The past year hasn’t been easy for market analysts, especially after the pandemic so drastically changed the way that people shop and move around in the world. Market research companies are tasked with giving their clients results faster than ever before.  With this abrupt pace of change, it can be hard to stay ahead of the curve. This is why market researchers should take a closer look at location intelligence.

It’s very likely that market researchers have heard of location intelligence, but only as a foot traffic analysis tool and nothing more. There are so many data solutions on the market today that help marketers deliver results, but none of them are quite as unique or potent as location intelligence. Here are the top five things that market research companies should know about location intelligence.

Your clients likely have some information about their customer base, but a lot of that data is limited to only demographic information. Using location intelligence for data enrichment can enhance demographic data with what their real-world preferences are and how they move around in the world (also known as the customer journey).

For example, let’s say that your client is a leading automotive brand. They are trying to re-engage their old customer base and sticking with the demographic data before COVID. So far, their efforts haven’t been successful so you decide to use location intelligence. The results are fascinating: their customer base has been frequenting golf courses in the area, they recently visited an antique car show, and they are interested in furniture stores. With this new information in tow, you’re able to relay that the reason why their ads weren’t working was because their interests and shopping times had changed dramatically. Not only this, but you are also able to help them build a 360-degree view of who their customers are instead of just where they come from.

Location intelligence gives you real-time insights into your customer’s target market at a time when so many things are evolving. Market research companies need real-time and reliable data to deliver the best outcomes for their clients, and location intelligence can help fulfill this need. If there’s anything that we know about this day and age, it’s that old data is no longer reliable; the tried and true methods of the past are largely moot, and your clients need you to innovate. 

This real-world data is collected in near real-time, which means that research can be conducted without the unnecessary doubt of whether or not you got it right the first time. 

If there’s anything that we can firmly say is a fact, it’s that consumer trends are really hard to predict. How valuable would it be for you to have this information in your back pocket? Using location intelligence, you have insight into what the next big thing is before most people realize that there is a trend in the making. Imagine advising your client to stock up on X product, or to change the tone of a campaign because that is what their customers will want to see. 

This can be as simple as discovering a rising fashion trend or as big as finding a whole movement in the making before it happens.

The best way to kick this one off is with an example: Let’s say that your client is an athletic brand whose customer base is mostly people who like to race. They are looking at opening a new storefront by a popular lake in town where locals like to swim on weekends. They hire you to conduct some market research in the area to ensure that their messaging and target audiences are on point. 

Using location intelligence, you are able to determine that although this lake is a weekend hotspot, the primary audience is now young people and small families. You broaden your scope because if you can’t come back to them with the news that they want to hear about that lakefront location, you are determined to give them another option. You find that the athletes in the area have foregone the lake for training and have instead opted for the local beach. You take this information back to your client and not only do you save them money on a location that wouldn’t have yielded results, but found them an alternative option that proved to be far more lucrative for them.

There is nothing more valuable to your client than conducting reliable and actionable competitive analysis. In the past, this may have seemed like a monumental and near-impossible task. With location intelligence, the data you need is right in the palm of your hand. With competitive analysis, you can:

• Figure out what is attracting their shoppers to the competition
• How effective their competition’s marketing is 
• Peak shopping times at competitor stores
• Help your client create a conquest strategy that actually works

Location intelligence is a data solution that was developed with the modern market researcher in mind. Despite the heavy changes that we have witnessed and the challenges that we have had to overcome, this is a data solution that can help you and your client keep up with the shifting tides without exhausting resources or dealing with overly complicated data that doesn’t provide actionable insights. 

Get a leg up on your competition, be in the know, and fill in the gaps with location intelligence. Contact us to speak with an expert today!