Guidelines and best practices for deploying beacons

How to deploy beacons?

1. Placement and Orientation
   Place beacons above the crowd level, at least 4 to 7 feet above ground or place them on the ceiling.
   
2. Line of Sight
   Make sure there is no obstruction between the beacons and the user's devices.
   
3. Placing beacons
   For best results, place the beacons vertically with the Beaconstac logo on top. 

Factors that cause interference with Beacon signals

Make sure you avoid placing the beacons near

1. Other electronic equipments that use the same 2.4GHz band
   
2. Metallic surfaces, plaster, concrete, bulletproof glass etc.

Best locations for beacon installation

This may differ depending on your use-case. Here are some general guidelines - 

1. High-wait time areas
   *For a smartphone to detect a beacon signal, it generally takes at least 1-5 minutes.  
   
   *Android ignores beacons that have not been seen long enough
   
   Given this information, it is recommended that you deploy beacons in high wait-time areas or where people are known to spend considerable amounts of time such as -
   
   1. Traffic Intersections
   2. Offices
   3. Malls
   4. Waiting areas
   5. Retail Queues
   
2. Choke points
   Entry or exit gates are points users are bound to cross.
   
3. Points of Interest
   Place beacons in venues that garner user interest. 

Beacon-wise Specifications

#Indoor Beacons

1. Highly targeted proximity marketing applications
2.  Only for indoor use

   Suggested Use Cases - 

1. Sending information about a product inside a store
2. Helping guests check in at the hotel
3. Offering free Wi-Fi at railway stations
4. Navigation inside small stores
5. Checking availability of a product
6. Offering interesting details about an installation at Museums

#Outdoor Beacons

1. Designed to withstand tough weather conditions
2. Suitable for highly targeted outdoor locations

   Suggested Use Cases - 

1. Outside stores to draw in shoppers
2. At bus stops to notify travellers of bus timings
3. At billboards to attract new customers
4. Hotel grounds to notify guests of outdoor features
5. Sports venues to notify people of a shorter line at the concession stand

#Long Range Outdoor Beacons

1. Designed for long ranges
2. Built for tough encironments

  Suggested Use Cases - 

1. Helping consumers navigate big retail stores
2. Outside real estate offices to draw in buyers
3. At billboards to send offers to people in the distance
4. At amusement parks to notify people of new rides and help them navigate
5. At sports venues to keep track of logistics

More Recommended Use Cases for Long Range Beacons

#Pocket Beacons & Keychain Beacons

Please note that while 'portable' does mean you can carry it anywhere with you, you do need to be in a certain area for a minimum length of time, generally at least 1-2 minutes, for the beacon to transmit. You cannot be in a moving vehicle and expect passerbys to get your notification. Also, once a device is out of range of the beacon, the notifications disappear. 

Suggested Use Cases

1. Compact aisles at stores
2. Small offices to improve logistics
3. Use at trade shows
4. In lieu of distributing flyers
5. Advertising new openings instead of spinning signs
6. Can be used for recruiting people

Read about some more use cases with pocket beacons here

 
Do's and Don'ts for pocket and keychain beacons

    Do's

1. Analyse the footfall of the area you are in. Is it feasible to run a campaign there? 
2. Go to places that have a lot of foot traffic. 
3. Analyse peak times. For example, you could sit at a popular cafe for brunch, go to a crowded park in the evening and sit at a pub later that night. 
4. Hang around at high wait-time areas like hotel lobbies, queues in stores, traffic signals. 
5. Have the pocket or keychain beacon handy at events, fests or some sort of a get-together.  

    Don'ts

1. Be in a moving vehicle
2. Keep moving at all times. Stay in one place long enough for users to get your notification.

Find out some more interesting ways you can deploy keychain beacons

Carrying it in your bag vs Holding it in your hand

There is no difference between carrying the pocket and keychain beacons in your bag vs. holding it in your hand provided there is nothing that can interfere with the beacon signal.

You may, in fact, generate some curiosity by carrying it in the open.