Location planning: Preparing for the future...today

A standstill in a company's market development is almost always fatal. Opportunities for entering and expanding into markets often don't come around twice. In a company's location, network and expansion planning, it's vital to pay attention to regional factors. Customers, target groups, delivery depots, competitor locations, purchasing power and consumer confidence are never distributed equally throughout a given market. Numerous location studies carried out by GfK GeoMarketing have shown that many markets contain significant untapped potential, particularly in countries where the market in question has only recently gained momentum. However, often these areas of greater potential also pose greater risks. Misguided location-related decisions are extremely expensive and can only be reversed with great difficulty, if at all. Geomarketing allows companies to objectively measure opportunities for success and minimize the associated risks.

Businesses should take a variety of things into account when making location-related decisions. GfK market data provide an objective basis for the Europe-wide evaluation of markets and their potential. Geomarketing software brings the numerous factors into focus through analyses and compelling illustrations. It's possible to identify trends and forecast likely developments based on the current market status. The third component is consultation with an experienced location and real estate expert. GfK GeoMarketing consultants regularly perform on-site studies, giving them a broad knowledge base that can help companies evaluate their plans and goals more objectively. 

Geomarketing offers all the angles on your markets as well as your location, sales and service networks
A company's long-term success depends not just on the status of an individual location, but also on the configuration and interaction of the entire network of locations. Depending on the goals or phase of development of a particular company or market, the following courses of action promote, enhance and sustain success:

Branch network optimization
The goal of a branch network optimization is to ensure that all locations are accessible to as many customers as possible, achieve a more favorable positioning than the competition and increase market share in the regions under review. A key component of this approach involves carrying out a detailed analysis of the existing and/or future locations with the help of an experienced location-research specialist such as GfK GeoMarketing. It's important that companies draw on this expertise so that they can successfully achieve a greater and sustainable presence in the desired target market.

Site appraisals
Location analysis revolves around identifying the factors influencing the success of an individual location or collection of locations. Retail outlets, for example, only turn a profit if enough customers show up on a daily basis. Professional location and real estate researchers therefore analyze the specific components that relate to customer frequency: proximity of store to place of residence, draw of the retail location, accessibility, nearby competition and the site's socio-demographic profile. Regarding the latter, this could be anything from a town center or a specialized store in an outlying retail park to a shopping center.

Other important factors that often can only be properly evaluated on-site by an experienced expert include the quality of the location itself and the surrounding infrastructure, the development prospects and the effect of planned projects in the immediate vicinity. GfK GeoMarketing location analysts carefully consider all of these issues and many others when carrying out a site assessment.

Impact analysis - legally sound planning for trouble-free growth
Many European countries have very restrictive policies with regard to  establishing and operating large-area retail outlets. There's often a significant amount of bureaucracy to take care of at the beginning of the project. Frequently the potential impact of the new project on existing retailers, supply areas and nearby town centers must be clarified. GfK GeoMarketing is well versed in laws, provisions and building regulations throughout Europe and has a wealth of experience in serving as a neutral and reliable mediator between local administrations, project developers and the public.