Bluetooth Smart Beacons in Retail
The proliferation and near universal availability of
Bluetooth® Smart technology is opening up new markets at all ends of the spectrum. Beacons or iBeacons—small objects transmitting location information to smartphones and powered by Bluetooth Smart—make the promise of a mobile wallet, mobile couponing, and location-based services possible.
The retail space is the first to envision a future for beacons using for everything from in-store analytics to proximity marketing, indoor navigation and contactless payments. Think about a customer who is looking at a new TV and he/she gets a text with a 25 percent off coupon for that same TV and then pays automatically using an online account. Retailers are also looking at using beacons to "unlock dressing rooms, or even prepare your favorite drink when you walk into the coffee shop."
"In 2014, Parks Associates expects Bluetooth to play a much larger role in the mobile wallet ecosystem. Not only does Bluetooth Smart have support from major players like PayPal and Apple, but it also enables three crucial mobile wallet functions: payment from mobile phone to point-of-sale terminal, passive transmission of marketing messages, and the ability to detect a consumer's location in-store,"
Jennifer Kent, senior analyst, Parks Associate
Retailers and brands alike have been experimenting with push marketing for years, but the technology and support from major phone manufacturers was lacking. Bluetooth Smart brings three essential features to the beacon experience:
- An intelligent wireless connection to authenticate and manage interactions
- An extremely power-efficient connection that doesn't drain the user's phone battery
- Nearly ubiquitous support from phone manufacturers and mobile operating systems
Beacons powered by Bluetooth Smart just work with the devices consumers already have, making it a reliable and cost-effective solution for stores and brands.
"Bluetooth Smart has made it possible for PayPal to create compelling location-based payment solutions and shopping experiences. With PayPal Beacon, shoppers can do hands-free payments and get relevant in-store offers and notifications,"
Hasty Granbery, lead engineer, PayPal Beacon
Applications go beyond retail or location based marketing. For instance, SK Telecom and Seoul National University Bundang Hospital are using Bluetooth Smart beacons to provide round-the-clock patient information and navigation to its 6,000 daily patients. Analysts estimate beacons, acting as hubs, will be deployed all over airports and transit stations to easily send out notifications on departures, delays, passenger assignments, etc. We are also seeing Bluetooth beacons being deployed in the smart home.
"The use of Bluetooth Smart technology just makes sense. NFC generally requires a customer action, such as tapping a phone to a tag, while GPS is pure overkill and not likely as accurate in some indoor locations,"
Kevin Tofel, GigaOM
