But location data also has retailers concerned about consumer privacy. Retail Systems Research (RSR) and mapping software company Esri polled retailers that were headquartered in the US (73%), UK (26%) and Europe (1%) about location-based marketing in January 2019. Of those that RSR considered “high-performing”—defined as having channel sales growth of 4.5% or higher in 2018—85% said that permission-based location tracking was very important.
However, the same poll found that consumer privacy concerns were among the largest barriers to US retailers. In 2019, 59% of respondents said overreaching concerns about consumer privacy was one of the three leading factors that prevented them from implementing location-based initiatives, up from 46% in 2018. (Note: This question was asked of all retailers polled, not just those that have not used location-based marketing.)
Additionally, 49% of retailers said business leaders at their organizations were concerned about the “creepiness” factor in tracking.