Category: Mobile Marketing

The US pharmacy chain is piloting a marketing platform that gives shoppers the chance to earn rewards.

Walgreens is testing a marketing platform in its stores that uses technology developed by Aisle411, the in-store mapping and reward provider, and Google’s Project Tango 3D augmented reality technology, which enables shoppers to find a specific product, receive directions to the proper aisle and earn rewards as they go about their shopping.

Shoppers can enjoy a three dimensional image of their route and receive personalized coupons.

The technology that Walgreens is using from Aisle411for its pilot program gives customers the opportunity to collect loyalty rewards by simply walking down certain aisles. It also allows for personalized offers, coupons and rewards to “pop out” of the shelf while customers walk around the store. Additionally, it provides them with a 3D image of the path they are taking. The augmented reality view is provided by a Project Tango device that has been placed on a shopping cart.

Walgreens Director of Mobile Commerce Tim McCauley said, “When we saw Aisle411 were working with Google Project Tango to create immersive mobile experiences inside a store, we immediately knew this was something we had to be a part of building.” He added, “It’s going to be very exciting to see how this evolves the future of the shopping experience.”

The augmented reality shopping experience is expected to be tested by more merchants in the future.

According to Aisle411, the shopping locations that will be piloting the technology will have devices that are available in-store for shoppers to use. They will be working with Walgreens to test the devices in certain markets throughout the United States. Some of the selected locations include Chicago, New York, St. Louis and Seattle.

Furthermore, the CEO of Aisle411, Nathan Pettyjohn, stated that shoppers in today’s world are occupied by and interacting with their mobile devices while they are shopping. They are “digital savvy” and clever and because of this it is vital that retailers provide their customers with the right tools to keep their shopping experience engaging. Pettyjohn believes the new application will make shopping fun for consumers and that it is sure to engage all who use it.

Presently, over 12,500 merchants throughout the US use the augmented reality marketing platform and more retailers are anticipated to test it.

The COO of Midialets, Richy Glassberg, explained that the new channels are much harder than the old ones.

According to a respected veteran digital media executive, moving from the digital universe on a desktop computer into the mobile channels is causing mobile advertising professionals to have to work harder than they ever have before.

In fact, the exec said that producing successful ads for smartphone and tablets “is about 20 times harder.”

This, according to Richy Glassberg, the COO of the Media Rating Council approved mobile advertising company, Medialets. He explained that “In desktop, there’s 15 years of technology which allows anybody to build one ad in Flash, it works everywhere.” However, the environment has changed dramatically as smartphones and tablets have made their way into the mainstream.

Midialets served mobile advertising to an estimated 30,000 different devices in December, alone.

This statistic helps to illustrate some of the challenges that are being presented by the mobile marketing industry to firms that are attempting to serve them. The range of different devices, alone is something that has never been experienced in the desktop market. This requires marketers to attempt to make an ad work regardless of the environment.

Glassberg said that “The scary thing for the agency is, ‘Did my ad work?’” He also expressed that the rate of change that his firm has been witnessing is greater than anything else that the ad industry has ever seen. “I don’t think anybody’s caught up.”

The opinions shared by Glassberg were given during an interview that was held during the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. This was the ideal forum for the type of discussion that Glassberg was having with his interviewer. The reason is that while media firms were being recognized for the astounding successes and achievements that they had made, it helped to underscore the challenges that they faced at the exact same time.

While previous efforts to advertise in the digital sphere had held a primary focus on the ad itself and not as much on whether or not it would actually function – because there was considerable experience in that area – mobile advertising has been forced to take that additional step in such a varied landscape lacking a universal standard format.