Tag Archive for NFC Chips

TypTags – Tapping Phones For a Purpose

July 16, 2011 Business & Finance, Technology


Smart Posters with QR Codes and NFC Tags

The ever-increasing popularity of mobile phones and the rapidly evolving technological capabilities of smartphone handsets has increased business interest in targeting advertising at the mobile platform. SMS messaging and Bluetooth broadcast marketing have both been used to limited effect based on the available technology, but as new capabilities have been created new, more personalised alternatives are being rolled out.

Gaining in popularity at the moment is the use of QR Codes; 2-dimensional barcodes that generally appear as a monochrome printed square with a scatter of tiny dots inside. When photographed with a camera phone, the customer is automatically forwarded to the advertiser’s website where they contain obtain additional information about the advertised product or retailer. QR Codes work on the principle of permission marketing – the consumer has to first choose to access the additional advertising message by photographing the code. As virtually every modern mobile phone comes equipped with a camera and a web browser, QR Codes can be used

QR Codes  for Smart Posters

QR Codes are however distinctly limited in the amount of data that can be contained within the actual printed square. Realising this, marketers have begun investigating the potential benefits of using Near Field Communication technology called “smart tags”. NFC Smart tags use a small wireless chip, which when “tapped” with a suitable smartphone wirelessly transmits data to the user’s screen. This data can take the form of video, audio or text and contains significantly more information than that available using QR codes. Also of major benefit to marketers is the fact that smart tags can be used time and time again, the data contained in them can be changed quickly and easily.

Uptake of NFC smart tags and phones remains relatively limited at the moment, which presents marketers with a dilemma as to which is the correct medium to invest in. QR Codes are very limited in scope, but widely supported. NFC smart tags are highly versatile, but user uptake is presently low.

Fortunately there is a solution to this dilemma. Typtags combine both NFC smart tags and QR Codes into a single unit, allowing marketers to use both advertising formats simultaneously. Using QR codes, Typtags provide backwards compatibility with older smartphone handsets. When combined with NFC smart tags, marketers can also offer an “enhanced” service to their early adopters. The combination of technologies ensures that the advertising message reaches the widest possible audience.

In addition to the mobile marketing benefits, Typtags provide a new and novel way for customers to interact with brands. Businesses can also use Typtags to carry out additional business functions such as customer loyalty programs, stock management and general data gathering. Typtags can be as large or as small, obvious or as unobtrusive as the customer requires, adding to the attraction of the platform.

The flexibility of the Typtag system means that they can be used in a large number of scenarios, generally only limited by imagination.

For more information on NFC Tags, QR Codes and the innovation typtag system contact Paul Lakeman 07797 897 614

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QR Codes and NFC Tags for Smart Posters

June 29, 2011 Business & Finance, Technology, Telecommunications

Typtags Take Digital Marketing to the Masses

QR Codes have recently become the latest marketing craze, the monochromatic matrix barcode box appearing in magazines, on packaging and other marketing materials. When the QR code is snapped or scanned with a Smartphone camera, the user is presented with additional information, such as a text message or a link to product-specific website. As QR Codes have become more common, customers have also become more acquainted with the use of the technology, knowing what the image is for and how to access the data stored in them.

QR codes have successfully breached the mobile marketing market, but in purely technical terms, they are already being superseded. Advances in wireless communication protocols such as Near Field Communications (NFC for short), are allowing digital transmission of marketing data between business and consumer. NFC marketing uses a tiny, inexpensive chip which contains embedded data, and which is affixed to a poster or other surface. When swiped with a compatible NFC Smartphone, the NFC chip automatically transfers the data to the handset screen. NFC remains a relatively new phenomenon however, restricted to owners of the very latest smartphone handsets.

UK startup typtag.com believes they have developed a solution to the obsolescence of QR codes and the scarcity of NFC-enabled smartphones. Typtags combine printed QR codes with embedded NFC  Tags so that the marketing message is accessible by potential customers, regardless of their mobile phone handset. Paul Lakeman, founder of Typtag.com says, ‘Traditionally NFC has been a toy for techies and geeks making it inaccessible to Joe Public. Typtags have been designed from a marketing viewpoint, mixing both technology and simplicity to ensure that anyone with a smart phone can use them.’

