????智能手機(jī)還能干什么？向常來的老顧客發(fā)一條歡迎短信，在夏季涼鞋上架前告訴顧客冬靴正在清倉打折，或者在球賽開球前告訴場(chǎng)外的觀眾趕緊持票進(jìn)場(chǎng)。

????自智能手機(jī)進(jìn)入千家萬戶以來，市場(chǎng)營(yíng)銷專家們一直在幻想諸如此類的情境，也就是基于特定地理位置的應(yīng)用。但此前一直橫亙著很大的技術(shù)障礙：GPS和Wi-Fi網(wǎng)絡(luò)在定位某個(gè)人的確切位置時(shí)表現(xiàn)得并不是非?？煽?，尤其是在多層的購物中心或是體育場(chǎng)這種地方。

????隨著去年年底蘋果iBeacon技術(shù)的橫空出世，以及這類技術(shù)在零售店的成功應(yīng)用，這種技術(shù)及其能在正確的時(shí)間、正確的地點(diǎn)向正確的人廣播消息的能力再次點(diǎn)燃了很多人的興趣。包括梅西百貨（Macy's）、美國(guó)鷹牌服飾（American Eagle Outfitters）、全美職棒大聯(lián)盟（Major League Baseball）和全美橄欖球聯(lián)盟（National Football League）在內(nèi)的許多大商家、大機(jī)構(gòu)都在積極測(cè)試這項(xiàng)技術(shù)。

????邁阿密海豚橄欖球隊(duì)（Miami Dolphins）副總裁、信息總監(jiān)特瑞?霍華德說：“我們需要更深入的洞察來理解我們的球迷和會(huì)員，但前提是他們?cè)敢夥窒磉@些信息。這項(xiàng)技術(shù)使我們能在球迷允許的條件下理解他們的行為，因此對(duì)我們具有轉(zhuǎn)折性的意義?！?/p>

????簡(jiǎn)單來說，iBeacon是一種通過低能耗藍(lán)牙技術(shù)傳遞信息的方式。這種技術(shù)的早期模式是使用一種專門的、靠電池驅(qū)動(dòng)的信號(hào)發(fā)射器，當(dāng)用戶的智能手機(jī)進(jìn)入信號(hào)發(fā)射器的探測(cè)范圍之內(nèi)時(shí)，就會(huì)觸發(fā)一條歡迎信息。（僅限于用戶手機(jī)的藍(lán)牙和地理位置服務(wù)在打開狀態(tài)下。）如果接收者感興趣并選擇加入，他就會(huì)下載一個(gè)移動(dòng)應(yīng)用，自動(dòng)接收來自基于周邊地理位置的購物、娛樂、會(huì)展等信息——不管他們身在哪里。iPhone4S以及第三代iPad以后的各款蘋果設(shè)備理論上來講都可以收發(fā)這些信息——也就是大約2億部設(shè)備。

????高通公司（Qualcomm's）Gimbal技術(shù)的產(chǎn)品管理總監(jiān)凱文?亨特說：“出于對(duì)數(shù)碼技術(shù)的直覺，我們喜歡討論這項(xiàng)技術(shù)。我們提供了圍繞地理位置和精確性的技術(shù)環(huán)境，使這項(xiàng)技術(shù)變得更具準(zhǔn)確性和關(guān)聯(lián)性。”邁阿密海豚隊(duì)試驗(yàn)的就是由高通推出的向蘋果叫板的Gimbal技術(shù)。

????邁阿密海豚隊(duì)在高通的支持下，在2013賽季的最后兩場(chǎng)主場(chǎng)比賽中測(cè)試了22個(gè)iBeacon的使用案例。它把50個(gè)發(fā)射器安裝在陽光生活體育館里，同時(shí)它的市場(chǎng)團(tuán)隊(duì)在場(chǎng)館里安裝了一批可回收的視頻卡（其中的一個(gè)，只要有球迷第一次走過名人堂球星丹?馬里奧的雕像，就會(huì)被觸發(fā)），告訴他們哪個(gè)貨攤前面排的隊(duì)最短，而且還會(huì)提供小吃和飲料的優(yōu)惠券。

????Welcome a frequent customer with a personal message. Offer an in-store deal on excess boot inventory before summer sandals hit the shelves. Remind tailgating season ticketholders to head to their seats before kick-off.

????Ever since smartphones became virtually ubiquitous, marketers have fantasized about mobile engagement scenarios like these, specific to a certain location. The biggest obstacle has been technical: GPS positioning satellites and Wi-Fi wireless networks aren't reliable when it comes to pinpointing an individual's whereabouts, especially indoors in multi-floor shopping malls or sports arenas.

????But the emergence of Apple's iBeacon late last year -- and the very visible use of the technology in U.S. retail stores to guide shoppers and even help them complete purchases -- has rekindled interest in systems that can broadcast messages to the right person, in the right place, and at the right time. High-profile retailers such as Macy's and American Eagle Outfitters, along with Major League Baseball and the National Football League, are actively testing them.

????"As much as we try to understand our fans and members, we need more insight, provided they are willing to share it," says Tery Howard, senior vice president and chief technology officer for the Miami Dolphins football team, explaining her organization's interest. "This technology could be transformational for us in allowing us to understand behavior at the pace that the fans allow us to."

????In simple terms, iBeacon is a way of sending messages using a Bluetooth Low Energy connection. Early installations use specialized, battery-operated transmitters that detect when someone using an enabled smartphone is nearby and trigger a "welcome" greeting. (This only works if the phone's Bluetooth connection is on and location services are active.) If the recipient is interested and opts in, he or she downloads a mobile application that lets them receive messages specific to their location in the store, entertainment venue, convention center -- wherever they happen to be. Every iOS device since the iPhone 4S and the third-generation iPad -- approximately 200 million gadgets in all -- is theoretically capable of sending or receiving these messages.

????"We like to talk about this as a digital sixth sense," says Kevin Hunter, director of product management for Qualcomm's Gimbal technology, the system behind the Dolphins trial and in Apple stores. "We provide context around location and proximity; we make it more filtered and more relevant."

????Along with Qualcomm, the Dolphins tested 22 different iBeacon use cases during the last two home games of its 2013 season, with 50 transmitters installed in Sun Life Stadium. Among them: Its marketing team distributed collectible video cards (including one that triggered the first time fans walked by a statue of Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Marino), advised them about which concession lines were shortest in their section, and offered up coupons for snacks and beverages.