The retail industry has been changing at an unprecedented rate in the last few years, driven by the steady growth of e-commerce, fluctuating consumer habits and high inflation having a limited impact on overall demand.
One of the biggest challenges retail, leisure and real estate managers face is the daunting task of finding the ideal location that will attract customers and result in sales. With site acquisition decisions becoming more complex, businesses need to rely on robust data to make informed choices about where to establish their brick-and-mortar presence.
Mobility data has emerged as a valuable source of information, combining GDPR-compliant data points with AI technology to provide granular insights on the movement and behaviour of visitors. In this article, we will discuss how it can be used to guide and support your retail site acquisition strategies.
Analyse Key Catchment Areas
The first step is to analyse key catchment areas. These are the geographic regions from where visitors will travel to your retail site, and enables businesses to determine specific locations that maximise their customer base on a local and regional level. Furthermore, this information can be used to create targeted marketing or event campaigns geared towards their unique needs and preferences.
Identify Target Market
Simultaneously, it’s crucial to realise who your target market is, alongside where they are located, before making any decisions. Our powerful mobility data dashboards reveal a population’s unique characteristics, including affluence, disposable income, ownership status, socio-demographics and much more.
Armed with this knowledge, you can tailor products and services to align with the interests of your target audience in the area. For example, if a high proportion of visitors are young people who attend college or university, you could consider rolling out student discounts to attract them towards your brand.
Outline Competitors
Furthermore, it’s important to assess competition in the area as this will have a huge impact on profitability. While acquiring a retail site where competitors are in close proximity could be detrimental, setting up in an area with limited or no competition is just as problematic in terms of generating revenue.
By analysing mobility data, businesses can identify gaps in the market where footfall is high but sales are low, as well as investment opportunities with complementary traders and advertisers to build customer loyalty and engagement.
Understand Visitor Behaviour and Movement
Retailers can also use mobility data to understand the patterns of visitor behaviour and movement in selected areas such as streets, squares, and busy pedestrian intersections. Commercial property managers could identify the most desirable locations, based on high traffic flow and consumer spending habits for comparison and convenience goods, groceries and leisure.
In addition, knowing the times of day visitors frequent the area and how long they typically stay, businesses can strategically plan their operations to maximise foot traffic. For example, setting up shop near a popular lunch spot could generate a significant flow of visitors during midday hours.
Gain Insights on Parking
During the retail site acquisition process, one key element that often gets overlooked is parking availability in and around potential locations. With mobility data for all council and privately owned car parks across the UK, managers can choose a place that’s easily accessible and convenient for customers, leading to a better shopping experience and increased visitor retention.
Estimate Retail Site Costs
Mobility data can be an instrumental tool in assessing the expected revenue of a retail site to guide businesses on pricing and budgeting decisions. Additionally, it can also aid in estimating the costs associated with opening new units, including everything from rent and utilities to insurance.
Find the Perfect Retail Site with Data-driven Solutions.
Our retail footfall analysis tools are designed to support your growth, ensuring accuracy and optimisation every step of the way. Whether you’re looking to expand, acquire new sites or monitor existing locations, our ongoing support will keep your business on track for success.
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