GEOG 850
Location Intelligence for Business

3.3 Exploring Your Own Market, Part 1

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Activity - Exploring Your Own Market with Esri's Business Analyst Online (BAO), Part 1

Now is your chance to explore your own market!

Returning to some of the questions which came up as we worked through the material on segmentation, now turn to your own area of interest and investigate further. In this activity, you are free (and encouraged) to explore different data variables, levels of geography, data classification, and map design to illustrate your own market.

Spaeder (2019) reiterates that at startup, location may be the most important thing in preparing to open a food or retail business with a storefront. This activity reinforces four points the author highlights:

  1. Start with questions to develop criteria.
  2. Examine demographic data.
  3. Identify competitors.
  4. Seek professional help.

Your goal is to examine the demography of your area of interest with what you uncovered about your ZIP code in the previous activity. Though you do have the option to look at other levels of geography as well.

This activity will take place in two parts. In Part 1 (this week in Lesson 3), we will look primarily at demography and in Part 2 (next week in Lesson 4), we will continue with a deeper look at Esri's Tapestry segmentation.

Suggestions

  • Do investigate your market in BAO first at the ZIP code level. Following the ZIP code, you will add to your investigation with other levels of geography.
  • Do include an analysis of demographic attributes as you "ground truth" your market. You'll want to look at some of the key demographic variables (population, marital status, income, home tenure, children, etc) we discussed last week. However, small level Census geography results for the 2020 Census may not be available. It's fine to choose to use the Esri "20XX/20XX Demographics" modeled data OR the "ACS 20XX-20XX" averages (where "XX" represents the most current data years available), as the 2010 Census data may not be current enough for our purposes, and the 2020 data may not be fully available yet for smaller geographies.
  • You may wish to spend a moment reviewing Esri's Tapestry Segmentation. You'll find both a handy poster overview and a reference guide. In addition, you may wish to try to "match up" your PRIZM segment (much the way you did with Mosaic) to a corresponding segment in Tapestry BEFORE you start making maps. However, your goal this week is to consider demographic variables in Esri's software service. (You'll look at Tapestry segments for your area next week in more depth.)
  • Feel free to have a discussion about the datasets you draw from, share tips, and pose questions in the discussion forum.
  • DON'T wait until the last minute—DO start early, sharing findings and tips with each other, and asking questions if you get stuck.

Deliverable Lesson 3.3 Activity:

A Word .doc/.docx submitted to the Lesson 3.3 Drop Box - Exploring Your Own Market, Part 1 in Canvas. Your submission should include the following:

  1. A write-up describing what you found using your Esri BAO demographic research. Your write-up should be about 3-5 concise paragraphs and should include:
    1. The ZIP code or any other identification information you used in your search (choices of geographies by county, tract, block group, etc.)
    2. Highlight any key demographic variables that were included in the segment description.
    3. After introducing your observations at the ZIP code level, please choose one other geographic level that does an even better job of characterizing what you think of as your segment, and elaborate as you did with the ZIP code information.
    4. Characterization of your "place" (this may be your metropolitan area, city, town, etc.). Please consider if it is a CBSA and how it relates to the larger area (is your area core/central city, suburb, commuter town, etc?)
  2. Your BAO generated maps—at least 2 but no more than 4 images please—submitted as .jpg/.pdf.
    1. While your maps needn't be publication quality, please do make conscious choices about map extent, data classification and design (including a legend).
    2. Please include at least one map at the ZIP code level (showing your ZIP code, of course).
    3. Please include at least one map at the tract or block group level (justifying your rationale).
    4. Make sure your maps support your case!

Due Tuesday night 11:59 pm (Eastern Time).