Coinstar's decision-making process was limited to educated guesses based on demographic data used within its Geographic Information System (GIS). The GIS enables Coinstar to manipulate, analyze, and visualize geographic aspects of data, most frequently in the form of a map. However, due to the large number of variables involved and the depth of analysis required, Coinstar needed a more comprehensive statistical package to digest its large dataset. Although more than 400 key variables were available to Coinstar, the company analyzed and used only four variables, due to resourcing and the limitations involved in working with Microsoft Excel.

By combining SPSS Inc.'s data integration and analysis capabilities with various demographic and geography-based variables, Angelo Taylor, Coinstar's GIS research manager, and his market research colleagues were able to identify prospective installation locations with the best potential for growth and profitability.