The use of beacons for marketing actions and at the POS

By Mario Prado *

The Internet of Things (IoT) begins to become a reality in Brazil and the technologies of this ecosystem can be applied in several sectors such as industry, agribusiness, services, logistics, hospital management, smart cities or retail , among other segments. So I made a point of putting the word technologies in the plural because this is a growing market, which brings together different software platforms, equipment, sensors and applications. According to IDC, worldwide spending on IoT is expected to reach US$ 772.5 billion in 2018. 

 

Given this multiplicity of applications, technological resources and representative figures, I believe in the importance of presenting real situations and examples that facilitate the understanding and implementation of IoT projects in real life, that is, show the technological trend in practice and contribute to affirm that small and medium-sized companies can also introduce IoT into their businesses, selecting from this myriad of options the one that best suits their reality. 

 

The beacon, for example, is a technology in the IoT universe that can be used in marketing, relationship and sales actions with high potential for return on investment. This technology can be used by chain stores, restaurants, supermarkets, amusement parks, shopping malls and airports, among other options. 

 

In a nutshell, we can describe the beacon as a device installed in an establishment, whether on the table, in a showcase, on the wall or shelf, capable of sending information to the smartphones that are nearby by means of bluetooh signals. This information can be processed by specific applications (for example the store or shopping application that uses the technology) or it can use the “Physical Web” standard, created by Google, which allows any cell phone with Android or IOS to receive information through of web links (IOS phones need to have the Chrome browser installed). 

 

The price and availability in the Brazilian market for this technology are accessible, as we already have a version created with national technology and manufactured in the country called Taggen Beacon, eliminating the import process, tax costs and other complications.

 

In view of this ease of access to devices, the application of beacons in marketing and customer relationship actions is one of the main applications, as it allows sales campaigns to be carried out, as a store can send a discount coupon, provide product information for customers within your establishment and even for potential customers who are close to the location. 

 

Another example of action that can be made possible through partnerships between the management of a shopping mall and its tenants. In this model, the mall manages the content that is sent by the beacons in order to present visitors with information about products and services offered by the stores, such as the launch of a product or a promotion in progress. It is also possible, through this technology, to implement indoor navigation systems (indoors) that guide the customer inside the mall to the store that provides the service or promotion that interested him. 

 

The technology also allows Beacons to be used inside stores, close to the products that are for sale, providing information, promotions and recipes related to the items exposed to consumers. This allows the consumer to decide more quickly on the purchase and also minimizes the wait for consultants. Parallel to these actions, the shopkeeper is able to collect data about the customer's journey inside the store, view the items consulted by the consumer and analyze this information to understand consumer preferences and guide their trade marketing and promotions strategies. Until recently, professionals in this area had to film customers in the corridors of their establishment and analyze their behavior, timing how long it takes a person to choose an item on the shelf, in a long and manual work.

 

These initiatives contribute to customer loyalty and can improve the public's experience at the point of sale. Another advantage is that the technology often encourages the customer to install the store's mobile application on their smartphone in order to further enhance the relationship between the retailer and the consumer. From the dissemination of this new marketing culture and actions at the point of sale, the brochures of offers, coupons to cut out and folders will be seen, in the near future, as obsolete merchandising materials. 

 

* Mário Prado, MsC., Computer Engineer from the University of São Carlos and CTO of Taggen Soluções IoT.

Disclaimer: The opinion presented in this article is the responsibility of its author and not of ABES - Brazilian Association of Software Companies.