The internet has created a whole new realm of opportunity for companies to reach their specific target market, whether that be a certain gender, generation, economic status, or zip code.
Have you ever been browsing Google for a new place to eat and the top options that appear are all within a few miles of your home? Or, perhaps you’ve visited a brand’s website (such as Coca-Cola or UPS) and their homepage first asks you to choose which country you live in.
These are examples of geotargeting- a form of digital marketing that targets users and offers them different website content based on their geographic location. It can be used to reach customers through pay-per-click advertisements, or organic search. Geotargeting allows companies to personalize their messages more than ever before, and all of the data is trackable, so you can see exactly how many people clicked through to your website, and from where, which maximizes the use of your digital marketing dollars.
How does geotargeting work? Well, a lot of it is based on the users’ IP address, which is a numerical label assigned to each device that accesses the internet. An online server has recorded the country, state, city and zip code, and when requested, it can produce an ad that is targeting a specific area.
Sound creepy? Well, it is a little bit. But, it’s the new reality and if you do anything online, there is nothing you can do to avoid it.
To effectively utilize geotargeting, a company must first clearly identify their target market based on geographic location. Do the majority of your customers come from a 2-mile radius? 5 miles? Or, are people willing to drive all the way across town for your product or service? Once you’ve determined where your customers are coming from, you can use geotargeting to reach only those in your set radius.
Another way to use geotargeting is to use location keywords such as street names, popular tourist destinations and shopping centers, or community name. For example, “restaurants near Astros’ stadium” or “coffee shops on 5th Avenue” can identify customers based on the geographic location they want to visit, not where their IP address is located.
Geotargeting can be a little confusing, but the main thing to know is that it’s very effective. Across all types of businesses, click-through rates are higher than the industry standard when using geotargeting.
Interested in geotargeting but not sure where to start? PMD Group has digital marketing experts here to help you determine your target market’s geographic location, the best keywords to reach them, and create the ads that will make them click-through. Contact us today to get started!