Typically Typtags are used in conjunction with an in-store poster for a three way marketing approach. Firstly the Smart Poster features a traditional marketing message in the usual way using product photographs and descriptive text. Also printed prominently on the poster is a QR code which, when photographed or scanned by a client, will direct them to a website for more information. Finally an NFC  Tag is attached to the poster which can be scanned wirelessly by a customer using an NFC-enabled smartphone. They will then be presented with more information on the screen of their handset and redirected to a product website.

The use of NFC Tags or QR codes allows retailers to easily disseminate extra information about products and services. Typtags simplify the process yet further by combining both systems and maximising the potential audience for the digital marketing message. ‘The Typtags approach is unique,’ says Lakeman, ‘there are several companies producing QR codes or NFC smart tags, but none are unifying the technologies to produce a coherent marketing strategy.’

Typtags allow for virtually any kind of information to be encoded, from website addresses, to simple store location details to 3D product models ready for display on a customer’s phone handset. Typetags also provide a useful way for marketers to collect demographic data about their customers and their interactions with the brand. Every time a Typetag is scanned, the retailer is able to collect information about the client which can then be used as the basis for future marketing efforts, and to increase sales to existing customers.

‘We believe Typtags provide the most cost-effective form of digital marketing for our customers,’ concludes Lakeman, ‘The combination of QR Codes and NFC smart tags into a single unit provides support for users of all smart phones, whilst encouraging them to engage with digital marketing methods. The use of NFC Tags allows for future-proofing of the marketing investment thanks to the reusable nature of the technology and its increasingly common use. A typtag can deliver almost any information the marketing company requires the are the pefect solution for Proximity Marketing‘

Typtags are a division of Near Field Communication (Jersey) Ltd, Office 9130 Freight Building, Jersey Airport, St Peter, Jersey, Channel Islands

07797 897 614

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Smart Poster Marketing

June 10, 2011 Technology, Telecommunications

Smart Poster Marketing

Marketing may have evolved through the decades along with changing technology, but its focus remains constant, that of attracting and building a loyal customer base.  Today, almost every business, regardless of its size, supplements its offline marketing tactics with internet marketing strategies.  Customers have redefined the way businesses market their products and services and practically dictate the course of the business-client interaction.  It is no longer a question of the number of people who received the marketing message when it comes to measuring results; instead, marketing has become customer-driven.  Customers can control when, how and from whom they receive their marketing messages, thanks to opt-in or permission marketing.

Enter, Intelligent Smart Poster Marketing

Smart Posters are poised to revolutionize the way businesses and brands connect with their consumers. Smart Posters contain embedded information chips, which, when close to a mobile phone, deliver a link or other information to the prospective customer’s smart phone.  These Smart Posters can be in any shape or format and their effectiveness is determined by the embedded chip which carries the electronic marketing message.

Since customers are more receptive to customized marketing messages than being bombarded by a generic barrage of promotional content, Smart Posters can open up a completely novel way of business-customer interaction.

The technology behind Smart Posters

Smart Posters use NFC or Near Field Communication Technology which is a high-frequency wireless communication application used to exchange digital data between devices. With more than a billion hand held devices sold every year, it is only natural for marketers to devise strategies to leverage mobile marketing and reach their potential customers via their cell phones.  This is appropriate as an NFC chip enabled smart phone gives consumers the convenience of paying directly from their smart phone.  Brands can also engage with their customers via NFC Tags embedded in the Smart Posters, enabling the marketing message to be directly uploaded to the customer’s smart phone after they opt in.

Customer is King and Smart Posters will treat them like royalty

Businesses are quickly finding ways to implement NFC Smart Posters to extend their marketing messages to their market. They realize that their lead generation efforts go well beyond identifying and gaining customers. They are aware that they must also convert their customers into marketing evangelists who will share the sales or marketing message with their own network. With the emergence of social media channels, viral marketing and word of mouth marketing have taken on a new meaning as just about anyone can share their opinions with their network on the go via their mobile phones. Businesses must tap into this network and influence the conversations that are taking place online. NFC Smart Posters enable businesses to do exactly that by equipping them with a tool that contains everything the customer needs to spread the marketing message and reach a massive referral target audience that is practically qualified. Through this, the relevant information can be broadcast an infinite number of times by the business’s customers to their network.

