Written by Miranda May
With a multitude of mobile app features available today, many businesses are asking, “What features are a must?” or “What will separate my app from other competitors?” A mobile strategy, as well as any other product/service, can only be as successful as the research conducted on your consumers (“How are they behaving?” “What’s influencing this behavior?”). With today’s advancement in mobile technology, we are able to track, in real time, what users are doing and where they are going. Tracking your users’ unique IP address, in real time, gives you the ability to track their behavior (what stores are they shopping at, what areas of your event they keep returning to, what interests them, etc.); thus, giving you a competitive advantage. Through the use of IP Fencing, in conjunction with push notification technology, you can give your consumers what they want and need in real time.
What is IP/Geo fencing?
IP fencing, also known as geo fencing, is a feature that enables you to set up geographical boarders around specific locations. When your users enter these boarders, a timely and relevant message can be delivered to them to drive sales. Let’s say, for example, that you own a large hotel in Las Vegas. You notice that a majority of your app users are at your sold out Cirque Du Soleil show. After the show, you track your consumers, and notice a majority of them head over to ABC bar in the hotel; however, sales are very low at the XYZ bar. Through the use of IP fencing and push notifications, you can send a tailored message to users within the geo fence of bar XYZ that says, “XYZ Bar Special: All drinks 50% off until 8pm.” Your previously empty bar is now packed.
Another advantage presented with geo fencing is advertising opportunities. A publisher can sell advertisement space within the app, to companies that are looking to target people in specific areas with specific interests. Del Mar Racetrack, for example, used our geo-fencing feature on their app to determine the frequency of attendance at surrounding bars and restaurants. With the data gathered, Del Mar has the opportunity to present this data to those restaurants and encourage them to purchase advertisement space within their app and specific geo fence. This allows the publishers to deliver more relevant ads according to the current location of their users, as well as yield higher conversions and better ROI for their advertisers.
For more information on Parallel 6 and our mobile technology, please visit here.