The success or failure of retail branches can come down to their knowledge (or lack of knowledge) of the local cultures of a particular area. Understanding the local demographics and particularities of the local ‘proto-type’ customer can go a long way towards integrating the brand and successfully promoting its new branches, and ultimately towards the brand becoming an essential part of a community.

Profile

Location analytics provides a good impression of the demographics and psychographics of an area. Combining analyses of existing customer data of the area, data from other comparable areas and data from local competitors can shed a light on customer purchasing habits; a supermarket, for example, may need to adjust its stock to reflect religious diets, minority holidays, nationalities or income.

Target

Promotional campaigns can be adapted to better suit the composition and needs of the local cultures. When it comes down to assessing areas for new retail outlets, the knowledge gained from modifying the offerings of existing branches to the requirements of an area will be extremely useful; it will diminish the ‘trial and error’ element to a great extent by pro-actively adjusting the merchandise from the outset.

Rinse & Repeat

The success of a retail branch can be bolstered by looking at it in relation to the local community. While existing retail data can offer information about the branch’s profits and losses, location analytics can help the retailer understand why customers are or are not using the branch and adapt its offerings accordingly. Successfully adapting to the demand of customers will have an impact on deciding where to establish new branches and how to adjust their offerings effectively.