What is NFC?

NFC (Near Field Communication) is a wireless communication device that many smartphones have and allows two devices to communicate with each other when they are close or “tap”. The same communication can happen between your phone and a small chip called a “tag”. It’s a very similar idea to well-known QR codes, but NFC requires much less effort as no app has to be open or installed, and there’s no need to worry about focusing or the lighting to capture the code properly. It’s an immediate, effortless and fun way to share information.

Although most recent smartphones have this feature (not the iPhone though, unfortunately), most people don’t really use it. We think this is going to change in the near future. Although it seems high-tech, using NFC and putting information in the unpowered tags is incredibly easy, so why shouldn’t your company take advantage of this awesome tool?

How do I use NFC in my marketing strategy?

Depending on how you program your company’s NFC tag, it can change various settings, launch apps and perform certain actions just by holding your phone close to it. This gives you infinite opportunities to get creative.

If you have a store, implementing tags is easy. Place them throughout your store to give customers product information or ideas. Send them to a landing page, customer reviews or product videos. Give them wifi access with a tap, have them check in on Foursquare, or change their backgrounds to your logo. We’ve even heard of it being used as a way to empower employees; use it to share latest sales results or messages from HQ.

No store? Don’t worry, you’ll just have to be creative finding physical places to place your tags. Establish a partnership with a local coffee shop or restaurant where customers can tap the tag to learn more about your brand. If you have any stationary print ads or billboards, see what it would take to include a tag in it. People walking down the street can immediately access information about your company by just tapping your ad, how cool is that?

So, is NFC the next big lead-generation tool? We’re not quite sure yet. Not many people have picked up to the idea, or to QR codes for that matter, so it might be difficult to get people to use the tags. Our advice to you is to brainstorm, get creative and experiment. Interested in seeing if it fits for your company? Contact us at @SparkGrowth or at [email protected] and we can set up a time to chat about it!