People counting
People counting, or footfall counting, is counting the number of people, usually with automated technology such as AI cameras or turnstiles, entering or exiting a location to understand things like conversion rates or the effectiveness of your advertising.
What is people counting?
If you have ever ridden a subway, you’ve probably experienced some people counting technology. The turnstiles are designed to count people as they enter and exit the system.
While they may have originally been installed to facilitate ticket collection, and therefore to collect revenue, people counting provides a wealth of information that can be exploited to improve the subway system.
Understanding when and where people enter and exit the system can influence train scheduling to make sure passengers get to their destination more quickly. Knowing how busy individual stations are can also be a critical factor in deciding where future condominiums or office buildings should be located.
Modern people counting, or footfall counting, has evolved a lot over the years. Turnstiles are no longer necessary. AI cameras can now count people as they enter and leave. In fact, cameras can map out an individual patron’s entire journey through a location from start to finish.
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Why is people counting important?
People counting unlocks a lot of value. Here are some of the metrics that can be calculated using footfall counting:
- Conversion rate
- Average duration of visit
- Heatmaps and zone counting
These metrics can provide even greater insights when put to work. Here are some areas of your business where people counting can help:
- Measure the foot traffic of a location before expanding.
- Enhance planning, including the layout of your store.
- Manage occupancy capacity.
- Test and measure the effectiveness of marketing and advertising campaigns.
- Discover low- and high-demand hours.
