is not the way to go.
If you have a promotion, sale or coupon code these are often great for drawing in potential consumers that were on the fence about buying your product or signing up to your service. Whatever your business offering is geotargeting can make for a personalized marketing campaign.
What about sensitive data?
There are rules and regulations that protect sensitive data from being targeted by marketing companies. For this reason, location-based marketing firms often will block marketers from setting up a geofence near locations where sensitive data is held, such as hospitals or other healthcare facilities. So, this is one thing you will need to keep in mind when setting up your geotargeting ‘boundaries’.
Is it worth investing in? The future seems very bright for location-based marketing especially with the imminent rollout of the new 5G mobile network. Location-based marketing is effective because it allows marketers to reach the right people at the right time and the right place.
