Consumer Goods Companies Put iPads in Distribution Locations for Co-Marketing Initiatives

Co-Marketing can be an extremely effective marketing strategy for companies both large and small. Co-Marketing between smaller companies can usually be executed a little easier than Co-Marketing between large organizations. The reason for this is simple, larger companies have more things that they need to consider before jumping into any new marketing initiative. That said, Co-Marketing between large organizations can be extremely powerful. When two or more global brands get together to offer their shared customers a better product or service, the results can be pretty amazing for both organizations. With the In-Store iPad Revolution trend firmly underway we got to thinking, why don’t Global Consumer Goods Companies partner with their Distributors to run In-Store Co-Marketing Initiatives with iPad?

Businesses invest in new technologies all of the time, especially when it comes to introducing new technologies to their brick-and-mortar locations. We are at the beginning of what we see as a HUGE coming trend for businesses. Putting iPads in your physical location for customer engagement is going to be the next big thing for In-Store Marketing. That said, investing in new technologies for your business can be expensive depending on what your strategy is and what the costs of the technology are. Innovative companies realize just how big In-Store Marketing with iPad is going to be, so the next task is to figure out their strategy for leveraging this new trend, and then figuring out a way to pay for the upfront costs for the iPad hardware.

Share the Costs of iPad Hardware and iPad Software through Co-Marketing Initiatives

Any company that acts as a distributor via a retail location for another organization’s products should consider partnering with their suppliers to share in the costs and benefits of putting iPads in-store. Putting an iPad in your retail location comes with the following costs:

• iPad(s) – $300 for a refurbished iPad 2
• iPad Enclosure – $200 – $500 depending on which enclosure/stand you go with
• In-Store WiFi – $30 – $50/month
• iPad Apps – Varies depending on which apps you purchase OR if you decide to build custom apps

These 4 main costs above are multiplied by the number of iPad Kiosks you want to set up (whether it’s in one store or multiple). For a large organization, the costs above are actually fairly reasonable when compared with other technology investments they have probably made in the past. That said, in today’s economy, every organization should be looking for ways to keep costs in check. Co-Marketing can help organizations keep costs low, while still allowing them to reap the many benefits that using iPads in-store for customer engagement can bring.

Example Co-Marketing Initiatives Between Global Companies

Think about it, McDonald’s sells Coke products. Why not partner with Coke to put iPad Kiosks in McDonald’s locations around the world? On some days iPads can be set up to run Coke apps/ads while other days they can be configured for McDonald’s marketing initiatives. Who knows, maybe McDonald’s and Coke want to create an iPad app that promotes both brands… The possibilities are truly endless if companies simply get creative and truly consider Co-Marketing Initiatives for In-Store Marketing with iPad. Here are a few other examples of big brands that we think would benefit from Co-Marketing:

• Sports Apparel Stores like Dick’s partners with Nike for In-Store Marketing with iPad
• Department Stores like Macy’s partners with Ralph Lauren for Co-Marketing with iPad
• Grocery Stores like Whole Foods partners with 365 Everyday Value® to create a custom iPad application

If Global Consumer Goods Companies partnered with their Distributors for Co-Marketing initiatives like the examples above we think the results would be an overwhelming success in both more value provided to the consumer and increased sales for the partners. We hope the Marketing teams for large organizations will stumble upon this article and that it will spark some creative ideas in them. We can’t wait to see this new In-Store Marketing with iPad trend truly take off. Co-Marketing is going to be a great strategy for those organizations who dive into this new trend.