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Map points of interest

In this topic

  1. Explore the results
  2. Map styles
  3. Set preferences
  4. Workflow video

You can search for points of interest, such as businesses and facilities, using data from Data Axle, SafeGraph, and other POI data sources. For example, you can search for hospitals or search using the name of a specific hospital. You can also search within a category or industry or search using NAICS or SIC codes.

The points of interest (POI) search workflow has four stages: search, refine results, set the map style, and explore the results. To search for points of interest, do the following:

  1. On the Maps tab, click Create maps and select Points of interest (POI) search.

    The Points of interest (POI) search pane appears.

    Tip:

    You can also launch this workflow using the search tool.

  2. In the Geography section, use the Analysis extent drop-down menu to define the geographic extent of the analysis by searching for a standard geography, selecting Current map extent, or choosing a site.

    Selecting a standard geography or site locks the analysis extent to that area. If the geography is set to Current map extent, you can click Refresh search Refresh as you pan and zoom the map to perform your search on a new extent.

    Note:

    You can modify the analysis extent at any time in the Geography section.

  3. If the country or region is set to a location with multiple POI data sources, use the Data source drop-down menu to select the data source. You can set the default POI data source in the app preferences.
  4. In the Search section, choose a search type from the following options:
    • Keyword—Enter your search terms. For example, you can search for theme parks or search using the name of a specific theme park. By default, Keyword is selected.
    • Category—Select from a list of categories included with the selected POI data source. For example, you could browse to and select Farming, Forestry, Pets & Animals > Veterinary Services.

    • Code—Search using industrial classification codes. For example, if you are using Data Axle as the POI data source, you can search for schools or enter the Primary NAICS code 61111007.

    Optionally, when using any of the search fields, you can click Show all POIs (max 5,000) to map all points of interest (up to 5,000) within the search extent for the selected country.

  5. For the Keyword search type, do the following:
    1. Click the Enter POI name search field.
    2. Enter your search terms. For example, you can type coffee shop or the name of a coffee shop chain.
    3. Optionally, click Search settings and select a keyword search option. By default, Standard search is selected. Select Include related POIs to perform a semantic search, returning variables related to the search terms you entered. Select Match field and choose a field from the drop-down menu to return only results that match a particular field, such as the business name. To narrow the search results to exact matches only, turn the Exact matches only toggle button on.
  6. For the Category search type, do the following:
    1. Click the Enter category name search field.
    2. Search or browse categories by doing either of the following:
      • Enter search terms to search categories by keyword. If your web browser language is set to English, a semantic search is performed and a list of POI categories related to your search term appears. Use the check boxes to select categories in the list. Optionally, if the browser language is English, use the Sort by drop-down menu to order the results by Relevance, Alphabetical (A-Z), Alphabetical (Z-A), or Category. Click Done.
      • Browse and select categories from the list. Use the drop-down menu to select categories. Click Done.
  7. For the Code search type, do the following:
    1. Click the Enter business name or code search field.
    2. Optionally, click Search settings and use the Classification system drop-down menu to choose a classification system from the selected POI data source, such as Primary NAICS or Foursquare Categories.
    3. Search by code or keyword. In the Enter business name or code search field, enter your search terms, such as a NAICS code or a term like automobiles. A list of related codes appears. Click a result to add it to your search list.
      Tip:

      For more detailed information on NAICS and SIC codes, refer to the U.S. Census NAICS table and the U.S. Department of Labor's SIC Division Structure.

  8. Optionally, save your search or work with previously saved searches:
    • Click Save search Save and enter a name for your search. Click Save.
    • To view previously saved searches, click Saved searches Saved searches. Click Options Options beside any search and choose to select it, show its details, or delete it.
  9. To perform the search, click Search Search.

    The search results appear on the map and Results pane.

  10. In the Filters section, refine your results. Click Show filters and do any of the following:
    • To search within the results by keyword, enter text in the search field.
    • To show only search results using specific attributes, expand the attribute's section and either use the check boxes or search within the attribute to narrow the results. For example, if you expand the City section and select Riverside and Redlands, only the results from those two cities are included.
    • If you are using Data Axle as the POI data source, you can adjust the slider handles for the numeric attributes to define the minimum and maximum values included in the analysis, or enter the values manually.