Smart Posters enable pull marketing

In tough economic times and amid tougher competition, businesses cannot afford to cast a net and hope they will acquire customers.  Rather than use Push marketing that involved cold calling and mass advertising often perceived as spamming, the trend is towards “Pull marketing” where the business tries to be visible in places where people expect to find it. This involves the use of social media, SEO and blogging. NFC Smart Posters are a novel way to reach a customer who is more or less immune to mass marketing tactics. It provides a focused method of reaching the target market.

Smart Poster Marketing – customizable and effective relationship building

As NFC Smart Posters are customizable, businesses can use them to deliver highly effective messages to a receptive audience that will respond to its call to action. Businesses must identify a set of influencers who can effectively pass on the message to a larger audience with a snowball effect. The best part is that Smart Posters are quite easy to implement and are cost-effective, enabling repeated customization. Creating a buzz around the Smart Poster will probably be the biggest initial challenge for businesses that plan to implement it, along with a system in place to monitor and track the success and ROI of the Smart Poster Campaign.

Smart Poster Marketing introduces a new channel of interaction and present the brand with a great relationship building tool for the business, building trust and credibility in the process. Smart Posters are also a valuable means of getting to know the customer better, which in turn, will help the business plan its marketing strategies and messages.

The author Paul lakeman is a director at Near Field Communication (Jersey) Ltd 07797 897 614

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Google Wallet for Near Field Communication Payments

May 27, 2011 Misc, Technology

Google announced yesterday details of their NFC Wallet and Near Field Communication Google Offers

Google Offers, launched tyesterday 26-5-2011,  will provide businesses with an unique opportunity to join the Near Field Communications revolutionby implementing the technology both in-store and as part of their marketing efforts using Near Field Communication  Smart Posters. Google Offers allows retailers to advertise special discounts directly to a consumer’s handset through a number of the usual Google routes such as Search, Maps and Shopper; these discount vouchers and offers can then be saved by the customer on their nfc smartphone for  redemption at a later stage

Google Offers with NFC Smart Posters
Smart Posters use the same Near Field Communications Technology as Google Wallet to transfer information to a user’s nfc smartphone where it can then be stored in the same app. The data is “read” by the customer when they pass their NFC-enabled smartphone, such as the Google Nexus S 4G, over a chip embedded in the Smart Poster. The smart poster can contain any information, from discount vouchers to store directions which is then displayed within the Google Wallet app on the customer’s mobile phone.

As smartphone users become aware of NFC technology through using Google Wallet, other industries will doubtless begin adoption of similar systems for payments processing and marketing. NFC Smart Posters offer a unique opportunity to tap into the Near Field Communication hype whilst also building and extending their customer base through carefully targeted, reusable advertising.

Smart Posters also offer a number of significant benefits on top of Google Offers thanks to the more targeted nature of the medium. NFC Smart Posters work on the principle of “pull” marketing – a customer has to choose to pull the information from the Smart Tag in the poster, ensuring that they are not bombarded with irrelevant advertising messages as can be the case when relying solely on search engine results. As with native Google Offers, vouchers and information pulled from an NFC Smart Poster are also stored in the user’s Google account ready for use at a later time.

Google Offers is currently undergoing Beta trials in Portland, Oregon, before being rolled out across the US with the rest of the world to follow shortly afterwards. Retailers and brands have therefore a limited window of opportunity to begin planning and testing Near Field Communication systems for sales, marketing and payments processing if they wish to be at the forefront of the roll-out.

What’s in your Wallet?
Google Offers is part of the search giant’s latest attempts to move into the mobile payments market, under the umbrella term “Google Wallet”. Google Wallet allows users of the Google Nexus S 4G nfc smartphone to download an app from the Android Marketplace which then stores encrypted copies of the user’s credit card details securely on the handset, turning the phone into a virtual wallet. Users are then able to make wireless payments via the embedded Near Field Communications system without having to resort to traditional payment cards or cash, by simply waving their smartphone over the terminal at the in-store checkout.

Google’s Vice President of Mobile Payments, Osama Bedier, recently gave a demonstration of the Wallet app by purchasing a pair of American Eagle jean shorts with the encrypted credit card on his phone, and then applying a 20% discount coupon at the checkout. As he pressed his phone against the payment terminal, the transaction was processed wirelessly and his loyalty card details were updated simultaneously.

