Location-based marketing, also called geolocation marketing, is becoming an increasingly popular campaign tactic as geospatial data technology becomes more refined and widely available. This form of personalization allows brands and agencies to find and engage with new and potential customers more frequently, and at the right time.
In fact, market research company eMarketer forecasts that companies will spend $26.5 billion in mobile location-targeted advertising in 2019. Therefore, it is important for marketers to understand the different types of location-based marketing strategies to leverage them effectively and take advantage of the opportunities this new technology affords.
What is Location-Based Marketing?
Location-based marketing provides the ability to personalize content based on privacy-compliant, opted-in location data received from smartphones. Marketers then use this data to create location-based audiences and analytics, then create and reach these ideal audiences with more relevant content and advertising. Personalized marketing based on real-time location intelligence data can increase ROI by as much as 30%. Let’s review three tactics to employ in a location-based marketing campaign:
Geotargeting
Geotargeting refers to constructing audiences based upon historical data. By using data that shows customers’ actual visits to specific locations in the past, marketers can produce advertising and content that will reach much more relevant audiences. For example, people seen at health food stores are identified as health food shoppers, and people seen at pet stores are identified as pet owners.
Geotagged data can also be combined with store, customer, or local demographic data. It can then be overlaid on a map to help identify new locations or customers to target or improve current customer value by providing a more personalized service.
Geofencing
Geofencing—showing a consumer advertising or content based on their real-time location—involves location-based services (LBS) that utilize real-time geo-data from a mobile device or smartphone to determine when a consumer enters or exits a designated geo-fenced area. Geo-fences can be dynamically generated, such as radii around stores, or they can be a predefined set of boundaries, such as school zones or neighborhoods.
Smartphone users must opt in to sharing their location. When they enter a designated geofenced area, they may receive a text message, a push notification from an app, or see location-based ads while using an app in that location. Geofencing advertising campaigns are ideal to show consumers locally specific advertisements and content. Facebook, Instagram, Google, and Snapchat are the most widely known and popular platforms that employ geofencing marketing tools.
Geoconquesting
Marketers use the geoconquesting tactic to reach people that have visited their competitors’ locations with the express purpose of converting those customers into their own. For example, a Starbucks marketer wants to change the coffee buying habits of customers that also visit Dunkin’. They might utilize geoconquesting and offer a free drink to audiences that had the Starbucks app open when they visited a Dunkin’ location.
By leveraging location-based marketing tactics, you can ensure that your advertising and content connects with the right audience more frequently and at the right state of the buying lifecycle. If you have any questions about location-based marketing or want to learn more about how it can help your business, contact us at Millennium Agency today.
About Millennium Agency
Millennium Agency is a national, award-winning, digital, creative, content/PR, and video marketing firm. With offices in Boston and New Hampshire, our team unites creative branding and data analytics to accelerate our clients’ growth, while combining our clients’ vision with our marketing expertise to increase sales opportunities and drive brand success. From video advertising and web design to social media and PR, Millennium can guide your marketing efforts every step of the way. Contact the professionals at Millennium Agency to learn more!
Linda Fanaras is the President and Founder of Millennium Agency located in Manchester, NH, and Boston. She can be reached at 877-873-7445 or lfanaras@mill.agency.