    • Optionally, click Reset all to clear your filter selections or, if you've selected all items in an attribute section, click Unselect all at the bottom of the section. You can also remove filters individually by clicking Remove Remove on a filter in the workflow pane.

    The map automatically updates to show the filtered search results.

  11. In the Style section, do the following:
    1. Use the Map style drop-down menu to choose a style. The default style is Location (single symbol). For more information, see the Map styles section below.
    2. Click Show style options and do any of the following, depending on the map style chosen:
      • Use the Cluster points toggle button to aggregate points into clusters or display them individually on the map.
      • Use the Symbol drop-down menu to select a symbol to represent points of interest on the map.
      • Use the Fill color drop-down menu to select the symbol's fill color.
      • Adjust the Size slider to change the size of the symbol or enter a value manually.

    The map automatically updates to show the selected style. Map style information appears in the map legend.

  12. In the Results pane, explore the POI search results as a summary, histogram, bubble chart, and table.

    See the Explore the results section below for more information.

    Note:

    The results pane shows a histogram and bubble chart only when using Data Axle as the data source.

  13. Optionally, click Clear all to clear your search and results.
  14. Click Save layer.

    Enter a name for the layer and click Save. The saved layer can be accessed in the project pane in the Other layers section.

Explore the results

The POI search results are displayed in the Results pane. To hide or show the pane, click Collapse Collapse or Expand Expand. To explore the results, do any of the following:

  1. Click Summary Summary to view a summary of the results.

    Depending on the number and type of variables you mapped, the summary may include the count of areas and the average value of the variable calculations.

  2. Click Histogram Histogram to view the results as a histogram. To explore the histogram, do any of the following:
    • By default, the Chart settings pane is expanded. To close it, click the Close button Remove. To expand it, click the Chart settings button General settings. To modify the chart settings, do any of the following:
      • Use the Attribute drop-down menu to choose the attribute shown in the histogram.
      • Use the Show outliers toggle button to show and hide outliers on the chart.
      • In the Outlier calculation section, choose either the Percentage or Standard deviation option to display in the histogram. Optionally, for Percentage, change the Top & bottom percentage value. Optionally, for Standard deviation, change the +/- standard deviation value.
    • Hover over an item in the histogram to highlight the corresponding site on the map as well as a pop-up with its range.
    Note:

    The histogram is only available when using Data Axle as the data source.

  3. Click Bubble chart Scatterplot to view the results as a bubble chart or scatterplot. To explore the bubble chart or scatterplot, do any of the following:
    • By default, the Chart settings pane is expanded. To close it, click the Close button Remove. To expand it, click the Chart settings button General settings. To modify the chart settings, do any of the following:
      • Use the Bubble chart and Scatterplot tabs to switch between chart styles.
      • Use the X-axis, Y-axis, and Dot size drop-down menus to choose the variables used in the chart.
      • Click the Show regression line option to turn the regression line on or off.
    • Hover over an item in the bubble chart or scatterplot to highlight the corresponding site on the map.

    • Hover over the bubble chart or scatterplot and zoom in, zoom out, or pan using the mouse. Hover over a bubble to view information about the location and its linear regression. Hover over the regression line to view information about the linear regression and coefficient of determination. Click Reset Reset to reset the chart extent.

    Note:

    The bubble chart and scatterplot are only available when using Data Axle as the data source.

  4. Click Table Table to view the results as a table. To explore the table, do any of the following:
    • Hover over an item in the table to highlight the corresponding site on the map.
    • Click a column header to sort the table by the data in that column.
    • Click Customize table to modify the columns in the table. Drag the name of a column to change its order in the table. Uncheck the check box next to the column name to deselect it from the table.
    • Click Export to Excel to export the data from the POI search to an Excel worksheet.
      Note:

      The Export to Excel option is only available when using Data Axle as the data source.

