RegioGraph 2009: International geomarketing

New sales territory planning options, support for more detailed analyses and a highly attractive map interface. RegioGraph 2009 provides users with everything they need for successful geomarketing for all of Europe – now available in English. Comprehensive information on RegioGraph 2009 can be found at www.gfk-regiograph.com.

Users of the new RegioGraph 2009 can import an unlimited number of addresses from more than 20 European countries into the software and then visualize this data on digital maps at the street level. This makes RegioGraph 2009 the only geomarketing solution currently on the market that features a geocoder with micromarketing capabilities that does not entail additional costs or restrict the number of addresses that can be imported.

The English version of this highly successful geomarketing software offers users the same trusted working environment as the German version. An Import Wizard guides users step-by-step through the process of importing street addresses – in just a few steps, customer locations can be visualized on the map. Incorrectly entered addresses can be successfully positioned on the map thanks to an integrated correction tool. Users can also locate and zoom into addresses by entering them directly into the "Go to" field on the toolbar.

Optimize sales networks according to accessibility, Europe-wide
RegioGraph 2009 allows users to construct comprehensive, international sales networks based on their business locations. For many European countries, RegioGraph can optimize these networks according to accessibility. Existing customer-representative assignments can also be automatically taken into account in order to avoid reassigning key accounts when optimizing or planning new sales territories.

Plan catchment areas and estimate potential
With RegioGraph 2009, users can create distance and time zones around business locations and integrate data on potential, such as population numbers and purchasing power figures. This makes it easy to determine the potential in specific locations and identify any possible cannibalization effects. The new RegioGraph 2009 allows users to create their own user-defined territories from these calculated time and distance zones, further enhancing expansion and branch network planning.

Software includes all available maps as well as GfK data on potential
RegioGraph 2009 also includes Tele Atlas street maps for the European country chosen by the user. These maps allow users to orient themselves more precisely and provide an even better cartographic basis for accessibility calculations. RegioGraph 2009 also includes up-to-date administrative, postcode and topographic maps for the chosen country or countries. Also included are the corresponding
GfK purchasing power data as well as data on inhabitant and household numbers.

Naturally, the German version also supports street-level analyses, Europe-wide, and includes a complete set of digital maps. A free service pack for expanding the geocoding feature in the German version can be downloaded from RegioGraph 2009's startup dialog beginning now.

Contact: Sonja Makilla, Tel. +49 (0)7251 9295185

Keep all of Asia in view: New comprehensive postcode maps

Up-to-date cartographic sources are the most important component for the successful planning of new locations and sales territories. The new Asia Map Edition offers comprehensive postcode maps for almost all of Asia's 48 countries. We offer an attractive 50% discount for customers who have signed up for our product subscription service.

Bring all of Asia into focus!
All maps in the Asia Map Edition 2009 have been completely reworked and refined to reflect the latest status. Klaus Dittmann, head of GfK GeoMarketing's cartography division, is proud of the new Asia Map Edition completed by his team of in-house cartographers: "The comprehensively updated maps for Asia provide a solid basis for geomarketing and business analyses. The scope, accuracy and quality of the maps are unrivaled on the market. Due to the current economic crisis, demand for a reliable cartographic basis for dynamic markets such as Asia is very high," Dittmann explains. "The updated maps for Asia give internationally active companies and institutions a reliable basis for making more informed strategic decisions and carrying out detailed analyses."

World's largest collection of digital postcode maps for Asia
The Asia Map Edition contains more than 600 maps. Postcode regions and political boundaries are provided down to the most detailed regional level for Japan and India, among others. In addition to maps for large countries such as India or China, the Asia Map Edition also includes maps of countries that have undergone significant political changes in recent years, such as Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as maps of smaller countries that have been digitized and included with the Asia Map Edition for the first time, such as the Maldives.

The maps include a wealth of supplementary information, such as a classification of around 5,000 cities in Iraq according to number of inhabitants or the labeling of many map objects with both native language (and associated character font) and international place-name attributions. This allows users to orient themselves amidst Asia's large and very diverse markets, administrative levels and regions – from a broad continent overview down to the most detailed level. GfK GeoMarketing is currently the only provider of digital administrative maps of North Korea.

GfK quality ensures an up-to-date, precise cartographic basis
The level of precision in GfK GeoMarketing's maps for Asia is unusually high – in some case, extremely high. For example, in the map of the United Arab Emirates, one can discern the new man-made palm islands along the coastline of the city-state of Dubai. "For some branches, maps must not only be up-to-date, but also extremely accurate," says project leader Klaus Dittmann. The Asia Map Edition was digitized with these demands in mind and adheres to the worldwide WGS 84 standard. Much attention has been paid to ensure that digitized objects are precisely positioned, reflecting their actual geographic coordinates. Thanks to the fact that the map data has been prepared according to a unified principle, users can unproblematically copy multiple countries into one map project for further editing.

