Art Hop Analytics

These white boxes are part of a mobile device monitoring system along the Kalamazoo Mall. The technology, from the Kalamazoo/Detroit-based WAYN WiFi company, tracks devices as they search for a Wi-Fi connection. Chuck Miller | Kalamazoo Gazette

KALAMAZOO, MI –

A series of devices attached to light posts along the Kalamazoo Mall are tracking mobile devices, searching for a Wi-Fi connection as a way to monitor downtown foot traffic.

Twenty Wi-Fi access points spread over four "zones" from Lovell Street to Water Street were installed in October and paid for by the Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo and the Event Company as a tool to monitor traffic during major events, specifically Art Hops.

The technology is made by the Michigan based start-up company WAYN WiFi and is using the four-block stretch as a beta test for the technology in an outdoor, public space.

As personal devices — smartphones, laptops and tablets — search for a Wi-Fi connection, they "ping" WAYN’s monitors to create a real-time map of pedestrian traffic.

From her computer on the second floor of the Epic Center, Arts Council deputy director Beth McCann can watch as red dots move across a map of downtown Kalamazoo.

While watching her screen recently, a red dot dashed down the mall. McCann guessed it was a customer trying out a pair of running shoes at Gazelle Sports. She can get data on a specific time frame on a specific date, including "dwell" time, or how long a device remained in one area, to unique visitors.

It may sound like something from George Orwell's "Nineteen Eighty-Four," but Neal Welbourne, the president and founder WAYN, which stands for "Where Are You Now," says it's not intrusive. He compared it to sonar. He said no personal information is being gathered. One downtown businessman described it not as "Big Brother" but "awkward cousin."

"I wouldn't even call it awkward cousin. I'd call it concerned grandmother who lives down the street," said the 39-year-old Welbourne, a Kalamazoo native who graduated from Western Michigan University in 2001 with a bachelor's degree in geography.

As it stands now, the technology is fairly limited. Welbourne, who lives in Birmingham, said it's only a collection of time stamps.

It's not new or proprietary technology, he said. Several shopping districts in other major U.S. cities use something similar. It can have many uses, but WAYN is developing it specifically to monitor traffic. The company, which has offices in Kalamazoo and Detroit, works with eight clients, including a grocery store. It's also been used at trade shows, Welbourne said.

Beth McCann, deputy director of the Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo, points to a map on her computer screen. Using technology from the start-up company, WAYN WiFi, McCann can monitor mobile devices as they search for a Wi-Fi connection over a four block range on the South Kalamazoo Mall.

Should downtown Kalamazoo develop an app, which Welbourne said he recommended, the public could download it and more of the technology's power could be realized, including target marketing from specific businesses along the mall. The devices could also provide Wi-Fi service, he said.

Welbourne is a technology consultant specializing in geography and geographic data. He's been working on WAYN WiFi for about two years, with the company coming to fruition in the last eight months, he said. His parents still live in Kalamazoo and he said he thinks his company can help improve his hometown.

He said the technology could give greater visibility to Kalamazoo's arts culture and potentially provide a positive economic impact for several downtown businesses.

The Arts Council sees it as a way to better understand the flow of traffic and to potentially secure funding for future events as those dollars are harder to find. McCann said the devices will remain up at least through the Jan. 10 Art Hop. She said the Arts Council is seeking funding to keep them up through 2014.

McCann and Welbourne would not say how much the service costs, although Welbourne said it varies with the customer and the location.

"It’s a significant investment, yes, but it would not detract from our other programming if we invested in this. We’d be looking to potentially seek funding for this,” McCann said.

She added, "I don't think it will be hard to get funding."

The need for such technology, at least in terms of the Art Hop, comes as funding for the event has dropped significantly. The Art Hop is an Arts Council event held typically on the first Friday of the month when downtown businesses and local artists collaborate for a series of stops. Four times a year, Arts Council partnered with DKI to put on expanded Art Hops, or events with a larger number of stops. Art Hops are one of the more popular events downtown.

Downtown Kalamazoo Inc., a longtime partner with the Arts Council in Art Hop, is providing $10,000 in funding for this year’s series of events. In 2012, DKI supplied $50,000 in money and support and it gave $25,000 in assistance last year, according to Rob Peterson, business recruitment and retention director at the DKI.

McCann said the data collected from WAYN's project will help them make a stronger case when the Arts Council seeks grant dollars and private funding for future events. For example, according to the data, the December Art Hop attracted 8,173 visitors, which is more than 3,000 people on an average Friday. McCann didn't have numbers like that before. Welbourne estimates the technology captures about 70 percent of a given audience, as some people turn off their Wi-Fi to conserve battery and others own older cell phones.

The Arts Council, with assistance from DKI, has an encroachment agreement with the city to mount the devices. Welbourne and McCann said they would like to see the range of the project expanded to include Bronson Park and the Arcadia Creek Festival Place, but there would need to be additional funding to place the devices on light poles that aren't owned by the city. Welbourne said they'd have to pay a fee to the company that owns the light posts to plug the devices into a power source.

DKI's Rob Peterson called the technology "highly valuable" for downtown retailers as well. He thinks the data could help inform businesses on the best hours to keep, as well as other benefits, including customer loyalty programs, should an app be developed.

The project does raise questions about privacy. Welbourne said the devices only capture devices seeking a Wi-Fi connection, so if you turn the Wi-Fi off on your smartphone, it won't "ping" the system. It doesn't collect any personal data, he said.

“We respect people’s privacy and we do not encroach on that privacy at all. A lot of people think you can communicate with this person with the technology we have, but you cannot. It’s completely anonymous," Welbourne said.

McCann said there should be no privacy invasion concerns.

“Because we don’t get any information off the cell phone, for us, it’s just simply dots on a map and numbers,” McCann said. “At this point in time, because we’re not ready to market to those people, I would never want to take that information and just have it. Once we get to that point and we can do that, sure, but it would be an opt-in thing at that point. We’d never want to invade their privacy without their permission.”

John Liberty covers entertainment for the Kalamazoo Gazette. Call him at 269-370-7372, email him at jlibert1@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter.