Like all other things, people counters have evolved dramatically since the invention of manual clickers. With the primary goal of counting visitors in an establishment, modern counters incorporate new technology to deliver more useful data for retail business owners.
This article will discuss the changes these people counting systems underwent and the various information each of them is now offering not only to retail shops but also to other companies as well.
But before that…
Table of Contents
What Is a People Counter?
The term “people counter” describes any tool or system of counting individuals walking in and out of a specific area, which could be a store, an arena, or a public space.
People counting began with very simple manual clickers and evolved into more complex machines (explained in greater detail later).
The whole point of people counting isn’t just to determine how many people visit a place, though. With the integration of newer technologies, it can also collect large amounts of data on:
- customer behavior
- visitor demographics
- staff performance
- store layout
- marketing effectiveness and many others
In other words, it allows retailers to know things that aren’t immediately apparent in a single transaction. For example, these counters can determine whether people visiting the Dubai Festival City Mall go there to shop, dine, or try out their signature services.
In short, people counters generate a complete picture of the customers’ intent and behavior.
Why Is Counting People Important?
Initially, people counters are used to extract traffic data on certain stores and commercial spaces. This reflects the total number of visitors a store gets within a certain period.
Alone, traffic data is a useful metric to assess business performance. It shows how well the store is received by customers with the number of visitors it gets compared to its competitors. This is much like organic traffic to a website, counted by the number of users who open the page.
On top of that, traffic data can also be used to gather other store information, like how much of the visitors converted to actual customers. This is an effective way to determine the profitability of the business.
When used in analytics, traffic data can also pinpoint the store’s high- and low-customer periods, determine its bounce rate, and assess its customer-to-staff ratio.
All these can be used to improve business performance and, ultimately, boost sales.
7 Types of People Counters Through the Years
People counters have been around for over two decades, but they weren’t as helpful during their early days because of data inaccuracies and limitations.
However, that changed in the past few years when newer people counters with over 95 percent accuracy emerged.
Below is a summary of how people counting systems evolved through the years:
1. Manual Clickers – 1970s to 1990s
Manual clickers help a member of the staff count the number of customers that enter the business premises by clicking the device every time someone passes through the entrance.
2. Pressure-Sensitive Mats – 1990s to 2000s
These are pieces of fabric placed on the entrance of the shop for unmanned people-counting. It works like manual clickers, except a count is automatically added whenever pressure is applied on the mat.
Some studies have been conducted on this technology, proposing that it can do more than count the people that step on the mat.
Based on research published in 2017, experts proposed that it is possible to extract the following features of a single step and use it for person identification:
- Shifts in a person’s center of gravity
- The maximum pressure point of an individual step
- The overall pressed area of the carpet
3. Infrared Beam Counters – 2002 to 2004
Like pressure-sensitive mats, infrared beam counters use a trigger to count the number of people who enter an establishment.
A transmitter and a receiver are placed on opposite sides of the entrance, connected by an infrared beam. Once the beam is interrupted, the receiver detects it and adds to the people count.
4. Thermal People Counters – 2005 to 2011
This marked the beginning of more complex technologies used for people counting.
Thermal people counters use different types of sensors that detect heat sources. It records the number of people who enter a place and how they move around the establishment.
This type of counter is non-intrusive and unaffected by heat, light, and inanimate objects, yielding an average accuracy of 96 percent or higher. They can also count bi-directionally, even with big crowds passing by simultaneously.
5. Camera-Based People Counter – 2011 to 2018
Like thermal people counters, this uses sensors and can count people who go in different directions. However, these are powered by image processing and more complex algorithms, yielding more precise customer demographic data and footfall analytics.
Take note, however, that these are different from security cameras placed all over a store. These focus more on foot traffic and actively count people rather than keeping records of their images.
6. Wi-Fi-Linked People Counter – 2011 to 2018
As the name suggests, Wi-Fi-based people counters use Wi-Fi request signals from smartphones to keep tabs of footfall and customer movement inside an establishment. This technology counts how many unique devices search for Wi-Fi connection and use that data to estimate foot traffic.
This people counter can also offer other interesting customer insights, particularly on their shopping habits. For example, a store can measure the length of time a person spends in their establishment and determine where they stayed longer specifically. It can also identify returning customers.
However, these counters are only accurate if the necessary conditions are met. This means that if a customer turns off Wi-Fi access in their device, they won’t be included in the people counting data.
7. AI-Powered People Counters – 2018 to the Future
The next generation of people counters are bound to leverage advanced computer vision and artificial intelligence (AI). With these two technologies working behind footfall analytics, businesses can get even more in-depth consumer insights and predict a sale before it could happen.
One of the biggest problems for people counting technologies occurs in the most crowded places where bodies overlap. Plus, individuals are not always facing the camera and sensors.
However, some companies have already begun their research to overcome these challenges. Some solutions that were proposed include:
- the use of a deep-learning CPU along with high-resolution cameras
- enhancing the person detection accuracy amidst image noise
- multi-angle sampling training for the AI
People Counting Through the Years
People counters provide helpful information that can be used to make important decisions in business.
Understanding its roots and the technologies behind it will allow you to make a smarter choice when planning to use one for your business.