Make sure you have the most up-to-date maps for your planning needs
The Asia Map Edition is the ideal resource for the geographic analysis of your customer and market data as well as your sales territory and expansion planning. All of GfK GeoMarketing's maps are vector-based, offering users unlimited zoom capability and editing possibilities, including the creation of their own custom-tailored map projects. All maps are available in the standard data formats – *.shp (ESRI), *.tab (MapInfo) and *.lay (RegioGraph – GfK GeoMarketing's own business mapping solution).

Secure a competitive advantage in Asia's dynamic markets!
To order, complete the online form.

Contact: Thorsten Lauszus, Tel. +49 (0)7251 9295145

Report: Germany's large cities are top shopping destinations

Around half of Germany's total clothing-related turnover is generated in the country's fifty largest cities. This is one of the findings of the new
GfK POS Turnover for Clothing study carried out by GfK GeoMarketing. The study also reveals that expenditures for women's clothing comprise more than twice the amount spent on men's clothing.

Densely populated regions generate bulk of
clothing-related turnover
The results of the GfK POS Turnover for Clothing 2009 at first appear somewhat predictable. The study shows that densely inhabited areas are responsible for a high level of Germany's clothing-related turnover. The country's three most heavily populated federal states – North Rhine-Westphalia, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg – generate 24, 17 and 13 percent (respectively) of Germany's total clothing-related turnover.

A closer look at the data reveals many exceptions
Some regions break the mold and attract shoppers from far afield. An example is the city-state of Berlin. With around 3.4 million inhabitants, Berlin ranks eighth among Germany's most populated federal states and sixth when it comes to clothing-related turnover, with sales amounting to 5.8 percent of Germany's entire clothing-related turnover.

While it's generally the case that higher numbers of inhabitants equate to higher clothing-related turnover, this isn't always true: Some locations with fewer inhabitants generate more turnover than metropolitan areas with far larger populations. For example, Mannheim, despite a population of only around 310,000, generates more turnover in the clothing sector than the much larger cities of Essen, Leipzig and Dresden, all of which have populations exceeding 500,000. These differences are due to the fact that metropolitan regions have varying levels of retail draw with regard to the surrounding population. "The so-called retail centrality is an additional important factor in evaluating clothing-related sales at a given location," explains GfK retail expert Olaf Petersen. "Our many years of experience as consultants have also shown us that many location-related criteria play a role in how well a given location performs. It's absolutely essential to determine the total possible potential for a given location in order to survive in the fast-paced clothing sector."

Women's clothing is the big earner
The GfK study reveals that women's clothing sales far outpace those of men's and children's. The total turnover in Germany for women's clothing is more than twice as high as that of men's. Sales of children's clothing account for only one-tenth of the country's total clothing-related sales.

GfK POS Turnover for Clothing: An important indicator of a location's retail draw
The GfK POS Turnover for Clothing study reveals the regional distribution of clothing-related turnover at the point of sale. The study differentiates between turnover generated by women's, men's and children's outer garments. Not taken into account are direct sales from manufacturers to consumers and turnover related to wholesale, grocery stores, convenience stores and mail-order retail.

The study includes data on all of Germany's municipalities with more than 40,000 inhabitants, rural and urban districts, postcode areas and federal states. The turnover figures are evaluated based on end-consumer prices and reflect 2008 demand levels. In order to produce as accurate an assessment of demand as possible, turnover generated by chains and corporations is accounted for at the respective branch locations. The GfK POS Turnover for Clothing study is an important indicator of the economic attractiveness of a given location. As such, it is an indispensable resource for planning new locations and managing external sales forces. Companies can also use the dataset to pinpoint the most promising point-of-sale locations in which to concentrate their marketing and sales efforts.

Contact: Corinna Fleckenstein, Tel. +49 (0)7251 9295155

Geomarketing applied: Location-planning

In looking for an ideal site for a company location, businesses are soon reminded of the importance of assessing the regional distribution of certain key elements. Customers, target groups, delivery depots and routes, purchasing power and consumer confidence are never distributed equally throughout a given market. It's therefore essential to pinpoint exactly where the most favorable conditions predominate... more

Contact: Nicole Lahr, Tel. +49 (0)7251 9295160

Free map download: Currency exchange rate trends

Our free map download for this month reveals trends in currency exchange rates from June 2008 to June 2009 among those countries in Europe that have not adopted the euro. According to the data supplied by the European Central Bank, the only currency that has developed positively against the euro in this period is the Swiss franc.
Download the map here (~ 0.5 MB)!

Contact: Oliver Giehsel, Tel. +49 (0)7251 9295165

For questions related to GfK GeoMarketing e-News, please contact:

Cornelia Lichtner
Marketing
GfK GeoMarketing GmbH
c.lichtner@gfk-geomarketing.com

Management Board: Olaf Petersen, Wolfram Scholz, Dr. Eberhard Stegner
Amtsgericht Mannheim, HRB 250872

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