Adverts that speak to where YOU are

Finally, someone is looking into location-based advertising.

It’s been a concept for quite some time – targeting certain adverts at certain people based on the places that they go to. The result? A consumer who feels like advertisers understand him/her and a much more effective advertising campaign.

The concept is finally becoming something that could materialize very soon. According to GigaOM, location-based ad provider JiWire have launched a Location Graph which will get to know consumers based on the way they move around from place to place, thus delivering more relevant ads. GigOM reports, “By understanding the relationship between locations and what it says about the people who frequent them, the Location Graph will help JiWire anonymously identify distinct audience groups, from soccer moms and businessmen to luxury shoppers and tech enthusiasts.”

This is a very exciting development because not only can it open up a whole host of opportunities for consumers, but it means that you and I no longer have to receive adverts for products and events that we are completely uninterested in.

So how do they get it right? Apparently the JiWire Location Graph utilizes three billion location tags that Jiwire has on its database, connected to real places. GigaOM reports, “As the Location Graph pulls in anonymized location data from mobile devices using UDID and other persistent identifiers, it can start to understand where people are visiting with their devices. Then it can map that movement to what it knows about the various locations and the way certain people favour certain places.”

This is bound to be a huge success, finally narrowing the gap when it comes to internet advertising across a broad audience. In fact interim CEO for JiWire, David Staas said that during tests of the Location Graph, they saw between a 30% and 45% increase when it came to click-throughs.

What does this mean for South Africans? Well firstly we no longer have to be subject to a range of American adverts and products that are unavailable to us. It also means that if you’re into gaming, you’ll no longer get adverts about the latest shoe sales or hottest cars on the market. Finally, advertising that speaks to who you are. Is this just promoting a more intense stream of consumerism? Well that’s another topic for another day but at least the constant bombardment when it comes to advertising is more utilized when it comes to your interests.

If you’re a regular at the pub around the corner, don’t be surprised if all of your adverts suddenly become about the latest alcohol offerings.