Smart marketers today are building digital marketing strategies to capitalize on this behavior. FlyInStyle is a forerunner in bringing innovative mobile technology solutions into the travel retail space and most recently has expanded our platform to interact with beacons for real-time content marketing.
Welcome to the age of the Connected Traveler. Nearly 80% of airport travelers carry smartphones and many carry additional devices. Consumption of digital media continues to grow in double digits year over year, fueling the need for real time marketing solutions. Engagement is higher than ever; the average U.S. adult, for example, uses mobile for non-voice activity almost 3 hours per day, up from 1.5 hours in 2012 and 0.3 hours in 2010 according to eMarketer.com.
Smart marketers today are building digital marketing strategies to capitalize on this behavior. FlyInStyle is a forerunner in bringing innovative mobile technology solutions into the travel retail space and most recently has expanded our platform to interact with beacons for real-time content marketing.
Beacon technology will allow the airport, retailers and marketers to track, analyze and market to consumers in new ways, to provide innovative solutions and to ultimately improve the passenger experience.
Time to Unlock the Potential
Airports and airport retailers around the world continue launching new ideas to engage this audience, increase traffic, conversion and basket size. Several major airports and airlines have announced beacon installations and their visions for this new technology. American Airlines, for one, has been proactive, not only investing in a major installation at Dallas Fort Worth (DFW), but engaging cutting edge partnerships to reimagine the passenger experience and sponsoring technology events in San Francisco to bring together top talent innovators to foster new ideas.
Miami International Airport (MIA) is ahead of the game, leading the way technologically with a handful of other airports by investing in new technologies like beacon networks. MIA is the first airport in the world to have a complete and open deployment of beacons. SITA, the IT provider to the air transport industry, has set up MIA’s beacon zones throughout the terminals, skytrain and car parks to allow way-finding to be offered on passengers’ phones.
FlyInStyle is one of the pilot companies testing use of the SITA Common-Use Beacon Registry, where all of MIA’s beacons are registered, for new marketing innovation. At MIA, we have been working closely with travel retail brands and experimenting with real time messaging and content display to support current marketing activations. Pernod Ricard Americas has been working closely with FlyInStyle throughout the development of the technology platform, from design inception to current expansion into beacon technology.
We value their collaboration and are focused on bringing to life their launches with engaging content through digital and mobile touch points. Together we are pioneering new technology based content marketing solutions to improve the passenger experience and ultimately grow footfall and sales.
FlyInStyle is focused on finding a solution to interact with consumers that not only adds value to the traveler during the trip, but opens a new communication channel for the marketer with clear guidelines on best practice use cases.
Addressing the Challenges
Real time marketing is just one use case for beacon technology; the possibilities are infinite. But success will rely on more than just hardware installation. Solid execution requires a holistic plan, a software platform including a backend and consumer facing technologies, digital content strategy, creative resources, training of airport personnel, consumer marketing, and collaboration with key stakeholders. And users must ask several questions before considering to use it:
• Will incorporating beacon technology into the budget and plans translate into tangible business growth?
• What are the privacy concerns that must be addressed? • What kind of data can be tracked and who owns that data?
• What will the adoption rates look like?
• How will passengers react to engagement using this technology?
These are the questions on the minds of marketers and technologists alike and only time and testing will tell. With any new technology there is a learning curve and an adoption rate. The true impact of these new technologies have not yet been realized; the pitfalls to avoid and the sweet spots for breakthroughs are being established. One thing is clear: beacons are inspiring innovators to create content solutions never seen before.
FlyInStyle is using the latest technologies to build strategies and technology products so that travel retailers and brands can build one-toone relationships with travelers and improve their airport experience. The next generation of marketing is here.
The FlyInStyle team is flying with airports and the connected traveler to new horizons. Are you? The FlyInStyle App is available for download in the App Store. For more information, please contact Amanda Anthony, Amanda@flyinstyleapp.com
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