Since their introduction almost a decade ago, Bluetooth beacons have often been pigeonholed as tools for retail marketing. However, creative companies are finding important new applications for beacon technology across industries.
From Hospitals to Factories
Beacons are starting to provide huge value beyond traditional retail, including:
Hospitals – Beacons placed throughout hospitals help visitors, patients and staff navigate large facilities while enabling improved asset tracking and workflow efficiency.
Warehouses – In large warehouses, beacons track inventory locations in real time and guide pickers to optimize routes when fulfilling orders.
Events – At conferences and concerts, attendees network more effectively and session rooms are kept at capacity via beacon-powered apps.
Hotels – Guests unlock rooms with their phones using beacons instead of keys and receive personalized recommendations.
Museums – Interactive exhibits, augmented reality tours and access to additional content come alive via location-triggered beacons.
Stadiums – Fans find seats, order food and share reactions through beacon-enabled team apps during live games.
Smart Cities – Beacons placed on city assets like bikes, scooters and buses enable tracking and maintenance.
Expanded Possibilities
These new use cases demonstrate how beacon technology can add value across many industries with the right vision and execution.
Any enterprise that manages large facilities or fleets of assets stands to benefit greatly from beacons. The versatility goes far beyond just store aisle promotions.
Beacons can provide location contextuality that unlocks workflows, analytics and experiences not previously possible. Their potential is still being discovered.
What’s Next?
With costs continuing to decrease and ideas rapidly expanding, beacons are poised for much wider adoption beyond retail in coming years.
Company leaders should think creatively about where microlocation could solve pressing business challenges or enable new opportunities. The versatile applications of Bluetooth beacons are only just emerging.
