In recent times, iBeacons appears to be a much talked-about-device due to many good reasons. They have been deployed at crowded places in order to provide valuable guidance to the public. However, when we look into its retailer standpoint, we realize its potential. It can help retailers to engage customers with highly relevant content on their smartphones just when they enter the store. The retailers can use it as a cost effective way of implementing an in-store strategy. The shoppers now find it easy to buy new items and do many shopping related activities easily with the help of iBeacons that interacts with smartphones. It gives consumers an instant in-store experience enabled by retailer’s environment. All the shopping related services are served to the customers instantaneously.
Why iBeacons?
They can be a cheaper yet smarter choice for retailers because it is a low-maintenance hardware and it is most accurate for an indoor location. Retailers are singing its praise because of other reasons too! Customer identification and data collection has become much easier with this low-powered system which undeniably puts them on a comfortable position.
What is iBeacons’ equation with retailers in wooing customers?
Lock screen notifications on offers
This is one big example for the retailer’s eagerness to woo the customers at any cost. They could now send notification to the customers even if the phone is locked. When the shoppers come into the store range, the beacon prompts messages to their smartphones from a local database or cloud-based storage. This messages received on the home screen can be an advertisement offering a discount coupon or a gift voucher. Indeed, iBeacons authorize the retailer’s potential to direct content via apps to the shopper’s smartphone while they walk near the store.
Helps a shopper in the store to research on a product online instantly
The present-day shoppers are clever enough to do an online product research before they choose to pay for it. Most of the time, they do it prior to their store visit. iBeacons are now helping them to have an online review on their desired product right at the storefront itself.
In-store push notifications
In-store push notifications are very feasible with iBeacons as they can send special offers to the shoppers who are present at the store. This is said to be often personalized, as a result of the application’s ability to identify the habitual preferences of the customers and/or their proximity to a particular department at the store. Studies conducted on this topic reveals that a considerable number of smartphone users think that personalized, tailored promotions sent to their smartphones while they are at store can influence their purchase decisions. The push notifications have an immediate effect on them which would not give them a time to think rationally. Considering this, we can assume that the retailer get a chance to entertain the customers through the beacons.
Easy in-store navigation
With the help of iBeacons and the store app, the customers can have the in-store map to navigate accurately. This is great especially when you are at large stores and shopping centers where you need to search for different items that are kept at various places. Today’s customer is so much glued to mobile phones and wants to do each and everything with it. The mobile apps and features help to carry out this task quite easily.
Getting in-store guidance on the products
In-store guidance on products is always sought by the shoppers because they need to know many things about them before making a purchase. However, often that is not so easier to get due to scarcity of floor staffs. Here, iBeacons can certainly play a big role. It can provide useful information to the customers and can guide them pretty much well. The transmitters placed throughout the store come in contact with the app installed in the shopper’s smartphone soon they enter the store. Shoppers can collect product information and reviews and even can add the items on their shopping cart app. If the customer is requesting any help, the floor staff can receive it right away and can assist them and the shopper will definitely feel well-guided and well-treated.
Help with payment
iBeacons allows to get the checkout process faster with the wireless payments system. By leveraging Apple’s iBeacons micro-location technology, stores can now let the shoppers check out without credit card swiping or a cash payment. This contactless payment system can help the customer to save their time and calculate their spending right away. Another possibility is that you could purchase the items even before you walk into the store as the selection, packaging, and payment could have already been done through the apps.
Possibility of big data acquiring
From the retailer’s point of view, iBeacons can be a sure gift as it allows data gathering to analyze customer behavior and much more than that. Acquiring customer data directly influence any in-store marketing strategy and iBeacons can be a great source of customer data to do it right.
Thus, as a matter of fact, as we conclude, we can say that iBeacons has the potential to transform the way retailers communicate with their customers. The communication is going to be quite easy and personalized which leave both the parties immensely benefitted.
