Frequently Asked Questions

Meshh use smart devices as a proxy for people. Wi-Fi enabled smart devices continually search for new Wi-Fi networks to join, whether they’re already connected to an active Wi-Fi network or not. Search, or probe request, for a new Wi-Fi network, is captured by our sensors, alongside signal strength and the device’s unique ID, which we encrypt to ensure GDPR-compliance.

Meshh can only identify devices that have their Wi-Fi enabled and, as such, does not provide an exact count of people within a physical space. Instead, Meshh identifies a statistically-significant sample size of people within a space and delivers insight based on behavioral patterns of movement. Ultimately, this is much more valuable to clients than an exact count of people within a space.

Meshh has a varitey of alogrithims to remove event staff devices and “static” devices which may include Wi-Fi-based printers, computers, tablets, radio systems, etc., from the data to ensure only those devices belonging to visitors are included in the reporting output.

No– Meshh is a completely passive data collection methodology. Visitors simply need to have their Wi-Fi enabled; they do not need to connec to a specific Wi-Fi network or download an app. As such, Meshh collects a far larger data set than other technologies in this space.

Yes– Meshh has been deployed in over 50 countries to date across the Americas, Europe, Asia and Australia.

Meshh offers remote and on-site training for your team to carry out hardware deployments; Meshh will also send technicians to install, manage and recover hardware when necessary.

Yes– Meshh’s sensors work outdoors as well as indoors. When deployout outside, best practice dictates using a protective case to shield them from the elements.

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No– the sensors do not omit a signal; they simply listen passively for Wi-Fi probe requests from smart devices.

The sensors are based on a travel-size Wi-Fi access point, so the hardware is small enough to place discreetly in any indoor or outdoor environment. Exact specifications are available from the Meshh team upon request.

Yes– all sensors require power either from a portable battery pack or an outlet. The sensors are powered via micro USB cable. Meshh will advise on the best way to power sensors based on your experience layout and the consumer journey.

Meshh offers clients the option to purchase the hardware and reuse, or rent the hardware for one-off events and activations.

Each sensors has a maximum range of 45m or 150 ft radius, or 90m/300 ft in total. These ranges are customizable to fit the consumer journey and exact layout of your space.

The sensors are not waterproof, but can be placed in protective, waterproof cases when necessary.

The number of sensors required varies based on the KPIs and size of your physical space. Meshh helps clients design a customized campaign for their specific layout and consumer journey.

No– Meshh sensors have their own connectivity via a 4G USB modem which does not require any on-site network infrastructure.

Meshh identifies unique devices and their distance from the sensor. This enables us to measure how visitors move around a space (using time and distance), how long they’ve been there for, how many times they’ve returned to the space and what their journey through the space has been (within the context of the sensors).

We use time and distance to define engagement. Each sensors has a fully-customizable “engaged” radius that is set based on project paramenters. Out of the box, we classify visitors who are within the engaged radius of the sensor for at least 30 seconds as “engaged,” while those who are further from the sensor or do not meet the time threshold are considered “passers-by.”

Clients can configure these distances in line with the environment and the specific consumer journey. The conversion rate, which is the ratio between engaged and passers-by visitors, is a powerful indicator of an experience’s ability to convert passing footfall.

Yes– we can measure dwell time both at the sensor level and at an aggregate level.

Meshh can identify individual devices (in a completely GDPR-compliant way) as they pass within a range of different sensors. As such, we can deliver aggregated movement patterns, showing how visitor move around a space. We can also recognize when a device shows up in a different location– like a retail store after being seen at a brand activation. This can provide an entirely new layer of insight into the effectiveness of experiential activity and its ability to drive footfall back to brick and mortar stores.

No– Meshh uses a one-way hashing function to encrypt each device’s MAC address (its unique identifier). This happens at the edge, or sensor, rather than in the cloud for maximum security. The data Meshh collects is completely passive , anonymous and used to provide insight into visitor behavior trends in a space, rather than identifying individual visitors.

Clients are given their own login to the Meshh Vantage platform which includes a dynamic dashboard that operates in near real time. The data can also be exported as a CSV file, or in PDF, JPEG or XLS formats. For bespoke research into how visitors use your space, our Research and Insight team can deliver tailored reports for your team.

Meshh takes data privacy very seriously and is completely GDPR-compliant. When the Meshh sensors collects the MAC address from a user’s smart device, it does not store it or any other personally-identifiable information (PII). On collection, SHA256 (a one-way, one-to-one hashing algorithim designed by the NSA) is applied and the hash replaces the MAC address almost immediately. The original MAC address is discarded before anything is transmitted to Meshh’s cloud-based servers. Once the hashed data is processed, all data is aggregated and anonymous.

We encrypt each device’s MAC address with a one-way hashing function to protect the privacy of visitors. We process the captured data on remote cloud-based servers to generate reports. Meshh may collect data/information from your (“data provder”) mobile phone when you visit any environment where Meshh sensors are deployed. Such information/data may include the MAC address of the Mobile Phone, signal strength of the Moible Phone and the Mobile Phone Manufacturer.