How Businesses Use GeoSpatial Data

Data mapping software has revolutionized how businesses analyze markets on a national, regional and local scale. With ZIP code mapping software, companies across the wholesale, retail, banking, industrial, medical and service sectors can identify their most lucrative markets. Geo mapping software turns location-based data maps into color-coded map visualizations used to analyze shipping routes and customers according to numerous metrics.

So how do businesses apply geospatial data? That depends on the type of business in question and the market that it serves. For some companies, routing info is the most vital concern, as this could lead to faster deliveries at reduced costs. For other businesses, customer information on a neighborhood-by-neighborhood basis is the most relevant area of analysis. The following types of companies can gain numerous benefits from geospatial data.

Insurance

Data mapping software offers invaluable capabilities to insurance companies across the United States. With data mapping, an insurance provider can analyze the areas they serve down to street and neighborhood detail. By supplementing this information with demographic data, the company can determine which areas are the most densely populated with insurance holders who are likeliest to file claims. This knowledge allows the company to decide which areas should be subject to higher premiums and which areas entail too much risk.

Essentially, geo mapping software makes it easy for insurance companies to answer the following questions more accurately than ever before.

Which areas and routes are the most disaster-prone?
Which areas see the highest number of claims?
Which areas see the highest number of false claims?
Which areas are the most under-insured?

Data mapping also makes it easier for insurance providers to determine which areas have the highest number of false claims. For example, if a select group of blocks within a city has seen an unusually high amount of false or questionable claims, this information can be used to spot claim anomalies among population groups statistically more likely to commit acts of fraud. Most importantly, insurance companies can determine possible motives behind insurance fraud related to location, education, income and other factors. Geographic analysis can help identify fraud and get to the root cause of fraud by region.

HVAC

Geo mapping software allows HVAC service companies to pinpoint which areas are likeliest to have residents or businesses in need of service. Moreover, mapping software can be used to determine which spots are the most likely to experience costly downtime due to power outages. Using this information, HVAC service companies can better equip themselves to serve their customers in these critical areas.

There are many variables to consider when conducting HVAC analysis of a specific areas. Geo software can help HVAC service companies determine the following through map symbolization, area color-shading, or heat mapping:

Which areas use the most air conditioning in the summer months?
Which areas use the most heat in the winter months?
Which areas have the highest energy bills each month?
Which months of the year are energy bills highest in said areas?
Which areas see the highest number of maintenance issues and service disruptions?

In the areas that see the highest frequency of service calls, HVAC companies can set up local stations with staff on call 24/7 to be of service whenever power goes down. Instead of having all service personnel located at one centralized location, possibly far from the most vulnerable areas, an HVAC company can prepare itself to help the residents who need it most.

Likewise, new HVAC maintenance companies can use this information to determine which areas are most lucrative for service calls. Geo mapping can also be used to track residents in need of maintenance block-by-block as technicians fulfill service requests throughout the day.

Ophthalmologists and Dentists

Geospatial data uses have vastly improved the way that ophthalmologists and dentists conduct business and relate to customers. By importing customer addresses from excel, dental and eye-care clinics can view on a map all their patients identified by age, street address and time of their last visit. Mapping software makes it possible for practices in both fields to stay more competitive in their local communities through customer tracking and segmented marketing campaigns.

With any given number of overlays, data mapping can be used by ophthalmologists and dentists to pinpoint the following:

Which local neighborhoods have the highest number of patients?
Which neighborhoods have the highest number of patients associated with our nearest competitor?
Which neighborhoods have the youngest and oldest patients?
Which neighborhoods have patients that are most or least likely to honor their appointments?

The preceding information can help clinics better serve their patients. If patients in one nearby neighborhood are exposed to a competitor, a practice may attempt to improve its promotional outreach to area patients. If residents in a certain area tend not to honor appointments, what factors might be contributing to this trend? Are patients within certain brackets of income or particular age groups more loyal, or does it come down to promotions and reminders?

The answers to all of these questions and many more are easy to determine through geo mapping software.

Medical Businesses

With geo mapping programs, medical businesses gain vital insights that help them better serve their local communities. By using map overlays to pinpoint the fastest and slowest routes in a given area, emergency medical technicians, or EMTs, can respond to 911 calls more quickly. Various overlays for the same topic can be used to make critical distinctions, such as:

Which routes are the shortest to and from each neighborhood served?
Which routes are the fastest and least congested for a specific time of day?
Which alternative routes are fastest to each neighborhood served?

One of the most important things to note when mapping routes is that "shortest" does not always mean "fastest." In some cases, the shortest route will be a freeway or boulevard that develops bottlenecked traffic on most weekdays. With geo mapping software, critical information can assist emergency drivers with selecting the best route for their task.

Chemical Companies

ZIP code mapping allows chemical companies throughout the country to improve sales and marketing metrics while enhancing operational efficiencies. The benefits extend across all areas of the chemical business, from product sales to manufacturing. With one set of mapping overlays, chemical manufacturers can determine which markets are the most lucrative for select chemical products.

Using this info, distributors can ensure that they send products to the right wholesale and retail locations. This reduces overhead costs that would otherwise be wasted on storing the wrong products in the wrong locations. Data mapping software also makes it possible for a chemical company to determine the following:

What areas are safest for the manufacturing of chemicals?
Which routes are the the most efficient yet safest for the transportation of chemicals?
Which areas have special ordinances against certain types of chemicals?

