I'm noticing that, in life, things tend to come full circle. Put another way, the pendulum will swing back to the opposite side, eventually. Whatever metaphor or analogy you want to use, some behaviors or axioms make sense and no matter what external factors temporarily change them - they always come back around. In digital marketing circles, location is re-entering the lexicon as a cornerstone of marketing strategy. There was a time in the early oughts when the big buzz was about content, and while it still is very important location takes into account where, when and context making it a more powerful targeting tool than content alone.
Recently, I had the pleasure of attending and speaking at O'Reilly Media's Where 2.0 Conference where
developers were discussing and launching some of the newest and most innovative location-based services technologies. Many of the services are aimed at making consumers more informed about their environment and/or entertaining so that rich location data is created about individuals and locations. I learned that the business of location-based digital marketing is complex, but it can be broken into a few digestible chunks.
Location is more than just where you are
Location, I have found, is also where you search for services, work, play and visit often. Consumers certainly consume services as they're matriculating throughout their day, so anticipation plays a key role in location-based digital advertising. Where a person is, and may go, is quite relevant to marketers but many data points must be taken into account to create that location graph.
Real-Time Bidding (RTB)
Obviously, RTB is necessary, to capture the attention of web users in the precise moment they're surfing the web, with location data layered in to increase relevancy. There are growing pains in each channel (mobile, out-of-home, social, etc.) with the integration of location and RTB, but as the capabilities are built out, precision will be added to the optimization of serving an ad impression.
Social Media Advertising makes location relevant
Social media has become so much more than Facebook and Twitter. Consumers, particularly the coveted 18-35 year old demo, have social graphs that can be used to enhance their profile with rich information. This information set can include where they go, what they do, who it's being done with and recommendations - which can be used to build highly accurate profiles for media placement. Also, advertising within social networks can be powerful. For instance, there is an industry developing around check-in services. Companies like Check-In Deals will place your ad in front of nearby Foursquare users for direct response relevance with potential instant gratification.
Location from all angles
Let's be honest, everything is digital or leads to something digital nowadays, even Billboards are 'Smart.' Some harken back to that movie 'The Minority Report' and call targeted billboard ads creepy. So do I, especially if you understand the technology that is used to make a digital out-of-home real-time and relevant. Regardless, it is happening at this very moment. What better way to optimize out-of-home ad spend than by measuring engagement rates with a video camera that clocks the length of exposure of each passer-by? Quick repsonse (QR) codes fit in this category also. Posters and signage containing them can be optimized for the specific location where they're placed. Scanners of the same poster might be "jumped" to varying content due to location.
Maps are all the rage
Of course Google Maps has excellent advertising opportunities for businesses, given the classified-like placement of businesses on interactive maps. There are also smart maps that help consumers make purchasing and even life decisions based on the data and functionality of the map. That data and/or inclusion into smart map infrastructure represent location relevant advertising for advertisers also. Finally, incoporating maps through mapping frameworks like OpenScales, can enhance owned advertising properties also.
Location is changing the way marketers and advertisers make their communications more relevant than ever before. Accuracy needs to continue to be refined as marketers concurrently figure out more innovative ways to incorporate location specific enhancements in their messages.
I'll make a bold statement, "starting today, location information of some sort will become a necessity in every advertising communication, old and new media."
Posted by Therran Oliphant, Product Strategist, Polk (06.08.2011)
Recently, I had the pleasure of attending and speaking at O'Reilly Media's Where 2.0 Conference where
developers were discussing and launching some of the newest and most innovative location-based services technologies. Many of the services are aimed at making consumers more informed about their environment and/or entertaining so that rich location data is created about individuals and locations. I learned that the business of location-based digital marketing is complex, but it can be broken into a few digestible chunks.Location is more than just where you are
Location, I have found, is also where you search for services, work, play and visit often. Consumers certainly consume services as they're matriculating throughout their day, so anticipation plays a key role in location-based digital advertising. Where a person is, and may go, is quite relevant to marketers but many data points must be taken into account to create that location graph.
Real-Time Bidding (RTB)
Obviously, RTB is necessary, to capture the attention of web users in the precise moment they're surfing the web, with location data layered in to increase relevancy. There are growing pains in each channel (mobile, out-of-home, social, etc.) with the integration of location and RTB, but as the capabilities are built out, precision will be added to the optimization of serving an ad impression.
Social Media Advertising makes location relevant
Social media has become so much more than Facebook and Twitter. Consumers, particularly the coveted 18-35 year old demo, have social graphs that can be used to enhance their profile with rich information. This information set can include where they go, what they do, who it's being done with and recommendations - which can be used to build highly accurate profiles for media placement. Also, advertising within social networks can be powerful. For instance, there is an industry developing around check-in services. Companies like Check-In Deals will place your ad in front of nearby Foursquare users for direct response relevance with potential instant gratification.
Location from all angles
Let's be honest, everything is digital or leads to something digital nowadays, even Billboards are 'Smart.' Some harken back to that movie 'The Minority Report' and call targeted billboard ads creepy. So do I, especially if you understand the technology that is used to make a digital out-of-home real-time and relevant. Regardless, it is happening at this very moment. What better way to optimize out-of-home ad spend than by measuring engagement rates with a video camera that clocks the length of exposure of each passer-by? Quick repsonse (QR) codes fit in this category also. Posters and signage containing them can be optimized for the specific location where they're placed. Scanners of the same poster might be "jumped" to varying content due to location.
Maps are all the rage
Of course Google Maps has excellent advertising opportunities for businesses, given the classified-like placement of businesses on interactive maps. There are also smart maps that help consumers make purchasing and even life decisions based on the data and functionality of the map. That data and/or inclusion into smart map infrastructure represent location relevant advertising for advertisers also. Finally, incoporating maps through mapping frameworks like OpenScales, can enhance owned advertising properties also.
Location is changing the way marketers and advertisers make their communications more relevant than ever before. Accuracy needs to continue to be refined as marketers concurrently figure out more innovative ways to incorporate location specific enhancements in their messages.
I'll make a bold statement, "starting today, location information of some sort will become a necessity in every advertising communication, old and new media."
Posted by Therran Oliphant, Product Strategist, Polk (06.08.2011)
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