Consumer Engagement in the Connected Age Richard Cantwell Chairman – Board of Governors, EPCglobal

Marketing A typical scenario I am an executive at Acme Enterprises. Acme launches a new allergy-free detergent. We need consumers to know about this product. How do I reach them? (This talk will get to technology… eventually)

A history of marketing The “Old Days” (100-150 years ago)  Word of Mouth Targeted Credible 20th Century  Mass Media TV, Radio, Syndicated Print Everyone received the same message Built big Brands Today  Product offerings & target audiences are both more segmented Reaching today’s consumer is a marketing challenge

Pizza Hut ad on the side of a Russian Proton rocket! The problem The battle for eyeballs: TV viewer-ship fragmented Big companies shifting dollars out of traditional media Internet advertising lacks meaningful metrics & adequate capabilities (McKinsey, 8/07) Other forms of digital media little understood Billboards? Marketing is at a cross-roads An answer: Reach consumers in the store Pizza Hut ad on the side of a Russian Proton rocket!

The possibilities Interaction/ context No interaction Location (RFID) Identity (Loyalty cards) Video Fixed Cart-video Cycling advertisements Video attracting you to items related to your cart? Video showing product related to previous purchases? Audio Beamed iPod? Store announcements Music in exchange for location-related ads? Music related to previous purchases? Value-Offer Promotional announcements Offer related to your purchases? Promotional prices & special offers on above?

This is really happening I will talk about 3 examples Wal-Mart TV Smart Shopping Carts Promotions

Wal-Mart TV “… the average recall of a brand advertised on Wal-Mart television is 66%, compared with 24% for brands advertised on in-home television.” Customers 15% more likely to buy product today and 25% more likely to buy product in future Sources: “Wal-Mart Adds In-Store TV Sets, Lifts Advertising, Wall Street Journal (Sep 22, 2004) Research commissioned by Premier Retail Networks (PRN) and conducted by AC Nielsen

Displays on the Cart Displays on the Cart: Example Modstream Displays ads on the handle 5-year life RF update of messages from one central location

Interaction and display Media Cart seek scan navigate

RFID in Promotions RFID is already being used for promotions Promotions displays are RFID tagged Store doors have readers Display movements are monitored Lack of movement is detected/corrected 22% improvement in sales

Now add consumer context Imagine if the Cart knew: Location from RFID/WiFi Identity from RFID Bluetooth/WiFi to download audio/video on the fly Imagine if the display could signal: Rate of sale using RFID/WiFi Now you could: Introduce customers to new products, product categories Offer up promotional pricing & special offers Measure efficacy of various promotions & displays Do dynamic pricing to avoid overstocks Provide consumer services like food allergy notification

Further possibilities Interaction/ context No interaction Location (RFID) Identity (Loyalty cards) Consumer Blogging? Video Fixed Cart-video Cycling advertisements Video attracting you to items related to your cart? Video showing product related to previous purchases? Testimonials? Audio Beamed iPod? Store announcements Music in exchange for location-related ads? Music related to previous purchases? Commentaries? Value-Offer Promotional announcements Offer related to your purchases? Promotional prices & special offers on above?

In-store Consumer Engagement This is an key direction for marketing RFID will play a key role So will other technologies: WiFi Bluetooth GPS? How this works is for technologists to figure out The benefits are huge for everyone!

Thank You! dcantwell@epcglobalinc.org