GIS for Business and Service Planning (Paperback)

~ Paul A. Longley (Editor), Graham Clarke (Editor) "GIS has had a short but impressive history within academic geography, and many of the models, techniques and data-enhancement methods that have been pioneered in..." (more)
Key Phrases: spatial analysis software, geodemographic indicators, drive time bands, Super Profiles, United States, Ordnance Survey (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Renowned contributors assess the links between technological change, analytical information and data customization which are now beginning to stimulate the wider adoption of GIS as a management and applied research tool. The first section deals with population data sources, followed by geodemographics and how it is used in customer targeting and product marketing. The next part considers how businesses can adopt GIS and the final segment contains two excellent overviews on how geography is being applied in business. A wealth of illustrations, containing new material from actual commercial and planning applications, enables readers to distinguish between abstract GIS principles and authentic usages.

From the Publisher

Renowned contributors assess the links between technological change, analytical information and data customization which are now beginning to stimulate the wider adoption of GIS as a management and applied research tool. The first section deals with population data sources, followed by geodemographics and how it is used in customer targeting and product marketing. The next part considers how businesses can adopt GIS and the final segment contains two excellent overviews on how geography is being applied in business. A wealth of illustrations, containing new material from actual commercial and planning applications, enables readers to distinguish between abstract GIS principles and authentic usages.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 316 pages
• Publisher: Wiley (February 12, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470235101
• ISBN-13: 978-0470235102
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,681,537 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars An introduction to GIS for managers, December 20, 2006

By	Charles Ashbacher "([e-mail])" (Marion, Iowa United States([e-mail])) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

As an industry, GIS often seems to be in search of a niche. While most people can easily be convinced that at least some components of GIS would be helpful in their business, only a small number actually use it effectively. Clearly, a large part of the problem is lack of knowledge concerning how to implement it. This book is a good place to start on the journey to profitable use of what is a set of very effective tools.
Designed to appeal to those at the management level, technical jargon is kept to a minimum. Although specific cases are mentioned, the emphasis is on an explanation of strategy rather than implementation details. One very good aspect is the lack of hype. While there are well-known cases of substantial benefits being reaped when a GIS tool was used, most of those mentioned here concern improvements that are a single digit percentage. The limitations of GIS are also readily acknowledged. Some of the inherent inaccuracies in the collection and processing of data, such as the census, are explained in detail. This includes the deliberate ones introduced as a response to legally mandated privacy concerns.
Contributor Stan Openshaw makes points in chapter seven that are of fundamental interest to geographers and GIS professionals. The following two quotes

"Geographers have been particularly slow to appreciate the commercial relevance and monetary value of many basic geographical analysis and modeling skills."

"Seemingly few geographers know much or anything about the needs of marketers and they are thus unable to be of much assistance even if they wished to be."

point out a fundamental rule of knowledge transfer, namely that new business expertise is more often pushed out than pulled in. Therefore, it is the responsibility of all GIS professionals to inform and educate potential users of the value of the wide range of GIS tools. Waiting for the prospects to learn this on their own is unrealistic. For this reason, there is also much here to interest the GIS professional.
Most of the case studies are European, with an emphasis on the United Kingdom. While this does not change the validity, some in the United States may question the usefulness of decisions made in a European context. However, it does point out some of the inherent strengths of GIS, in that the use is in most cases independent of the cultural foundation of the data. It was very interesting for this reviewer to learn that the most widely used polygon for GIS related business applications in Europe is also the postal code. While governments go to great lengths to create the polygons used for the census, the majority of business applications find them of lesser significance compared to how the mail is sorted. Perhaps there will be a movement in the future to consolidate the census and postal polygons wherever possible. It seems logical that governments would also find some efficiency benefits to such a change.
With much to offer both the GIS professional wishing to make inroads into business and the business planner looking for a better bottom line, this is a book that both groups can read to good effect. Since it is clear that each has a lot of offer, there is no better time. And in the current intensively competitive business climate, for the use of GIS may be an act of survival