Published on February 5, 2024
Uchikado Tomoya, Business Manager, Location Marketing Business, Navitime Japan Co., Ltd.
(Affiliation and job title are as of the time of publication)
Location marketing that makes it easier to make the decision to move
Navitime Japan is famous for its end-user services such as navigation and route search used by 50 million people.
Navitime, whose employees are 80% engineers, offers a variety of other mobility solutions based on its core total navigation technology.
We asked Uchikado, the business manager, about marketing solutions for store operators based on MEO (Map Engine Optimization), from detailed information preparation to inbound response, to achieve detailed real-time search.
=============
Navitime Japan is an engineering-based company that researches and develops search technologies such as route search and navigation. It is particularly known for consumer applications such as transfer information and car navigation. Currently, approximately 50 million users use the service monthly.
Uchikado is in charge of a different area from those services, providing marketing support services for store operators.
In particular, we support making stores easier to find in the field of MEO (Map Engine Optimization), which has been attracting attention recently. We provide support to make it easier for store operators to find stores by optimizing the store selection stage, focusing on searching for the route to the store itself.
Our president and vice president have been involved in navigation engine development since their university days, and were in charge of car route search and public transportation route search, respectively. By combining these, total navigation was realized, and it was initially provided as a search engine behind the scenes for corporations, but was later developed as a service for consumers and is now a mainstream business.
Around 2004, we partnered with KDDI to start services such as Naviwalk, and also conducted advertising activities. This led to many people becoming aware of it.
The Location Marketing Division provides marketing support mainly to store operators in the retail and restaurant industries. Unlike general marketing measures, we focus on support in the case of searching for stores. When users look for directions to a store, they use search engines, but when deciding which store to go to, other media are also used.
In the current trend of searching for restaurants, restaurant sites and map apps such as Google Maps are used to search for restaurants. We aim to respond to these diverse search methods and provide accurate information.
Some people may think that our efforts compete with other map services and SNS, but our approach is different. We play a role in supporting the world in the information management part behind the scenes. We aim to contribute widely by accurately managing store information and providing it to various media.
The president of Navitime sees value in the system development behind the route search engine. Our service places emphasis on supporting store data management and information accuracy, and we believe that this is our distinctive feature.
This service is mainly aimed at store operators, especially chain store managers and store personnel. Our service provides a platform that connects store data management and media that utilize it.
Focusing specifically on eating out, our service is not provided to restaurant search services, but is used directly by store operators. Our service provides a platform that connects store data held by store operators with user media that can find that data.
For example, when trying to find a store, general users have had the experience of thinking that the business hours are until 10 o'clock, but when they go there, they find that the store is already closed. This occurs because store operators want to disseminate accurate information, but have problems with data management that prevents them from disseminating information in real time, and because large chain rooms make it difficult to collect information from each store.
Therefore, it is necessary for store operators to first establish a foundation for centrally managing and disseminating accurate information. Our service provides tools that allow store information to be centrally managed on the cloud, making it easy to collect and integrate information. We also provide multilingual support and support for foreign tourists.
Regarding store information, we have a specialized team that collects information nationwide, and for example, we check whether the travel route on the navigation engine is accurate and whether the parking information is appropriate. This makes store information management our core technology.
In addition, as the number of inbound tourists is increasing, the data provided through apps for foreigners is also expanding, and store operators are also seeing an increase in inbound customers who use our services.
Those who should consider our service are those involved in fast food and marketing, especially large chain stores with multiple stores. The price of the service varies depending on the specific requirements, so we respond flexibly to the functions and needs of the customer. When using for the first time, a trial menu and customizable options are also available.
Finally, as for future prospects, we will focus on providing real-time information and improving user convenience. Providing real-time information is especially important for users, and we plan to evolve our service in a way that meets that demand.