Coolest Tool Yet: PolicyMap

OK, I’ve shared some websites with you before that I thought were pretty cool. And at the time I shared them, they were. But that was before @Admore tipped me off to PolicyMap.PolicyMap is a brand new monster research tool that you really have to play with to believe. According to the developers:

… [PolicyMap] combines sophisticated technology and the best analytical tools to deliver a new level of accessibility to data. And we mean all kinds of data – more than 4,000 indicators related to demographics, real estate markets, money and income, education, crime and more.

They’re not kidding about that data, either. PolicyMap provides you with information you find on sites like Zipskinny and Zilpy and then some – everything from residential energy consumption to campaign contributions by geographical area. You can search by state, county, city, or even by congressional and school districts. In addition, PolicyMap has tons more crime statistics for the Knox County area than SpotCrime.

And that’s not all. PolicyMap doesn’t just give you data, it goes even further by allowing you to create your own layered “heat maps,” tables and reports from the data it provides. Now that’s cool.

Unfortunately, there is a “but” in all of this: some of the information on the site is for subscribers only, and subscriptions don’t come cheap – $2,000 per year for the standard package alone. Ouch.

But even without that extra level of data, PolicyMap is a still an awesome resource that I’ve only scratched the surface of here. Go check it out for yourself, and then come back here and let me know what cool stuff you find. Happy hunting!

Click here to read this article which appeared on All Around KTown on May 27th, 2008.