Dive Brief:
- Apple is expected to reveal more plans this week for its iBeacon technology, the Bluetooth-based system that allows marketers to reach consumers as they shop.
- IBeacon is already being used for so-called proximity marketing at Safeway stores and Duane Reade pharmacies.
- Among the possible announcements at Apple's World Wide Developers Conference, which begins today in San Francisco, are new retail partners for iBeacon and a move to link iBeacon marketing to Apple's long-anticipated mobile-payment system.
Dive Insight:
iBeacon could have a large impact on many peoples' lives. The system is a far cheaper alternative to near-field communication, standard Bluetooth and -- in small, enclosed areas -- Wi-Fi. iBeacon could mean that companies will soon be able to communicate with many consumers, and to do so with precision.
In the food industry, the obvious application is the one being tested now by Safeway -- sending specific marketing messages and coupons to shoppers in specific areas of the store. When you walk toward the milk, you'll be offered a coupon for milk. Or, more powerfully, when you walk past the milk and don't buy it, you'll get a coupon offering you a discount.
Kinda cool, huh? Sure. But as we've noted before, it has been argued to be kind of intrusive and annoying.
