The Open Time Content Nearest Store widget has a single function: it displays a map showing which of your stores are closest to the customer’s location when they open an email. You can use this to increase footfall to your ‘bricks & mortar’ stores by offering limited-duration promotions, for example.
This is a full service widget and must be activated for you by Emarsys Support.
Introduction
When a recipient opens an email and clicks on the map they can be directed to:
- Google maps (if using an Android device) or Apple maps (if using an iPhone), with directions to the nearest store
displaying. - Google maps in a web browser on a desktop, also with directions to the nearest store.
- A different landing page altogether.
Using the Open Time Content Rule Builder, you can create rules to determine what content should be displayed to the recipient. For example, you can decide to show the nearest physical location when the email is opened on a mobile device (since the recipient is on the move), but direct to a more generic ‘Find you nearest store’ web page if they open it at home on a desktop computer.
Here is an example of how the widget might look:
Once the recipient clicks the map or the How do I get there call to action they will be asked to enable mobile GPS and then the widget will direct them to the store.
Getting started
The following data is required for the Nearest Store widget:
- GPS coordinates and physical address of all store locations.
- A .psd design of the nearest store map (for the dimensions of the map in the widget).
- The image of the map pin in .png or .psd format.
- A default image for when we are unable to detect the location (or if there is no store within the predetermined radius).
- Rules and default settings for when the email is opened, for example the search radius, default image, device rules, etc.
- A landing page URL if your preferred call-to-action in the email is click through to a landing page (rather than click to generate directions to the nearest store).
After you send this to Emarsys, we will then build and test the widget for you and add it to your account. You will then have one widget that always generates the same tag that you can use in all your emails.
Important:
- The map image and the default image must have the same dimensions in pixels.
- If you need both a desktop and a mobile version of the tag, please provide all the data listed above for both versions. In this case, two tags will be provided.
Using the widget
Since this widget has only one function and generates only one tag, you don’t need to create a campaign and mailing every time you use it. You can simply re-use the tag each time.
Maintaining your list of stores
After Emarsys has set up the widget for you, it is possible to amend or update the location list. To do this, send the updated list to Emarsys Support. Please note the following:
- Emarsys will update the widget once a month without charge. More frequent updates may incur additional costs.
- Each update will take up to four working days to complete.
- You will need to send the full file containing all of the current stores that should be displayed in the tag - not just the stores to add or remove.
- We will have to provide a new tag each time there’s an update; the tags in historical emails will not update. This means that emails that were already sent using the old widget will still show the old store list and will have to be updated.
We have created a sample file to show you what pieces of information we need, you can download it here.
FAQ
How does it work in detail?
IP-based geolocation (GeoIP) is the pairing of an IP Mac address to a real-world geographic location of a computer or a mobile device connected to the Internet. You can use GeoIP to identify where your recipients are when they open your email, to display a map showing the nearest stores to them, and then to direct them to your nearest store.
Open Time Content uses the GeoIP of the recipient at the time of open to serve a personalized image based on their proximity to a store. If the recipient is within a predetermined radius of a store, they will see a map showing pins of the nearest stores. We use GeoIP to detect location as it does not require the recipients’ location services to be switched on, which makes it fast but not 100% accurate. When the recipient clicks the nearest store section of the email, exact personalized directions are presented to the nearest store powered by GPS.
How does Emarsys get the IP address when the email is opened on a mobile device?
When the email is opened, it is usually the email client which provides the IP. However, if the email is opened on a mobile device, it will be the cell connection or the WiFi connection which provides this information.
How accurate is Geo-IP?
Although it would be nice to detect the precise location of an email open, it is almost impossible to find the exact location of the recipient using the IP address. Accuracy of GeoIP varies, with accuracy decreasing as the scale is decreased. For example, country/region-based GeoIP is very accurate, whereas city-based GeoIP detection is less accurate.
GeoIP location and GPS location abilities and accuracy:
| Country or Region | Correct Resolved | Incorrectly Resolved | Unresolved |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 73% | 24% | 3% |
| Austria | 75% | 10% | 15% |
| Belgium | 78% | 6% | 16% |
| Brazil | 75% | 17% | 8% |
| Canada | 84% | 14% | 2% |
| Denmark | 82% | 9% | 10% |
| Finland | 44% | 12% | 44% |
| France | 64% | 28% | 7% |
| Germany | 76% | 18% | 6% |
| India | 68% | 21% | 11% |
| Indonesia | 72% | 15% | 13% |
| Italy | 61% | 26% | 13% |
| Netherlands | 75% | 8% | 17% |
| New Zealand | 62% | 28% | 10% |
| Norway | 81% | 13% | 6% |
| Poland | 58% | 30% | 11% |
| South Africa | 70% | 22% | 8% |
| Spain | 78% | 14% | 8% |
| Sweden | 72% | 9% | 19% |
| Switzerland | 69% | 8% | 23% |
| Turkey | 77% | 14% | 8% |
| United Kingdom | 77% | 16% | 7% |
| United States | 84% | 13% | 3% |
Are there any inbox restrictions?
Yes. Some inboxes, such as Gmail and Hotmail, bypass GeoIP location tracking and therefore the default rule or default image is displayed.
Do proxy settings affect accuracy?
Yes. In some cases, a proxy location setting is used where GeoIP shows the corporate headquarters location, and not the location of the recipient.