Near Field Communication (NFC) is a short range, wireless Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) technology that makes use of interacting electromagnetic radio fields instead of the typical direct radio transmissions used by technologies such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. It is meant for applications where a physical touch, or close to it, is required to maintain security. NFC is the emerging technology behind Google’s Android Mobile Wallet application. Soon all smartphones will be enabled with NFC.
Mobile marketing with NFC is frictionless. NFC enabled smartphones and tablets can effortlessly exchange digital information between devices or from external NFC (passive RFID) tags.
NFC mobile transactions simply involve tapping or waving a mobile phone that is equipped with an NFC reader in front of the NFC hot spot or Smart Poster at a close range to produce instant results. Nokia estimates NFC-based payment transactions alone are expected to reach $670 billion by 2015, but NFC can be much more for marketers.
NFC simplifies web content delivery and enhances consumer interaction in the physical world with easy exchange. Marketing with NFC is the newest way to connect brands with their audience using digital hyperlinks in the physical world.
Examples of effective NFC mobile marketing applications include: sweepstakes entry – NFC tags that encourage sign up to win and exclusive offerings; coupon redemption – NFC tags contain mobile coupons; targeted shopping information - NFC tags that deliver product availability, information and nearby locations; social sharing and following - NFC tags that automatically share and like information on Facebook and Twitter; mobile Payments - NFC tags that allow tap-to-pay applications.