Rite Aid deployed more than 4,500 proximity beacons in partnership with inMarket.
In the largest beacon installation in the US Retail industry, Rite Aid has partnered with inMarket to deploy more than 4,500 proximity beacons in its US stores. inMarket is a mobile shopper marketing firm. Beacon-level proximity data is used by brick-and-mortar retailers to provide personalization and retargeting capabilities used in e-commerce.
“This is the largest retail deployment to date,” says beacon provider inMarket. “The proximity program will also be integrated with Rite Aid’s own app.”
According to zdnet, prior to Rite Aid’s initiative, Macy’s department store chain held the largest beacon installation in a retail setting. Other retailers have also been experimenting with the new technology to a lesser extent. For example, Target put them in just 50 stores as a trial last year. Beacons allow retailers to track their customers’ routes and behaviors through their stores, pushing coupons and promotions to help encourage sales.
"Beacons on their own require apps to listen for them -- otherwise they don't do anything," inMarket communications director Dave Heinzinger wrote in an email to ZDNet. "Our strategy has been to build out relationships with apps that people already use, rather than try to reinvent the wheel and get people to download something new." inMarket relies heavily on partnerships with publishers, including Conde Nast and Gannet, who help them to Beacon apps in order to communicate with the installed proximity devices.
Beyond retargeting and personalization, Rite Aid's beacon deployment also provides a digital infrastructure base that will enable the drug-store chain to link its stores to the Internet of Things. If done correctly, the beacons could create a connected, in-store environment that is ubiquitous and subtle, and always on.
The Rite Aid partnership with inMarket will give the chain access to more than 42 million monthly users by association. Adding these to the number of Rite Aid mobile app users, the chain’s customer base could see expansion as a result.
