
Thanks to smartphones, we now have information at our fingertips at all times. With so much media going digital these days, how does a business best advertise to their target audience? How do you catch a consumer’s attention when pop-up ads and email blasts can so easily be ignored, silenced, or deleted? One ingenious digital marketing technique that continues to grow in popularity is geofencing.
What is Geofencing & How Does it Work?
Geofencing uses GPS, RFID, or IP technology to set up a virtual boundary around a geographical location. An app or software triggers a pre-programmed action when a mobile device or RFID tag enters or exits the location. This could be anything from a text message or targeted ad on social media, to security monitoring or tracking of data. Businesses ranging from retail to hospitality have all started using geofencing to engage with consumers.
Geofencing can target users with alerts, promotions, or coupon offers, based on their proximity to a specific location or event. Some retailers even use it against competitors, urging customers to consider their business instead.
So, Should I Use Geofencing in my OOH marketing campaigns?
From our team, it’s a resounding YES! We’re seeing more and more industries beginning to rely more heavily on a “phygital strategy” to reach target audiences. The name is just as it implies—ads and marketing material that exist both physically and digitally, and that offer personalized, interactive experiences for consumers. Geofencing is a particularly advantageous phygital strategy for out-of-home (OOH) marketing. That’s because it grabs a consumer’s attention in a relevant way, based on the consumer’s real-time location and behavior.
The Advantages of Geofencing for Digital OOH Marketing
- Alerts & Promotions: A popular way for retailers to deliver in-store promotions as customers enter the store, geofencing also helps businesses target ads to a specific audience, based on users’ location-data.
- Social Media Interaction: Location-based promoted filters, stickers, and other share-able content on social media networks all use the virtual boundaries of geofencing.
- Audience Engagement: By knowing more about your audience, you can provide them with specific, compelling advertising. For example, concert, festival, or fair organizers might use geofencing to engage with the audience via crowdsourcing social media posts or delivering information about the event or venue.
Here’s the bottom line: when a consumer is presented with an ad they find relevant and useful, it’s more likely that they’ll engage with it. And effective audience engagement means improved brand awareness, a higher ROI, and ultimately a lift in sales.
Build Geofencing With AllOver Media
At the end of the day, it’s about delivering the right message at the right time to the right person. At AllOver Media, we strive to reach people in ways that add to their daily experience, instead of interrupting it. We work to build compelling campaigns that are impossible to ignore, including mobile advertising.
If you’re looking to build or improve your own marketing strategy, our expert team is here to listen and help. Shoot us a message—let’s connect.