Dive Brief:
-
Low-cost beacons, which enable retailers to connect with shoppers in stores, have advanced out of a pilot phase and are increasingly influencing sales, according to a new report from BI Intelligence. Beacons boost loyalty, payments, and marketing efforts in stores with low-power devices on shelves and elsewhere in store.
-
Facebook is doing its part to further the movement with its announcement that it will provide retailers with free beacons as part of its Place Tips feature, extending a pilot program in New York City to all participating U.S. businesses, Re/Code reports.
-
Beacon messages to shoppers with iOS and Android apps could direct some $4.1 billion of U.S. store sales in 2015 and 10 times that next year, according to the report from BI Intelligence.
Dive Insight:
Beacons have been an intriguing way to interact with U.S. consumers, who are increasingly using their phones to shop in and out of the store. Facebook is furthering the cause — and its own of course — by providing the devices.
Of course, retailers taking Facebook’s offer will be dependent on the social media giant, something that hasn’t always turned out best for the retailer. But Facebook has an incomparable reach, which with the beacon program brings it into offline retail. Twitter is reportedly also investing in beacons, with its recent investment in startup Swirl.
