Opinion: 2022 census crucial for private investment in Brazil

By João Eduardo Caetano*

(Opinion) Imagine you are hosting a party and you need to buy food and drinks and determine the seating for each guest.

At some point, you realize that you don’t know how many people will come, whether someone will have to follow a certain diet or won’t drink alcohol.

There’s a good chance your party won’t be a success, right?

Investing in a country with Brazil’s size, and cultural and social diversity without having accurate information about the population is like trying to organize such a party.

That’s why the 2022 census is essential for companies to make the decision to invest and thus create jobs and income.

When the IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics) census takers knock on your door, they are not only collecting important information for the development of public policies to overcome social inequalities.

IBGE technicians help you understand the characteristics of the population that are essential for defining business models.

Information such as the number of people per household, income profile, and education level among the 77 questions in the full version-helps businesses decide which city to locate an industrial, real estate, or commercial project in.

Or even the neighborhood where they can open a supermarket, pharmacy, or hair salon.

Census data allows us to understand the dynamics not only of entire municipalities like São Paulo, where an estimated 12 million people live.

It also helps us understand the dynamics of neighborhoods and blocks in small, medium, and large cities.

How many people live in a particular neighborhood? Do they live in owned or rented property: how does spending on rent or mortgage affect their consumption patterns?

Processing this information for investment decisions has become more important in recent years with the consolidation of geomarketing.

It is a science that specializes in processing data on economic and territorial relationships to create marketing maps that are essential for investment decision-making: Customer profiles, the standard of living and income, and type of consumption.

Geomarketing is a highly technological and sophisticated field of knowledge based on Big Data and Data Science to assemble census information into a puzzle with real opportunities for each economic sector.

Large retail chains are using this tool extensively.

According to Fortune Business Insights, the geomarketing market worldwide is expected to grow from US$15.7 billion per year in 2022 to about US$44 billion in 2029.

Geomarketing technology has long been distant from micro and small enterprises (SMEs), which account for 30% of GDP.

This scenario has changed with the emergence of startups offering products adapted to local needs.

We can say that we are gradually witnessing democratization.

This will be important to change the sad reality in Brazil, where 50% of businesses close their doors before four years have passed.

The lack of access to geomarketing is one of the explanations for the failure of small businesses.

This is because one of the main factors behind the high failure rate is the lack of accurate information for planning the investment.

This includes income profile, customer age group, customer potential, type of competition, and ideal installation location.

The Causa Mortis survey conducted by Sebrae shows that 46% of entrepreneurs do not even know the number of potential customers in their area and their consumption habits. While 38% do not know the competitors and 37% have no idea where best to locate.

Census 2022’s mission is to help entrepreneurs reverse these statistics by providing consistent data for investment decisions.

But investment won’t lead to income and job creation in your city or neighborhood if you refuse to answer IBGE census takers.

So open your doors and participate in the census.

Your data will be preserved, and your private life will not be revealed. The citizen will benefit from the improvement of the business environment.

* João Eduardo Caetano, 41, is a professor of geomarketing in the MBA of ESPM and USP / Esalq. Founder of Mapfry and author of the book “Geomarketing Escolar de Bolso”. He is also a senior technical executive with experience in companies such as Rede Globo, C&A, BRMALLS, Ana Couto Branding, Geofusion and Catho.

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