What can you figure out from a person’s address? The obvious answer is, “Where they live.”

However, using geocoding and geo-enrichment technologies adds substantially to the insights you can gain from their address.

In this article, you’ll learn what kinds of information you can gain with the right technology, and how you can best use it. 

(Location forms part of your comprehensive BI Strategy, but you need to start with the Basics of Business Intelligence.)

What kind of technology provides these insights?

If you want to learn more about your customers from their addresses, location intelligence is a powerful tool to help you do that. Location intelligence refers to the ability to collect, combine and analyse multiple sources of geospatial and consumer data to provide strategic insights.

Location intelligence can be broadly divided into analytical and operational capabilities.

Analytical location intelligence is interactive, human-driven activities using maps and dashboards to make decisions and uncover insights.

Operational location intelligence is the machine-driven process to enhance large amounts of data with additional attributes; including geocodes, demographics and consumer information; so that you can gain deeper insights into your customers and use these to

For example, a combination of store locations and demographic information can help to drive decisions about which products to stock in a particular store, or even whether or not you should have a store in the location.

Broadly speaking, operational location intelligence creates trusted and complete data sets for use in analytical location intelligence.

How does an address drive insights?

Combining location data with census and similar socioeconomic data allows us to target specific products and services in outlets where these will be well received. For example, stocking luxury products in stores with a wealthier client footprint, and providing a scaled-down product set in areas where the price is more likely to be the purchasing driver.

Demographic data provides insights into the population of an area. For example, an up-and-coming area filled with young professionals may be a sensible location for a new coffee shop, whereas retirees may be more interested in easy access to groceries, or medical services. The combination of socioeconomic and demographic data can help us decide where you should be expanding your physical presence, and where you should be scaling back.

Location can also play an important role in assessing risk. Is the address in a flood plain, exposed to fire, or in a high crime area, for example? These insights can help insurers to accurately assess risk and provide better insurance options.

With so many factors affecting the geocoding process, rational assessment of geocoding solutions can be an overwhelming task. Read our Precisely ebook for key considerations on selecting geocoding technology to support a winning Location Intelligence business strategy

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If you’re wondering what sets DevOps, DataOps, and MLOps apart, visit our difference between DevOps, DataOps, and MLOps discussion.

How does Location fit into business intelligence? We define business intelligence