Getting started in the location space
Yesterday was a big day. I unseated the long-time mayor of my neighborhood Starbucks on Foursquare and I earned the Florida pin on Gowalla by checking into Lakewood Ranch Main Street, a retail development near my house.
That I can get so many rewards for such little effort -- simply by sharing my location -- doesn't seem to cut into the fun. In the curious space where gaming meets tangible reality, these silly badges and mayorships go straight to my pleasure center. In fact, I've found myself going to great lengths to obtain them and then brag about them to my friends.
Get connected. Want to meet up with the companies that are leading location-based marketing into the future? Check out the exhibit hall at ad:tech San Francisco, April 11-13.
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Digital location-based marketing is the next big frontier in marketing. Not only does it offer the ability to reward and increase frequency of engagement with already-loyal customers, but it also allows consumers to discover new businesses and experiences.
While some marketers are faced with reluctant leadership that wants to stick with what's always worked, other companies find it hard to fight the temptation to adopt new location-based technologies that invite cheap experimentation. Whether you're a marketer who is trying to sell your company on experimenting with location-based marketing, or your company is already sold, here are seven things to consider when plotting your course to location-based marketing nirvana.
Why marketers should care
Location-based marketing might not be the right fit for every business or customer segment. It is more closely related to point-of-sale incentives than to massive brand advertising. But ironically, according to Borrell Associates, 97 percent of the spend on location-based marketing will come from multi-location retailers and businesses.
Mobile proximity-based advertising has been estimated at $200 million for 2010 with anticipated growth to $760 million in 2011, according to Borrell's 2010 proximity-based marketing study. Within five years, the study estimates that location-based marketing will be a $6 billion market. It's here, and it's growing quickly, so think of experimentation in this space as a way to stay ahead of the curve with regard to consumer marketing technologies.
There are plenty of ways to get your feet wet and understand the audience opportunity for your business without blowing an astronomic sum on custom app development.
