Beyond the Barcode

There are currently around one billion mobile data subscribers worldwide and this is expected to rise to more than 2.8 billion by 2013. Morgan Stanley predicts that mobile broadband usage will outpace desktop usage globally within five years. Businesses are searching for ways to leverage an increasingly mobile workforce and today’s smartphones offer an entirely new platform to extend the productivity of workers in ways we never imagined just a few years ago. As smartphones increase in power and mature as a critical tool for productive workers on the go, the time is right for mobile tagging, a two-dimensional barcode-like tag that is read (“snapped”) by mobile phone cameras to link users with relevant online content through the device’s web-browser. Any internet-capable mobile device with free, easy-to-install, tag reader software can snap tags. A mature technology in Japan and Europe, mobile tagging is helping organisations harness the power of a mobile workforce to increase productivity, save costs and gain a competitive edge. While the technology is still relatively new in New Zealand, we’re seeing real interest from businesses keen to use mobile tagging to help meet their business needs. For example, there’s an equipment rental and plant management services firm rolling HardLink-powered mobile tags across its fleet of commercial and residential rental equipment, to streamline stocktaking and equipment tracking processes. Mobile tagging is speeding up a very manual process and with large amounts of equipment leased to customers at any one time, saving time and boosting productivity is critical. The tags also enhance health and safety compliance by cutting down large amounts of documentation on the safe use of equipment. Customers will be able to snap tags on hiring contracts, providing ready access to information on operating instructions and safety precautions specific to the piece of equipment being hired. With the right mobile tagging platform, the creation and management of multiple types of tags is simple, and easily operated by nontechnical personnel. A good platform should also readily integrate to in-house systems and be easily connected to any existing system that can make web service calls. More than two million mobile devices on New Zealand’s primary mobile networks support the minimum requirements for using a mobile tag reader and employers are ready to embrace mobile tagging technology to boost productivity. With this in mind, it won’t be long before we see huge growth of mobile tags for use in business. This use could range from linking contact information from business cards, to giving staff tagged identity cards that will allow them to snap their own ID card to access HR functions such as annual leave requests and other employment information. The possibilities are endless and mobile tagging is at the leading edge of the technology that alters the way businesses use mobile devices to enhance productivity.