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google to track store visits

by quadagon
5 replies
Came across the following article and thought the offline is the best place to share.

Essentially google have created and are testing an algorithm to show the effects online advertising has on footfall.

OK its early days and us only but for anyone involved in webdesign, advertising and marketing for offline or hybrid customers this would seem to have a lot of potential.

Here's the link.

Google Rolls Out Store Visits to Link Online and Offline Sales | Adweek

Be interested to hear some of your thoughts


Eric
#google #store #track #visits
  • Profile picture of the author iAmNameLess
    This has actually already been happening for at least a year and a half now. Get the Google survey app and you'll see they've already been doing it lol. They're also somehow tracking products you buy offline.
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  • Profile picture of the author quadagon
    really cheers I'll check it out.
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    I've got 99 problems but a niche ain't one
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  • Profile picture of the author xwl
    If the store is completely offline how can you track offline sales with online techniques?
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    • Profile picture of the author Oziboomer
      Originally Posted by xwl View Post

      If the store is completely offline how can you track offline sales with online techniques?
      I'd say that people's habits are pretty much tracked via their mobile phones coupled with any electronic payment methods they use.

      If you can be cookied and retargeted online and by sharing data between Google, Facebook, Visa, MasterCard and AMEX you'd probably be able to work out what everyone was spending their money on.

      I'd say it wouldn't be too hard to build a profile of shopping habits offline by combining a few bits of data and then making educated guesses at predicted purchases.
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      • Profile picture of the author savidge4
        When you look at articles such as this: Target has a Guest ID that tracks your purchases - SlashGear It becomes clear real quick, that data collection is an underlying method done by any larger retailer.

        Google in particular. Look at them from the outside, they are a search engine, they are a provider of google apps they are a provider of maps.. and so and so on. but what are they really? All of those things I just mentioned are end products to what they really are. They are Collectors of information. A monsterously huge data collection and data storage business. I would say to the extreme unlike has ever been created.

        What is a search engine? a data base of web pages ( information ) what is google calendars.. a collector of data. I bet there is someone at Google that could tell you based on THAT 1 piece of the puzzle the most "Active" time period of the day is.

        Throw in the above information that we know Target to have, and because of the online factor and now having an IP address to track with... Mix that with Google, and what do you have? You have the tracking ability of in excess of 50% of a persons time and damn near 100% of their spending habits. ( cash at this point is the only untrackable method UNLESS as stated in the article a coupon is involved. )

        Throw into the mix data collection from the swipe cards in your wallet... and the 50% becomes even less. There is a reason the time that we live in is called the "Information Age" we cough up far more "information" than we realize. And there are those around us - The Government, Google, Target and I am sure a host of many others that are simply sitting back and collecting data to have a better understanding of how too get deeper into our lives and our Pockets.

        Ever read a Microsoft EULA? Ever wonder why they control the market place in the way that they do? Its because of the data source they have. They understand what functions are NOT being used in their product and what is. They understand what competing products are on your computer and in the market place that are providing functionality thatthey are not providing. Their product updates and versions clearly show this.

        I would say Adobe is no different. Adobe started with "photoshop" now they have an endless amount of products that are in a sense the exact same thing, All they have done is removed they aspects of the full program, and adapted to niched use. Photoshop and photoshop elements... any one know that the difference between the 2 is? Photoshop is a full blow CMYK and RGB editor. Elements, has had all of the CMYK functions removed. Anyone with a digital camera does not need all of that extra stuff to make the program confusing. They simply adapted the product to its end users, and developed a niched product target.

        All of these changes are occurring around us from collected data. electronically collected data that we all have agreed apon. Its not some conspiracy, its big business reality.
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