Mapping, Location-Based Services, and #SAPPHIRENOW
Social user are increasingly accessing social networks via mobile devices.
According to eMarketer:
“A mobile first mentality is taking hold. The key opportunity for marketers in the shift toward mobile is that mobile users not only log in more frequently, but they also spend more total time on social media sites. As devices integrate social media more deeply, such as by making it easier to upload photos from a mobile phone to a social site, it reinforces the mobile-social virtuous circle, making it even stronger.”
Consequently, social media and apps are becoming more and more inseparable and the list of opportunities to engage with one’s target audience 1:1 is growing at the same time. Apps can make it possible to interact, look up information and find locations, to only name a few. But while Google Maps has become ubiquitous to navigate streets, mapping & navigating the inside of buildings can still be a challenge.
Imagine the possibilities of location-based services at a trade show or other venues. Often show floors are huge and crowded, and there are many simultaneously competing offerings. Getting a show floor GPS adds a lot of value > then add “gamification” options and you can create real engagement, networking and buzz.
Of course, the show floor example is only one of many possibilities to apply this technology. As part of an advanced mobile BI strategy, location intelligence can provide a lot more, for example, geo-analysis for split second decision-making.
Here is an example of using mapping & location-based services at SAP’s #SAPPHIRENOW event with #PrizeFinder.
This blog is republished (and has been slightly modified) with the kind permission of Ryan Goodman of Centigon Solutions:
The New Frontier for Mapping & Location-Based Services is Indoors
The ability to locate, track, and access information related to indoor spaces is a huge opportunity to enrich our lives as consumers. At the same time, marketing, sales, and operational business functions can greatly benefit from the valuable data that until only recently was extremely difficult to capture.
Indoor Analytics Everywhere
Think about your experience when walking into a coffee shop. You actually create a tremendous volume of data each time you pick up a latte. Each of your movements inside a brick and mortar store is telling – especially when you extrapolate that data across multiple patrons for a period of time. The following analytics illustrate how simple movement by itself can predict behavior. When coupled with point of sale, membership, and demographic data, the possibilities are limitless.
Challenges
1. Location Awareness
The smart phone and tablet devices we use today are moderately accurate at tracking geographic coordinates using GPS. All bets are off once you move to an indoor space. Consumers are familiar with opening a device and hitting a single button to orient them-selves in physical space. Why should indoor mapping be any different?
2. The Indoor Meta Data
While digital geographic data is readily and publicly available, buildings schematics, blueprints, and the contents within the walls of brick and mortar buildings are typically not digitally stored; especially when it comes to older buildings. When considering indoor mapping, you typically separate the permanent structure from the contents inside of the building. Depending on the use case, a map related to an inside space could change frequently. Examples are trade show spaces, data centers, malls, airports, and office building.
Whether you are going to attend #SAPPHIRENOW this year or not, check out this video on the #PrizeFinder app to see location-based services in action. In this case, attendees will be able to locate prize drawing at exhibitor booth and get notified when to show up for the raffle. For exhibitors, this provides the option to draw more traffic to their booths
You can find out more or sign up to use the #PrizeFinder app here.
