Geofencing is a tool that uses GPS, radio frequency identification, Wi-Fi, or cellular data to define the boundaries of a specific geographic area. Once the specified area has been set, consumers can trigger targeted marketing, such as text, in-app notification, mobile advertisements, or other forms of communications such as emails from various businesses or companies. These advertisements are based on when they enter or leave a specific geographic region. Geofencing is beneficial for consumers, retailers, and marketers as it can benefit everyone throughout the business process.
To begin, geofencing is beneficial for the consumer when they are shopping or looking for specific products. When they type in keywords or phrases into websites or online search engines, the closest and most applicable option will pop up more often than not. This allows the consumer to see options that are viable closer to them as opposed to being away. For example, if consumer types in “haircut near me,” all possible haircut places might show up within a 5 or 10-mile radius, depending on what the business has set up.
Moving forward, this proves the importance of geofencing for retailers or businesses as well. Businesses must have geofencing set up in a radius around their physical location or the location they ideally want to sell from if they only have an online store. This will then allow them to “ping” consumers with messages and potentially automatically generate leads without them having to try too hard or put physical effort into it. By doing this, customers might be more willing to stop by or purchase something, now that they know the store is there.
Finally, it is equally as important to marketers because it allows you to track data and consumer patterns which can then create better algorithms for geofencing in the future. It can also help them predict trends or patterns that could help with businesses creating social media campaigns and generating leads because it can identify the target markets of people who are typing in keywords or coming into the store or locations radius the most. The tracking of this data through geofencing is an integral part of helping marketers do their jobs and help businesses or companies create more revenue and profit.
Geofencing overall was a tool created to help the lives of consumers, businesses, and marketers alike, by making it easier to get real-time insights into customer behavior and places where they participate in certain activities in a specific geographic location. It also allows the businesses to hone in on a more specific targeted audience with stronger ad campaigns, then leading to happier consumers and more profit for retailers. By utilizing geofencing as much as possible, the consumer gets a more personalized and local experience, the retailer gets more traffic, and the marketer gains more insight on consumer patterns and what they can do to build and shape future interactions.
