The global location intelligence market is heading towards a USD 51.25 billion valuation by 2030, according to a Grand View Research report. The convergence of spatial data and location intelligence analytics has changed how we perceive, interpret, and utilize geographic data.
Industries like BFSI, CPG, and Logistics can significantly benefit from applying location intelligence to optimize daily operations. Organizations in these sectors are adopting digital transformation and implementing assistive technologies to address several crucial use cases.
In this article, let’s explore eight impactful location intelligence trends for 2024 that can reshape the outlook for business growth and innovation.
1. Real-time Data Availability
Faster 5G connectivity and improved bandwidth availability have paved the way for acquiring real-time data. Mobile phones and other connected devices utilize GPS and cellular technology to garner key location insights. Moreover, data from social media posts also carry a critical location component that offers deeper contextual real-time insights for addressing several use cases.
Location intelligence analyzes all the data in real-time to provide deeper geographical and geospatial data analytics. As a result, organizations can better visualize their operations, strategize new plans, and enhance operations to be productive and profitable.
2. Implementing AI/ML-based Systems
Higher volumes of data generation and consumption have paved the way for businesses to explore AI/ML technologies. Location data is one of the critical components that influences better decision-making and strategy.
Banks can benefit from crucial AI-enabled location data analytics to identify and visualize leads in a defined region. For example, location intelligence improves field visibility of agents tasked with collections and recovery. Banks can better visualize routes and improve schedules for field sales reps. Managers can revisit their strategy to enhance doorstep banking, analyze location metrics for new business areas, and improve field operations.
Location intelligence helps NBFC organizations optimize branch and ATM locations and perform geospatial risk assessment to identify prospects.
3. Indoor Mapping
Indoor mapping is one of the fastest-growing use cases that relies on location intelligence to improve visibility and map crucial points of interest. It provides insights that help businesses enable strategic decision-making, improve targeted marketing, and capitalize on business intelligence while adding value to the user. Indoor mapping has become easier with the help of location data garnered from WiFi networks, beacons, and GPS apps.
Users can get 3D indoor geospatial views of several types of infrastructure, including auditoriums, airports, music halls and theaters, factories, government buildings, shopping malls, etc. In the case of airports, passengers can visualize their journey and know about critical points of interest (PoI) locations.
4. Personalized Customer Experience
Rich customer experience and tailored brand messaging are essential for businesses to grow their consumer base. Accurate and actionable information data is already helping retailers in garnering more users. According to a recent survey by Forbes, 75% of retailers ranked location intelligence as critical for their revenue growth strategies.
Restaurants and retail outlets can leverage location analytics data to plan targeted marketing by understanding the consumer’s buying journey. Businesses can send updated product or service offers, provide updates for customer loyalty points, and push notifications for pop-up sale events when customers are around the shop or outlet.
The main aim is to increase footfall and improve customer engagement. Businesses can also provide personalized recommendations for shops, restaurants, or services based on the customer’s current location.
Banks and financial institutions can leverage location data to offer customers personalized banking services like credit card and loan offers. Comprehensive and contextual location data can help retailers provide consumers with a more immersive and tailored shopping experience.
5. Planning Smart Cities
Location intelligence is an actionable insight that helps businesses and policymakers analyze geospatial data. It’s applied in key areas like urban planning, city development, transportation optimization, emergency services, disaster response, and environmental monitoring to implement sustainable strategies.
The location intelligence tech is already playing a vital role in helping city developers make smart decisions about conserving projects and creating sustainable green spaces in and around the city. In urban development, developers can leverage location intelligence for 3D planning for mapping out new regions.
Global smart cities are revolutionizing transportation using location analytics to improve traffic and optimize travel. City planners are also leveraging the location intelligence data to understand traffic patterns and find solutions for transit problems with new construction or different modes of transport.
6. Fleet Management for EVs
Rising pollution levels and their cumulative environmental impact have prompted organizations to consciously shift towards actively using electric vehicles (EVs) for deliveries. But this can be tricky due to the limited driving range of EVs and fewer charging stations to supplement vehicle requirements on the planned deliveries.
Managing a fleet of EVs is simplified using location intelligence. These vehicles have a limited driving range and need charging stations along the planned route to recharge the battery packs. Businesses can use location intelligence to map charging stations and strategically schedule delivery routes.
Using location intelligence data, companies that provide EV charging services can track, analyze, and map the number of EVs frequenting a busy route. It helps answer questions like how many EVs actively run this route so these companies can identify and place new charging stations. All this is possible with location intelligence insights derived from aggregated data points.
Similarly, organizations that manufacture and sell battery packs for EVs can utilize location intelligence to track these deliveries. Analyzing the collective data helps these organizations plot and map areas where there is a surge in demand for EV battery packs. This information helps them place new stations where delivery riders can swap out old packs with new charged ones.
7. Improve Last-Mile Delivery
Location intelligence helps improve delivery efficiency and accuracy to manage costs better and create a more sustainable delivery process. It helps optimize delivery routes, improve the scheduling of deliveries, and reduce the distance traveled.
Industries that fulfill last mile and instant deliveries also require verified addresses to reduce the rate of unsuccessful deliveries. A smart address verification system like geocoding removes inconsistencies and eliminates manual redundancies to provide accurate location information. By leveraging location intelligence, businesses can enable faster accurate deliveries and improve service actioning requests.
Companies have recorded a remarkable increase in First Attempt Delivery Rate (FADR) by leveraging location intelligence platforms. Delivery agents can get useful insights into routes and real time traffic conditions for faster deliveries. Further, active location tracking and order analysis allows businesses to provide customers with updated delivery ETAs and live order status updates, enhancing their overall experience.
8. Disaster Management
A Statista study highlights the global economic loss caused by natural disasters, estimated to be around USD 313 billion for 2022.
Location intelligence analyzes real-time sensor data (including seismic records, weather patterns, and historical data) of specific geographic locations to implement early warning systems. It can help mitigate natural disasters in frequently affected areas with advanced planning and strategies. Authorities can evaluate disasters like a tornado or a wildfire and make informed decisions in such a challenging environment.
Overall response time for dispatching relief teams, essential medical supplies, and survival equipment is improved by analyzing location inputs in the affected region. GIS data analysis helps assess the damage and enables optimal allocation of resources for post-disaster recovery planning. Further, GIS technology can analyze traffic conditions, terrain, and proximity to nearby shelters to plan a safe, quick route for evacuation.
Final Thoughts
Adopting location intelligence trends enables companies to make informed decisions using relevant geographical data points. It gives them a competitive advantage by providing valuable insights to optimize operations and enhance customer experience in an ever-evolving data-driven landscape.
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