Websites for enterprises, associations and member-based organizations need to go beyond simply offering information. They need to engage users, provide value, and cater to their specific needs. Here’s where geolocation comes in, transforming your website from a static platform into a dynamic and personalized experience.
So what’s geolocation anyway?
Geolocation is the process of identifying the real-world geographic location of a device or user. When it comes to websites, it refers to determining a user’s physical location based on their IP address, GPS coordinates, or Wi-Fi signals. This technology allows websites to tailor content and services to a user’s specific location, enhancing the overall user experience.
When a location becomes useful.
Geolocation isn’t just about showing people the weather – it unlocks a world of helpful features:
Personalized Content
Imagine a member organization website that automatically displays local chapter events based on a member’s location. This level of personalization fosters engagement and keeps members informed about relevant local activities.
Targeted Marketing
An enterprise website can use geolocation to display location-specific promotions or product recommendations. Think highlighting regional sales reps for a B2B company or showcasing nearby stores for a retail chain.
Enhanced User Experience
Geolocation can streamline your user’s journey. An association website could use location data to automatically direct international visitors to the appropriate language version of the site.
These three features offer plenty of benefits for your enterprise or association, including, but not limited to:
- Increased Engagement: Personalized experiences and location-specific content keep users engaged and coming back for more.
- Improved Conversion Rates: Targeted marketing messages based on location are more likely to resonate with users, leading to higher conversion rates.
- Stronger Member Relationships: Associations can leverage geolocation to connect members with local events and resources, fostering a stronger sense of community.
- Data-Driven Decisions: Understanding your audience’s location can provide valuable insights into user behavior and preferences, informing future website development and marketing strategies.
Data powering location magic.
In terms of how a website figures out where users are located, well, it’s pretty simple these days – most sites will use a browser’s API, which can be looked up through the user’s ISP. Even larger companies, such as news outlets and ecommerce sites, use this path to figure it out. Small pop-ups show up in the upper left corner of the browser asking if they can use a location. If allowed, this can create a better user experience with more personalized content.
Here at TU, we build geolocation into the theme itself for specific locations and regions, as well as creating content that people can be directed to through the browser’s API.
Given the opportunity, we could create a larger yet more streamlined site that uses geolocation to personalize it to local chapters. An association like CIP who we’ve worked with in the past, which has both an overarching site as well as provincial chapters, could benefit greatly from geolocation.
Forms can also get a boost from geolocation, by tailoring to regions instead of just being a generalist query.
Privacy matters: staying in control.
Geolocation functionality offers a lot of opportunities for both enterprise and association websites. However, harnessing this power also requires a commitment to user privacy. Here’s are some of the privacy considerations your organization needs to be aware of in order to have the best outcome:
- Transparency is Key: Be upfront with your users about how their geolocation data is collected and used. Clearly explain what data is being gathered, how it’s stored, and for what purposes it’ll be utilized.
- User Consent Matters: Don’t assume users are comfortable sharing their location. Make sure you get clear and explicit consent before activating geolocation features on your website. Give a straightforward way for users to opt-in or opt-out of location sharing, and make it easy for them to revoke consent at any time.
- Data Security is Paramount: Geolocation data is sensitive information. Have robust security measures in place to protect user data from unauthorized access, breaches, or misuse. Regularly update your website’s security protocols and conduct vulnerability assessments.
- Data Minimization: Only collect location data that’s absolutely necessary for your website’s functionalities. Avoid collecting and storing excessive location information that isn’t essential for the intended purpose.
- Compliance with Regulations: Regulations like GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and PIPEDA (Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act) require websites and apps to be transparent about how location data is collected, stored, and used. Ensure your website’s geolocation practices comply with all relevant regulations in your target markets.
By prioritizing user privacy, you build trust with your audience. Users who feel their data is secure and respected are more likely to engage with your website and share information.
Accuracy matters: knowing the limits.
In a perfect world, people would want to share their location with your website in order to get the best user experience. But sometimes people use VPNs in order to mask their location or they may have their location settings turned off altogether. It’s important to be aware of these limitations when interpreting your site’s user data.
As well, even if users have their location services turned on, depending on how their device is set up, the location may not be 100% accurate so make sure you’re taking this into consideration when you’re making decisions based on geolocation data. You might also want to consider clear wayfinding hints that content is tailored to a location and users should be opting in or ensure that there’s a manual way to choose their location. This can be done on the content and design side and is also a good sign of clarity and trust for your users.
TU case studies
While working with our enterprise and association clients, we’ve been able to create some powerful sites that use geolocation to enhance the experience for their audiences and users.
- Acera Insurance
Acera Insurance is one of the biggest independent brokerages in Canada. They offer a variety of insurance products, including group, business, and personal benefits. This, of course, means that they have a lot of moving parts in a lot of different regions across the nation.
Our development of their new website, focuses on offering users location-specific content based on their region, as well as driving leads to the closest Acera branches.
To achieve this, we built out multiple content versions of product pages where information differed between regions across Canada. This leads to a better user journey by giving people the information they need right away without having to dig through the site themselves to find it. Ie. ICBC content for BC residents, something that those in Manitoba or Ontario don’t need to wade through to get to their own car insurance answers.
- Nufloors
Nufloors is Western Canada’s largest flooring retailer. Because each Nufloors location is independently owned, every store has its own products, services and specialized offerings. The previous version of the Nufloors website had thousands of pages of duplicate content, resulting in a clunky user experience. This was tough for not only users on the front end, but also for the people managing the site from the back end.
Our solution was to create a central parent site for Nufloors that seamlessly directs users to their preferred local store, either by asking them when they land on the site, or through the wayfinding choice at the top left of the site. That way users have access to the closest store, or can explore others close by to find the products they’re looking for.
Finding yourself in the future
Organizations across industries are increasingly recognizing the value of geolocation in enhancing their digital offerings. By harnessing the power of location data, enterprise business and associations can create a more personalized, relevant, and engaging experience for their customers. Whether it’s to optimize marketing campaigns, improve customer service, or develop innovative products and services, geolocation has become a strategic imperative.
By understanding a user’s location, your website can deliver tailored content, recommendations, and offers, ultimately driving user satisfaction and loyalty.