How Can Businesses Utilise NFC In Their Print & Digital Marketing Strategy?

As a business owner I am always looking to develop our service offering to our clients, more recently as our agency has continued to grow we have delivered a vast amount of design, branding and print work.

For a lot of our clients, we already delivery videos, used not only within their social media strategy but also on video-brochures used to send to prospects to introduce their products and services.

More recently, we have been working closely with our in-house design team and a number of printers to fully utilise NFC technology…If you have not already ‘tapped’ our business cards and been whisked away to our website then you’re missing out!

What Is NFC And How Does It Work?

NFC is a radio technology that enables data to be transmitted between devices over a short distance – a maximum of 1,6 in – and is therefore similar to the well-known Bluetooth technology. However, with NFC, only small amounts of data written on electronic tags (so called NFC tags) that are attached to physical objects can be transferred to the smartphone.

No pairing code is necessary to link up a device reading a chip and because the chips use very low amounts of power (or passively, using even less), it’s much more power-efficient than other wireless communication types.

Am I Using NFC Now And Didn’t Realise It?

NFC chips are now included inside most credit cards for contactless payments. But a slightly more recent – and admittedly more enticing – use case for NFC is with your smartphone, or even your smartwatch, as a way to digitize your entire wallet.

Android Pay and ApplePay now allows users to pay via NFC. Virtually every mobile OS maker has their own apps that offer unique NFC functionality. Android users have the widest variety to choose from at present. The most well-known option is Android Pay, which works on many Android phones and watches, allowing you to pay via contactless payments.

Apple’s phones from the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus onwards also have NFC functionality, as do the Apple Watch and Apple Watch 2, albeit with limited use so far, as it’s only usable for Apple Pay.

It’s a lot like Android Pay, in that it’s an app which gives users the ability to link up their credit and debit cards and then use their phone with contactless readers.

How Can I Use NFC In Print?

But NFC functionality on phones isn’t limited to payments. By utilising the latest printing techniques micro NFC chips can be installed into flat, printed materials. The best example of this, created by 123 Internet Group is for business cards and printed posters.

Take your smartphone, simply hold it close to a business card enabled with the NFC and instantly, like swiping a credit card, your smartphone can open a browser window opening a pre-defined link, sync a contact or even open a YouTube video!

The possibilities are endless, and with great looking design and tactile print solutions not only can you impress clients visually now – but you can interact with them digitally.

Looking toward the future, it’s possible that NFC could form part of your daily digital marketing strategy – fully capable in tracking opens and interactions via Google Analytics!

…But Is It Expensive?

Surprising not at all! Using our method of delivery, the associated cost of creating NFC enabled print is no more than including a decent finish such as spot varnish or embossing. The small additional investment per printed item means that you can instantly make it ‘responsive’ and include links to websites, content including videos or even 3D immersive tours!

What would you use this technology for..? For more information please get in touch with one of our friendly team!