I recently implemented a Social Wi-Fi (aka WiFi marketing) system for a restaurant here in Accra, and this system had a people counter (sort of) built in.
OK, it's not the traditional people counter, and it doesn't count the number of people who cross a line like @jon.M's post.
Called Presence Analytics, this one uses Wi-Fi technology to count foot traffic -- ie Wi-Fi devices crisscrossing the coverage area of an access point.
Of course, it can only count people with smartphones and their Wi-Fi turned on (they don't need to connect to the venue's Wi-Fi network -- the Wi-Fi radio just has to be turned on, so it's totally passive tracking).
But the big advantage is that the mobile device's unique MAC address is tracked, which makes it possible to track and count repeat visits. The system can even estimate the human traffic passing in front of the restaurant (but not entering) from the received signal strength indicator (RSSI) measurements.
Combine this with the social data gleaned from the people who actually connect to the restaurant's Wi-Fi network using their social media accounts -- and you have a very powerful (but very creepy) personalized campaign and retargeting machine.
Awesome times for marketers, terrible times for personal privacy!
OK, it's not the traditional people counter, and it doesn't count the number of people who cross a line like @jon.M's post.
Called Presence Analytics, this one uses Wi-Fi technology to count foot traffic -- ie Wi-Fi devices crisscrossing the coverage area of an access point.
Of course, it can only count people with smartphones and their Wi-Fi turned on (they don't need to connect to the venue's Wi-Fi network -- the Wi-Fi radio just has to be turned on, so it's totally passive tracking).
But the big advantage is that the mobile device's unique MAC address is tracked, which makes it possible to track and count repeat visits. The system can even estimate the human traffic passing in front of the restaurant (but not entering) from the received signal strength indicator (RSSI) measurements.
Combine this with the social data gleaned from the people who actually connect to the restaurant's Wi-Fi network using their social media accounts -- and you have a very powerful (but very creepy) personalized campaign and retargeting machine.
Awesome times for marketers, terrible times for personal privacy!
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