With geo mapping software, chemical companies can define areas where chemicals present known risks for animals, insects, plants or humans. Knowing this, chemical companies can remain compliant with federal and local laws, avoiding law suits, and bad press.

Office Machine Sales

Machine manufacturers use geo mapping to pinpoint the best possible locations for warehouses and storefronts. With data mapping for businesses, manufacturers, as well as retailers, can identify trends on the country, regional, state and neighborhood levels. By importing industry sales data business machine experts can analyze market info in multiple ways, including:

What industries are quickly adopting to the latest office machinery?
Which industries spend the most each year on office machinery?
Which areas have the highest concentrations of businesses that utilize advanced machinery?
Which industries are slowest to adopt the latest technology?

Based on the answers gleaned from these and other mapping observations, manufacturers and retailers can better determine which industries to focus on for promotional campaigns. By grouping leads by their location, they can identify areas where an increase in product availability might just nab a few extra sales.

Legal Offices

Geo mapping programs have been a boon for offices of law. They allow attorneys to ZIP code profiles that help identify areas where they will likely find clients who need their services.

Data mapping makes it easier to identify which locations have the highest crime rates and what kinds of crimes occur there. For a criminal lawyer, this is valuable data that helps them fine tune their marketing and outreach by area and by demographic.

Population and divorce rates usually trend in the same direction. Perhaps a new legal office placement should take place where divorce rates are spiking?

Lawyers that specialize in other areas could conduct similar geo analysis for their specialty. A bankruptcy lawyer, for example, could use information on business type and financial history to determine who might need their services. Mapping overlays provide law offices with useful data insights, such as:

Which areas, businesses or individuals will most likely need legal services?
What demographic category is most likely to seek out legal services?
What ZIP codes contain the highest levels of disposable household income?

Law enforcement agencies can benefit from data mapping. Police analysts can build maps that pinpoint which areas of a given community have the highest crime rates. With further mapping overlays, they can also determine the times of day (based on historical trends) in which crimes are most likely to occur. Using this info, police departments in each community can consider adjustments to patrol coverages.

Law enforcement agencies use data mapping to:

Identify high risk crime areas based on historical records and demographic trends
Map serial crime incidents and compare locations to repeat offender location data
Identify low crime areas and find out why crimes are not happening

Banking and Financial

Some of the most successful uses of geospatial data have occurred in the banking and financial sectors, which have used the technology to fine-tune their analysis of local and regional markets. With zip code mapping, banks can determine the following:

Which areas have the most financially stable banking customers?
Which areas are the most densely populated with the customers most likely to repay loans?
Which areas have the most customers who are likely to default on credit?

Data mapping allows banks to cut their losses and promote credit card programs in the areas populated by the most reliable customers. When it comes to opening up branches, mapping helps banks pinpoint areas that are most in need of bank services and, by contrast, which areas wouldn't draw in sufficient numbers.

Mapping can even be used to identify foot-traffic patterns, which can help determine which street corners would be most advantageous for a new bank branch or ATM placement.

Car & Equipment Rental Agencies

For agencies that rent out automobiles and other equipment, mapping software makes it easy to determine which areas have the greatest need for equipment rental. A heat-map overlay could be used to pinpoint which areas have the highest percentages of renters on an annual basis. Of those regions, another overlay could pinpoint which locations have the most and least reliable renters. A series of overlays could answer the following:

Where are rental cars most commonly needed?
What times of year are car rentals at their peak?
Which areas have the highest percentages of automobile accidents?

Car rental agencies can use such info to determine the geographic areas that make the most sense for expansion. Companies that zero in on the most affluent and road-safe areas can use this info to hone their promotional efforts and test the market. Those that serve the more risky regions to do business can use business maps to determine how best to protect their assets.

ATM Management

Geo mapping software has proven to be incredibly helpful in the area of ATM management for location analysis and activity logging. On one overlay, ATM management can determine where and when the highest amounts of deposits and withdrawals occur. Mapping software can reveal the following:

Which ATMs need the most cash?
Which ATMs receive the most deposits?
Which machines are located in areas with high crime rates?
Which machines need higher levels of protection and area patrol?

Using this info, banks and ATM companies can better manage their busiest machines. Mapping software can also be used to compare ATM foot traffic with that of competitors. If a nearby device receives more deposits because it faces in a certain direction, this information could be used to choose the placement of future ATMs more effectively.

Wholesale Distribution Companies

In the wholesale sector, distribution businesses use geospatial data for market analysis, customer visualization and other areas of sales territory management. With data mapping overlays, wholesalers can pinpoint the hottest markets, and from there distinguish the oversaturated regions from the underserved. A set of color-coded overlays could answer the following:

Which products do retailers in select areas need the most?
What areas are the most ripe for increased wholesaling?
Which routes to retailers are fastest during normal delivery hours?

Using this data, wholesalers can cut losses and more accurately calculate how much of an item to supply. Mapping information also allows wholesalers to send deliveries out to retailers with improved speed and efficiency.

Geo Mapping Software from MapBusinessOnline

MapBusinessOnline offers easy-to-use web mapping software that allows businesses to view geographical data on sales, shipping and markets. For more than 20 years, MBO has been at the forefront of geo software innovation. To learn more about how MBO software can benefit your business, contact us today and ask about our free 1-month trial.

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