Back to the Future
As customers become more comfortable with NFC Technology to make payments and manage their loyalty scheme memberships, they will also become more aware of other NFC implementations. Near Field Communication will change the way that data is shared between customers and brands, and customers and their social circle. The use of NFC Smart Posters will become increasingly commonplace as a way of building customer relationships and helping brands spread their message to consumers in way that allows that same message to be passed on with minimum effort.

The window of opportunity to capitalise on NFC technology implementations is growing ever smaller as evidenced by the number of businesses rushing products to market. As has been the case with most technological advances, the earliest adopters reap the greatest benefits and with a system such as NFC Smart Posters which relies initially on a high degree of novelty to encourage uptake, the sooner a business launches their campaign the better the expected return.

Don’t get left behind – call Paul Lakeman at Near Field Communiction on 07797 897 614 to find out more about how Near Field Communications, Smart Posters and Google Wallet could transform your business.

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Near Field Communication Chips and a Quarter Pounder with Cheese!

May 10, 2011 News, Shopping, Technology, Telecommunications


McDonalds are leading the way in Near Field Communication

Leading fast food supplier McDonalds have announced that they will have installed contactless payments terminals in all their UK outlets by the end of this month. McDonalds also announced they are looking at ways of leveraging Near Field Communication Technology in promotions and loyalty schemes. This major initiative will undoubtedly foster increased use and take up of this advancing Near Field Communication Technology. Other UK fast food outlets embracing Near Field Communication Technology are EAT, Caffè Nero and Pret A Manger. Many of these outlets will be aggressively promoting contactless payments as it will shorten the consumers waiting time leading to a better Brand experience. Happy customers equal more sales. The introduction of Smart Posters to the mix will allow these early adopters to better communicate with customers and supply Brand information like menus or deals on demand.

Smart Posters using Near Field Communications (NFC) tags will be an emerging marketing medium for promoting restaurants, fast food outlets and takeaways. Using Near Field Communication tags, fast food outlets will be able to communicate with existing and potential customers directly from their NFC Mobile Smart Phones.

Near Field Communication Smart Poster in Marketing and Promotion

By using Near Field Communication Smart Posters to advertise and market their businesses, restaurateurs, coffee shops and fast food outlets will be able to pass menu and contact information directly into their customer’s NFC mobile phone handsets. Customers simply “swipe” their handset over an NFC Smart Poster and the information is transferred automatically from the Near Field Communication Chip to the NFC Smart Phone. Smart Posters placed in the proximity of an outlet will also allow businesses to promote themselves and provide directions for ravenous customers. Many savvy fast food chains are developing NFC applications for Smart Phones using iPhone and Google’s Android operating systems that will allow the consumer to effortlessly interact with their Brand. The NFC apps can allow time poverty consumers to order items ready for collection.

Saving Costs with Near Field Communication

In the outlets Near Field Communication tags can be used in place of traditional printed menus, allowing customers to make selections and place their orders directly from their phone to the kitchen using the information stored on the electronic menu. As the menu changes, printing costs can be dramatically reduced as the NFC tag can be updated for a fraction of the cost usually associated with traditional printed menus. The Near Field Communication back end software will also allow for instant price changes.

Collecting and Analyzing Data from NFC Smart Posters

Near Field Communication Smart Posters also allow dissemination of other information to customers, such as ingredients, dietary information and potential allergens. Special offers and discounts can be pulled by customers from Near Field Communication Smart Posters to help increase transaction values and increase brand loyalty. The Brand will be better informed about consumer buying patterns and this will lead to far more intelligent targeted marketing initiatives.

Contactless Near Field Communication Payments

Moving beyond NFC Smart Posters, coffee shops, takeaways and fast food outlets will be also able to extend their NFC capabilities to contactless payment processing. A small wireless card reader will allow customers to pay for their orders simply by swiping their NFC Smart Phone over the device, similar to the Oyster Card travel system in the London Underground. The relative amount will be deducted from the consumer’s electronic wallet and an electronic receipt issued.

The Author Paul Lakeman is a director of Near Field Communication (Jersey) Ltd-Office 9130 Freight Building-Jersey Airport-St Peter-Jersey-JE3 7BY

07797 897 614

http://www.smart-poster.co.uk

http://www.near-fieldcommunication.co.uk

http://www.nfcsecuritysystems.co.uk

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