We've previously explored other location-based technologies, in posts tackling the facts behind beacons and the changing face of retail. This time, we are looking at what3words, a service which offers us the opportunity to address previously unknown locations and the ability to pinpoint any location on the globe (to the nearest two meters) with a unique 3 word combination.
For our office, handily now addressed as always.loved.select, what3words provides us with a precise tool for locating our whereabouts, which is not only far shorter than the traditional postal address but also much easier to recall than number-heavy GPS coordinates. The three words' qualitative nature makes them memorable, whilst the service's quantitative backbone guarantees precision.
Whilst the technology's real application lies in allocating a fixed, chartable location to places off the grid, we've allocated (perhaps innacurate) locations to significant places around the world, which for too long have gone without an address.
Three words to define the location of…
Retail
We are now considering extending the application of this pioneering tech to the retail domain; in shopping centres, retail parks, city centres and exhibitions. With this technology we can provide location markers for pop-up shops, mobile units, markets, street events and spontaneous gatherings.