BEACONS AT YOUR COMMAND

GameStop uses beacons to put customers in charge of store promotions

Retailers often use in-store beacons to push promotions to customer mobile phones as they pass by. But video game retailer GameStop Corp., which operates more than 4,200 U.S. stores, takes a different approach.

“In the store, we have multiple pieces of signage marking the location of beacons,” said Charlie Larkin, senior director of GameStop Technology Institute, the retailer’s in-house IT development center. “There are seven to 14 beacons across different zones of the store, depending on store size.”

Zones are divided by different major product categories, such as the Xbox gaming system. If a consumer wants to find out more about a specific item, they hold up their mobile device to the shelf. By downloading the GameStop Technology Institute (GTI) iOS app (different than the regular GameStop app), they are able to receive an initial set of contextual promotions and trailers.

“We think it will be really engaging and valuable,” Larkin explained.

If the app is closed, the user receives a short notification to open it. If it is open, they first get a set of contextual content, such as promotional trailers for upcoming games. Customers can drill down into specific promotions to get more detail. They can also stream trailers to one of multiple 4K ultra HD TV screens displayed around the store.

EARLY ADOPTER: GameStop began investigating beacons in the first half of 2014.

“GTI explores the impact of emerging technology on the consumer experience,” Larkin said. “We knew that beacons would be a long-term important area of study, so we needed to get involved early on.”

In the third quarter of 2014, GameStop decided to move forward with a pilot of beacon technology as a means of performing advanced marketing and providing an enhanced customer experience. The Grapevine, Texas-based retailer decided to work with Austin, Texas-based beacon solution provider Shelfbucks for several reasons.

In addition to Shelfbucks using the leading Gimbal beacon hardware platform, the vendor also offered to handle all technology installation, maintenance, monitoring and repair.

“We can focus our time on the customer experience,” Larkin said. “It’s a unique way of approaching consumer engagement.”

GameStop is not currently personalizing any messaging or promotions with its beacon program. However, the retailer is planning on providing a more personalized beacon-enhanced customer experience in the future.

“Once we understand how customers are interacting with the beacons and what content is valuable, we can connect the beacons to a customer’s PowerUp Rewards loyalty membership profile,” said Larkin.

NEXT STEPS: In time, GameStop also plans to perform analysis on the behavior of customers who interact with beacons to better understand how the beacon program impacts such factors as product merchandising and customer traffic in the store.

“There are no metrics yet,” Larkin said. “But we want to know to what extent does having merchandising information increase product appeal at the shelf, and if there is an effect on the shopper conversion rate, among other things.”

To that end, GameStop is partnering with the Center for Retail Studies at the Mays Business School at Texas A&M University to help develop a wider perspective on how beacons affect shopper behavior and purchase activity.

Currently, GameStop is running a pilot in 36 stores in central Texas. The retailer plans to expand testing to stores in East Coast, West Coast and Midwest markets.

“By broadening the user base, we get more feedback,” Larkin added. “Ultimately, we must evaluate what consumers want at all 4,200 locations.”