We are all watching the growth stage of an industry projected by ABI Research to be worth $4 billion annually by 2018. Multibillion-dollar companies like Facebook and Apple are ramping up their engagement in this space. You likely have a piece of the required technology in your pocket right now. The transformative beacon technology industry is poised to take off, making now the time to get involved.
Indoor location services are revolutionizing dozens of industries, from retail to real estate to connected homes. Macy’s, McDonald’s and Major League Baseball are redefining their consumer experience with beacons. The San Diego convention center has embraced beacons, as has the Miami International airport. The footprint of beacon technology is growing fast and becoming too big to ignore.
What are beacons?
A beacon is a small device that transmits a signal to a smart phone letting it know its proximity to the beacon. Beacons transmit via Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), which lets the communication occur without significantly impacting the battery life of the phone.
Unlike GPS, beacon technology works indoors and is sensitive to distances under a meter.
An app on the phone interprets the beacon information, and then retrieves content relevant to the user, such as a coupon to a nearby restaurant or step-by-step directions to the nearest restroom.
One of the primary challenges facing mobile technology is a user’s concern for privacy. With beacons, the app they engage with must have location and push notification permissions. If users feel overwhelmed with irrelevant information they can easily opt out by changing their permissions or uninstalling the app. Another major privacy assurance is that beacons only transmit. They don’t receive or collect signals from mobile devices. They have no ability to know who you are or track your location.
Who uses beacons?
A large potential base of users is already in place. Starting in 2011, Apple began putting its iBeacon technology that uses BLE in its new iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, and iPad Mini. Other mobile phone manufacturers followed suit in 2012. Tens of millions of compatible devices are already in consumer hands, and ABI Research estimates that 90 percent of Bluetooth enabled phones will support BLE by 2018.
Brick-and-mortar retail stores are particularly excited about the technology, and with good reason. Location sensitivity allows physical retail to push deals and coupons to those nearby and heat map visitor concentration to track which displays are generating attention and which are being ignored. Enhanced traffic tracking and the ability to precisely target nearby users will bring to physical stores advantages once held only by online retailers.
But beacons are bigger than retail alone. A tremendous number of industries are benefiting from beacon technology. Airports are providing flight information directly to those waiting at the gate. Museums are offering supplemental information about a painting to inquisitive visitors. Convention centers are directing guests to specific exhibitors. Anywhere that targeted, timely information can improve a customer experience, beacons are playing a vital role.
Why now?
Savvy companies are becoming early ambassadors of this emerging technology. As the advantages of timely coupons, step-by-step indoor directions, and precise information are more widely conveyed to customers, demand for beacon technology will grow very rapidly.
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