Maponics Blog

Mozilla Hypes the Importance of Hyperlocal Apps

by Maponics on April 26, 2013 at 4:10PM

It seems like everyone now *gets* the importance going local. But Mozilla has a very interesting vantage point on the hyperlocal trend, due to the fact that so many web-based apps are run on the Firefox browser, which is used by 450 million people every day.

Mozilla put out a blog post recently that demonstrates how much they really *get* hyperlocal. They shared a few great examples of how neighborhood-level data can lead to a more optimal user experience than zip code or city-level data, including apps that show weather reports at the neighborhood level, or apps that map out bike routes and bus schedules. Here are a few other examples.

Some apps that come to mind that are powered by neighborhood-level (or sub-neighborhood level) data include:

• Apps that allow advertisers to target ads to the right audience
• Apps that show pedestrians the best walking routes between restaurants in urban locations
• Apps that curate local news stories about your community
• Apps that send you coupons that are actually convenient for people to use
• Apps that notify you of newly available real estate inventory that might actually interest you

This list could go on.These are just a sampling of what’s possible when you think about the benefit of switching from local to hyperlocal.

Why Are Sub-Neighborhoods So Important for Marketers?

by Will Marlow on March 19, 2013 at 10:22AM

You may have never heard the word “sub-neighborhood” before, but I can virtually guarantee that you know what they are. Think about it like this: Manhattan is a city. Little Italy is a Neighborhood. And those two blocks of Little Italy where they have street vendors who sell nothing but delicious cannolis is a sub-neighborhood.

Maybe a sub-neighborhood has its own name and its own strong identity that is unmistakable to anyone who enters and leaves its boundaries, or maybe the sub-neighborhood is entirely undocumented and known only to those who live or work there.

But sub-neighborhoods should hold a special place in the hearts of marketers, because they bring you one step closer to your customers. Just like the way neighborhoods are better than cities at letting us reach groups of people who share a common identity, sub-neighborhoods let us get even more specific than that. And this is a powerful thing, because it has never been easier to show an irrelevant ad (some advertisers are even printing ads directly on the eggs that you buy from the grocery store, for instance), and this means that the only messages that are going to have an impact are the ones that are relevant. So if you’re a marketer and you’re thinking about how to increase the relevance of your marketing, think sub-neighborhoods.