Just Tap Here – the growth of NFC touch technology
There’s been a lot of talk about NFC enabled campaigns over the last number of months. But how much of a reality is Near Field Communication in current advertising campaigns and what are brands doing to implement this technology?
NFC has been hovering on the edges of consumer adoption for some time and brands are yet to fully take advantage of the technology's potential. Using the same technology found in ‘contactless payment’ methods, NFC in outdoor advertising works by adding a smartag on the back of a poster, positioned behind an NFC logo. Anyone with a smart phone that is NFC enabled can then simply scan or tap the code on the poster and be connected to online content within seconds. NFC offers the same benefits as QR codes, but without the need to download a reader.
The technology allows consumers to make transactions and exchange digital content and information quickly and simply, in a way that's far more direct and secure than methods such as Bluetooth and QR codes. However, the uptake has been slow largely due to the lack of NFC enabled handsets in the market. Things have been shifting in recent months and the hardware is becoming more readily available with most smartphones, bar Apple’s iPhone, now NFC enabled.
This month, an NFC enabled media campaign ran in the Market Bar in Dublin for the launch of the Lone Ranger movie – the first of its kind in Ireland. Users were asked to tap their phone off the in-pub poster to watch the latest trailer for the movie. In the UK, Guinness are running a campaign where users are encouraged to tap their NFC enables phones of the Guinness taps in participating bars across the country to be in with a chance to win a free pint. While there have only been a handful of these campaigns running in Ireland and the UK in recent months, these examples are likely to kick start a burst of activity.
With NFC offering  the ability for brands to understand when, how and what consumers have chosen to interact with, and giving consumers direct access to the content brands want to drive to, be prepared to see lots of more this in the coming months.
