Bluetooth marketing faces shut-down [BT broadband office]

Bluetooth marketing faces shut-down

Posted 5 December 2007 at 11:49AM by Hannah Gilchrist in Email and communications

Years ago Bluetooth was a handy little feature on your mobile that let you connect to wireless headsets or share phone numbers with your nearest and dearest, but it wasn't until October that there was a real business benefit.

Imagine this, you're walking past a restaurant, your phone bleeps and you see a buy one, get one free message from that same restaurant - where did it come from and how did they get your number? This is the wonder of Bluetooth.

A device that lets you share data wirelessly without the need for numbers, Bluetooth is a marketing dream. Premises can transmit messages, photos, music or even videos to all enabled devices within range and offer them discounts, opening times or adverts

But do your customers actually want the information you're giving? Bombarding people with information isn't always the best way to get their business especially at the cost of their privacy. And that is at the heart of the problem, marketing regulations state that you have to be able to either opt-in or out of receiving the information, a feature that Bluetooth does not incorporate, making it an impractical and perhaps soon illegal way of targeting your customers.

So despite it being a great leap in business marketing, with a method so deep in privacy complications finding a way through the regulations could be more trouble than it's worth.

Blog post originally featured on BT Business Insight

Tags: bluetooth, Business insight, marketing, wireless

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Comments

1. At December 5, 2007 5:44 PM, Scot wrote:

It's not just privacy concerns that make bluetooth marketing a bad idea as it's frought with security problems.

For example, a company installs a bluetooth "poster" in a public place. A person with a grudge against the company hides a bluetooth enabled PDA with software that advertises itself as the poster. Passers by can then be sent what appears to be objectionable material from the company or a virus.

Also, "bluetooth marketing may be a bad idea" is not new - read the comments in slashdot post about it from 2005 where it met a generally negative response http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/08/22/1724234

2. At December 6, 2007 10:19 AM, James Lyon wrote:

Over the past two years we have used Bluetooth devices and found them to be unreliable and have now consigned them to the bin.
James

3. At December 6, 2007 2:06 PM, Joe Principe wrote:

i think that bluetooth advertising would just end up being similar to spam email, a pain and completely unwanted. if advertising is to evolve then obviously it needs to embrace technology. the possibilities are alive and well

4. At December 8, 2007 8:08 PM, Alan Peabody wrote:

As I understand it you have to pair before it is possible to receive bluetooth messages. So don't agree! I was passing through Euston recently and noticed an unknown creature offering to pair with me. Ignoring it worked fine.

5. At December 10, 2007 1:24 PM, Chris Randall wrote:

Bluetooth has many ways of 'opting out'.
1) Turn it off.
2) Dont broadcast your ID.

You'd be amazed at the number of people that leave their BT phones visable to all. I've been in a packed cinema and checked.. I've never had under 15 devices come up in a search.

If people dont like that sort of marketing, after the first one they get they will soon get savvy and hide themselves, thus 'Opting out'

ALso a simple notice posted at the area of advertising, stating what is going on, and the ID of the Broadcasting device, should help educate your potential customers.

6. At December 11, 2007 12:52 PM, anjanesh wrote:

absolutely right Chris ! a causual scan on the london underground would bring up a long list of bluetooth devices which broadcast their creative names.

7. At December 13, 2007 8:42 AM, Carl Lotter wrote:

Chris is 100% correct.

Just as you would choose to make your email address available to receive updates via websites would you make your bluetooth available for advetising by advertising your mobile. If you dont want the content dont put yourself in a position to recieve it. You dont get random texts advertising a world of goods because you dont give your mobile number to anyone and everyone, why would you then leave your handset open to anyone to advertise?

8. At December 13, 2007 6:07 PM, Leon wrote:

Most of you seem to be the typical minority that moan about everything new. We have been working with schools and the emergency services sending out educational and welfare messages for free, without litter and with opt in / opt out doorways. We have won awards and in fact if you check DTI regs, they have just relaxed Bluetooth rules to say that you dont now need to opt in or out? We still keep the doorway as we want a long term, high benefit industry that is an echo friendly virtual flyer? Why are you all moaning? no one is forcing this system and it saves litter and trees???

9. At December 14, 2007 4:04 PM, gee wrote:

I agree Leon - I think you have highlighted an important fact. We live in a fast paced disposable culture and media tools such as this can be used in a variety of different ways to a positive effect. Reducing waste being one of them! For healthcare, education etc a media tool such as this can have great benefits.

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