Mobile technology has made quite the impact on brands and their content. It has given marketers more ways to deliver their messages to consumers through increased personalization and the opportunity to create a seamless experience. If the marketer is using customer data correctly, they will be able to anticipate the customer’s needs/problems and offer a solution in a timely manner.
Defined – Beacons are hardware devices that can be detected by mobile devices and allow marketers to calculate the exact location of that device and trigger activities to that device (Rowles, 2017). Beacon use is a form of proximity-based marketing and is commonly used to send discounts, promotions, upcoming events, or other reminders to customers when they’re in-store. They are accurate but lack scale which makes them ideal for in-store use. Before you can send messages to your customers, they must have your app downloaded and agree to receive push notifications. Beacons can create a more cohesive online to in-store experience. For example, if a customer added something to their cart in their app and then walked into the store, the app could notify the customer the item is in stock and located in aisle B7.
In Use – High-end retail chain, Neiman Marcus used the technology a little bit differently by using it to promote in-store events which included trunk shows, guest designers, book signings, etc. The beacon would send push notifications to the shoppers when they were in the store informing them of an event happening on the same day.
Urban Outfitters which targets a primarily younger demographic uses beacon technology and social media to reach their customers. The beacon sends a notification to customers when they enter the store encouraging them to check in on social media for a special offer. They also use social media to leverage user generated content adding to their customer engagement.
Walgreens uses beacons to send mobile coupons and notify customers of promotions. They also use beacons to alert those nearby to bring them into the store. Beacons can be used to reach those inside and outside your store.
MLB uses beacons to notify fans in stadiums of discounts on food and merchandise and to share player/team statistics and game highlights. If a customer went to the stadium without the intention of buying something, these push notifications can give them the little nudge they need to make a purchase.
Measurement – Beacon marketing offers different ways of measuring content consumption. A few measurements include notifications sent, notifications clicked on, redeemed offers, offers with maximum conversion, and click through rate (CTR). The most telling measurement is the CTR indicating how many users opened the notification. With beacon marketing you would be able to tell where the customer was in the store when they opened the notification. The team can begin to ask questions like, “Is it better to send before the customer has entered the store or after they have entered and while they are walking around?” Assessing the results from the beacon notifications will help you plan the next beacon campaign.
References
Bonnie, E. (2019). Beacon Marketing 101: How Today’s Top Retail Brands Attract Customers with Proximity Marketing | CleverTap. Retrieved from https://clevertap.com/blog/beacon-marketing/
Forsey, C. (2019). 7 Innovative Ways Retailers Are Using Beacon Technology. Retrieved from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/beacon-technology
Kaplan, D. (2019). How Neiman Marcus Is Blurring Digital And Physical Store Lines |. Retrieved from https://geomarketing.com/how-neiman-marcus-is-blurring-digital-and-physical-store-line
Rowles, D. (2017). Mobile marketing (2nd ed.). Great Britain: Kogan Page Limited.
Leave a Reply