Tourism and Visitors Bureau purchases subscription for location and foot traffic data software system

Shelby County Tourism and Visitors Bureau’s commission voted to purchase a year’s subscription to Placer.ai, a location intelligence and foot traffic data software that provides location analytics, including trends, trade areas and visitor demographics, with a 96-98 percent accuracy.

“Shelby County Tourism and Visitors Bureau is investing substantial funding that will provide the tourist commission with up to five years' worth of information on Shelby County hospitality amenities that include specialty properties, hotels, parks, trails, restaurants, shops and more,” said Rachael Ackley, Executive Director of the bureau.

Placer.ai acquires information through geofencing – using GPS and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology to create a virtual geographic boundary around locations such as downtown Shelbyville area, fairgrounds, Blue River Memorial Park, the I-74 and I-65 corridor through Shelby County and more.

When a mobile device enters or leaves a specified area, it’s recorded by the software, providing clients with data including age, sex, location and education. The software platform tracks where visitors come from and where they head afterward and uses algorithms that extrapolate to include people who don’t have smart phones. Placer.ai also created heat maps, which show where most visitors tend to congregate at an event.

“The thorough information we are able to ascertain from Placer.ai’s strong geofencing technology will be able to assist us in strategic plans for years to come and ensure we are assisting those entities that truly need our help in promoting our communities,” said Ackley.

The tourist commission gets unlimited use of the data, which can be used to provide projections for the next five years. They can also access other county’s data. The local tourism bureau also can share the information with local businesses and event organizers through a shared structure fee system.

The platform can provide demographic data on visitors, including the median income and how that compared to the state. Placer.ai also collects information on visitors’ family makeup, employment, ancestry, how much they earn and their disposable income.

“The fact we’re going to have strong, verifiable data to make our decisions ensures we are good stewards of our monies,” said Bill Rasner, treasurer of Shelby County Tourism and Visitors Bureau.

For more information on the shared fee structure, go to www.visitshelbycounty.com

The Shelby County Post is a digital newspaper producing news, sports, obituaries and more without a pay wall or subscription needed.