Google recently announced that it wants to take the integration of their digital platform Google Now with the real world a step further. A new feature on your Android phone alerts you when you walk by a store that sells a product that you have researched before.
Location based advertising has been around for some time. Also Facebook is using location data to allow better targeting of their ads. However, location based ads are not yet used as a tool to reach large masses in order to increase walk-in traffic of particular store locations. Google's new feature could be a step in that direction.
While it seems pretty scary to what extent Google or Facebook are already involved in our everyday activities, it becomes even more obvious how much they know about us when location based alerts are linked to our past online searches. This obviously leads to the question whether consumers are willing to engage in such a personal relationship and activate such a feature on their phone.
Despite such privacy concerns, location based advertising is a great opportunity for brick and mortar stores. If they manage to win consumers trust (e.g., through clear privacy and opt-in policies), it opens up great new advertising and consumer engagement opportunities. More targeted ads are of higher relevance to consumers than an average mobile ad, especially when they offer a discount code or other benefits at the right time in the right place.
The technology is getting there. It is up to the marketers to keep pace with this development and leverage this technology for their brick and mortar stores.
Sources: https://plus.google.com/+google/posts/gqipsEeLcvg,
https://www.facebook-studio.com/news/item/new-ways-to-reach-the-right-audience
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