---
id: "quote-dominant-approach-flawed"
type: "quote"
source_timestamps: ["¶2"]
tags: ["status-quo", "industry-critique"]
related: ["concept-absolute-proximity", "contrarian-radius-inefficiency"]
speaker: "Bowen Luo and Bhoomija Ranjan"
speakers: ["Bowen Luo", "Bhoomija Ranjan"]
sources: ["tail1"]
sourceVaultSlug: "hbr-seg-tail1"
originDay: 1
articleStem: "hbr-tail-115-location-based-advertising"
sourceUrl: "https://hbr.org/2026/03/a-better-strategy-for-location-based-advertising"
sourceTitle: "A Better Strategy for Location-Based Advertising"
---
# The flaw in the dominant approach

> "The dominant approach to location-based advertising remains remarkably simple: Draw a radius around each store, target everyone inside it, and assume that proximity equals responsiveness."

— [[entity-bowen-luo]] and [[entity-bhoomija-ranjan]] (¶2)

The thesis-setting critique of [[concept-absolute-proximity]]; the assumption it names — *proximity equals responsiveness* — is exactly what [[contrarian-radius-inefficiency]] and [[contrarian-distance-decay]] dismantle.