Last week, Whittaker Associates and the Pro Learning Lab hosted our monthly webinar. Our speaker, Dusty Duistermars with Qube Global Software, presented the best mobile apps for business, giving us practical knowledge for using apps to get ourselves, our communities, and our products/services noticed.
One app that is extremely beneficial for economic development and real estate professionals is Esri Business Analyst Online (BAO). The free version for mobile devices is a great way to quickly find location data to answer three main questions:
1) What types of people live there?
2) How does it compare to another area?
3) Is it a good fit based on your needs?
The demographic data can aid in location decisions by providing information such as spending habits, lifestyle, education, and more about the population of a specific geography.
This is particularly helpful for professionals that need to tout a community or site to a prospective customer. What percent of the population have bachelor’s degrees or graduate degrees? Is there a skilled workforce to fill the jobs needed by a company looking to relocate? Would local citizens have a need for your products or services and the income to purchase them? How do your community’s assets compare to the next town over or to a town on the other side of the country? What sets a vacant building in your town apart from other vacant buildings in the area?
The free app is a great on-the-spot info and comparison tool. If you need more detailed data, you can subscribe for a fee and receive PDF location reports and expand your analysis area up to 100 miles. Download the free app and see how BAO describes your neighborhood!