xAd Launches Store Visit Analysis Platform

In the US, ad targeting specialist xAd has launched a real-time location intelligence platform called MarketPlace Discovery, which provides visual insights into foot traffic behavior in the physical world.

Since 2009, New York-based xAd has been building technology to match relevant ads to audiences based on their location. Last year, the firm launched a platform called Blueprints, to deliver ads to consumers shopping near brick-and-mortar retailers, then track whether those ads reached the right targets on their mobile devices and spurred shoppers to enter the advertiser's store.

The new MarketPlace Discovery platform, which is powered by Blueprints technology, has been developed to help brands understand the factors influencing their own store visits, as well as those of their competitors. Insights are derived from anonymized foot traffic data, observed within the Blueprints of each store location, and in addition to tracking time-of-day and day-of-week trends, the tool shows brands where their customers are coming from to visit specific store locations. The initial launch will cover quick-service restaurants and retail stores, and xAd says a 'more comprehensive' version will be available in the coming months.

Shashi Seth (pictured), Chief Product Officer, comments: 'The vast majority of retail commerce happens in traditional, physical stores, so brands need to understand what drives their customers to their own locations and those of competitors. Unfortunately, assessing the connection of these complex variables with enough certainty to confidently act on them, has been nearly impossible given the available data. This is why we created MarketPlace Discovery'.

Web site: www.xad.com .