Radio frequency identification (RFID)-enabled devices, called “Swipe Stations”, are being introduced in SA to connect real-life events with social media.
Liquid Lemon is bringing the technology to SA, and says the Swipe Stations can be positioned at various points around a venue and can be configured to perform a variety of functions such as a Facebook “Like” or taking a photo and automatically uploading it to the user's Facebook page.
RFID technology itself is nothing new, and has wide applications, ranging from ID cards and passports, to the tagging of pets and non-stop road tolling systems.
Director of Liquid Lemon, Suzanne Rogers, says RFID eliminates the need for users to have a mobile device to post to Facebook. According to Rogers, the technology is ideal for use in situations such as exhibitions, product launches, theme parks, sporting events and music concerts.
“There has been an upsurge in the recent number of cases involving global brands, such as Coca-Cola, Renault and Red Bull, using this technology during their brand activations,” says Rogers.
RFID technology was recently used by Cadbury at the Olympic Games, in London. An RFID system was fitted into the “Cadbury House” (an inflatable dome in Hyde Park where visitors could take part in a number of activities). This allowed guests to immediately share photos of their visit to the Cadbury House on Facebook by tapping their RFID badges on the different check-in points.
The technology was also implemented during a three-day event at the Coca-Cola Amusement Park, in Israel in 2010, where visitors were given RFID-enabled wristbands, linked to their Facebook accounts. As a result, visitors could like different rides or share photos by swiping their wristbands at different stations.
During the event, more than 35 000 updates were generated from a total of 1 950 visitors (with an average of 17.9 updates per visitor).
Rogers says: “Considering that the average South African Facebook user has approximately 130 friends, imagine the amplification effect for a company or brand using this technology. If only 50% of the total number of visitors in this case study, made use of the technology, it would generate approximately 2.2 million Facebook impressions for that company or brand.”
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