      When exporting data using Data Axle as the data source, street numbers are removed from the address field. Additionally, the Landmark Name and Location Parent fields cannot be exported. Fields that cannot be exported are identified with an asterisk in the table.

Map styles

You can style the points on the map using different map styles. Depending on the data source, the following styles are available:

Location (single symbol)

Display data on a map with a single symbol to show the distribution and reveal patterns. For example, when mapping a list of coffee shop locations, you may see coffee shops clustered together in a business district. Use the Cluster points check box to turn clustering on or off. To change the symbol, modify its color and size, or upload your own, use the Symbol drop-down menu.

Counts and amounts (color)

Map numeric information by color to highlight data variances. For example, a light-to-dark color theme can show low-to-high data values. Click More options to choose a style for the symbols, change the attribute being mapped, and adjust the graph. Check the Classify data check box to adjust the classification method and breaks.

Counts and amounts (size)

Use an orderable sequence of proportional sizes to represent numerical data or ranked categories. Larger symbols indicate larger numbers. Click More options to choose a style for the symbols, change the attribute being mapped, and adjust the graph and clusters. Use the Size sliders to adjust the relative size of the symbols. Check the Classify data check box to adjust the classification method and breaks.

Type (unique symbols)

Use unique symbols to show different types of things rather than numerical counts. For example, use different colors to represent restaurant cuisine types. It is recommended that your layer show fewer than 10 types, as more types become difficult to distinguish. By default, the 10 most common types are shown, and additional types are grouped together in an Others group. Click More options to choose a style for the symbols and set the color ramp, change the attribute, or edit the symbols individually. Use the Cluster points check box to turn clustering on or off.

Heat map

Map the location of a large number of point features that are close together and aren't easily distinguishable. Heat maps use the points in a layer to calculate and display the relative density of points on the map as colors ranging from cool (low density of points) to hot (many points). Best practice is to avoid heat maps if there are only a few points; instead, map the individual points. Click More options to adjust the color gradient. Use the Area of influence slider to adjust the clusters. Using the Select tool, you can select heat map polygons or select underlying point data to create rings, drive times, or walk times.

Color & Size

Map two attributes in your data and finalize the color and size of point symbols on the map. You can use the same attribute twice: first to set the size of the symbols and again to set the colors, based on the part of the data you want to emphasize. This is suitable when you want to show count information, such as total population, shaded by a variable, such as population density.

Types & Size

Use unique symbols to show different types of things, with the size of the symbol representing a count. For example, use different colors to represent restaurant chains, and use different sizes to represent the number of employees. It is recommended that your layer show fewer than 10 types; more types become difficult to distinguish. By default, the 10 most common types are shown, and additional types are grouped together in an Others category. Click More options to choose a style for the symbols, change the attributes being mapped, or edit the symbols individually.

Set preferences

You can set preferences for Business Analyst Web App in the app preferences. For the points of interest search workflow, you can choose a symbol for the search results and include industry descriptions in the results table. Administrators can set preferences for the entire organization.

To set the workflow preferences, do the following:

  1. On the app header, click My preferences Preferences.

    The Preferences window appears.

  2. To set the default points of interest data source, expand the General section and click Settings. In the Points of interest data source section, use the Select data source drop-down menu to choose a points of interest data source.
  3. Expand the Maps section, expand the Create maps section, and click Points of interest search.
  4. You can set the following preferences:
    • Use the Symbol drop-down menu to select or upload a symbol for search results.
    • Check the Include related POIs check box to perform a semantic search, returning variables related to the search terms you entered. Semantic search is available only when your web browser language is set to English.
    • In the Analysis extent outline section, use the Color drop-down menu to select an outline color and width. Use the Transparency slider to adjust the color transparency.
    • Use the Dialogs check box to show a warning when you click Clear all on POI search results.
  5. To restore the default settings, click Restore defaults.
  6. To save your changes, click Save or, optionally, click Save and close to close the Preferences window. To view your changes, refresh the app.

Workflow video

To see a video of the workflow, watch Use points of interest search in Business Analyst Web App.

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In this topic
  1. Explore the results
  2. Map styles
  3. Set preferences
  4. Workflow video