As consumers rapidly embrace smartphones, a new marketing channel has emerged for savvy businesses: two-dimensional barcodes or “mobile tags.” Global digital trend-spotting site PSFK recently released its Future of Mobile Tagging report. This is an insightful look at the trend, showcasing the power of the mobile device in making a connection with consumers and how marketers can best exploit various tagging solutions. Today’s Friday Five highlights key takeaways from the report, and the full report includes a wealth of useful information, with implementation examples of this next-generation technology.
(This PSFK report was sponsored by Edelman client, Microsoft Tag.)
1. I Spy a Mobile Tag
Coming in a variety of sizes, mobile tags can be placed almost anywhere, from cups to street signs to skyscrapers, and they can pack a lot of information within. Some solutions allow for customization of the tag to fit a particular brand or campaign. And these tags can be integrated into the physical world easily while still providing a wealth of digital and interactive experiences.
2. The Modern Day Scratch-Off
Mobile tags are the keys to unlocking greater interaction between customers and a brand with the press of a smartphone button. This delivered material, as determined by the marketer or agency, can be used to showcase exclusive content and create incentives or opportunities that help strengthen a brand’s relationship with consumers, provide convenient on-the-go access to information, or lead consumers through the purchase funnel. Since mobile tags serve as a gateway to an enhanced experience, there’s really no limit to what you can do. Allure Magazine used Microsoft’s 2D Tags to entice consumers to look up information about products featured in its different sections.
3. Providing Value Before, During and After the Sale
Because mobile tags offer quick and easy access to content, they can help consumers with purchasing decisions by turning static images into interactive experiences and provide information about a particular product or service. Many mass retailers like Best Buy (client) now have mobile tags in store which link to online product reviews. Consumers can easily navigate and research products without ever leaving the store. And after the sale, the mobile tag can still offer value by providing quick and easy access to service and support details, potentially reducing calls to customer service lines.
4. Applications for New and Old Marketing Initiatives
Contests, lotteries and giveaways are not new, but brands are currently exploring ways to enhance these tactics by allowing consumers to enter through the scan of a mobile tag. This puts a fun new twist on the age-old sweepstakes by encouraging interaction with the brand on-the-go. Mobile tags could also be used as a medium for social gaming, even offering an exclusive game or game level when a mobile tag is scanned. Providing exclusive gaming content via mobile tagging is an easy way to entice fans to go the extra mile and continually engage with the brand. Because mobile devices are by nature portable, mobile tags allow consumers to interact wherever they are and provide marketers an opportunity to reach customers in ways which were not previously available. Consumers are also more likely to interact if they can do so on-the-spot instead of waiting to get home or to a store.
5. Tracking Success
With the use of mobile tags, the physical world becomes not only interactive but measurable. Analytics options differ for each mobile tagging solution, and offer reports to help brands track campaigns to determine their effectiveness within specific timeframes, identify location of tags that were accessed and more. As we all know, making the connection between digital engagement and offline action is incredibly difficult, but mobile tagging can help bridge that gap. No matter what your measurement solution, mobile tags are unique and easily tracked to allow for connecting the dots.
