Radio frequency identification is generating quite the buzz for trade shows, events, and conferences. Still, despite all the chatter, pricing and a general lack of knowledge about the technology have delayed widespread adoption. Marketers are opening their eyes to the myriad possibilities the technology offers. Aside from enabling faster lead retrieval—the most obvious benefit for exhibitors— Radio Frequency Identification Technology (RFID) lets event and conference producers track attendance (meeting-wide and session-by-session), and name-recognition capabilities can allow computer and video displays to react when an attendee with an RFID badge scans his card on a Reader. While the technology is mostly getting play at big meetings and shows, it can be just as useful at smaller events.

Solution

Two ways that RFID can work for your event:
1. Lead Retrieval. At trade shows, exhibitors need to display RFID Readers using RFID need from the show organizers, who control all the attendees’ registration info. The reader at a trade show booth can capture lead data (names, titles, companies) the instant badges come within range and the info is then transferred to a host computer for processing.

2. Attendance Tracking.
Individual exhibitors can use RFID for smoother lead retrieval. Event marketers in charge of proprietary events can use the technology to track attendance and for event-wide measurement.

The above objective is achieved using RFID Readers and Controllers. The controllers are connected to the front end application and the database to retrieve information of the attendee which has been entered during registration.

3. Interactive Messaging.
Combined with other types of displays, RFID also can be used to deliver customized information or promo messages. For example, a monitor hooked up to an RFID system could be programmed to display specific information to viewers based on their name, job title, or purchasing power, whenever they walk by.

The Advantages:

• Attendees don’t have to stop, wait, and scan. All they have to do is get the reader within range of the badge.
• Decreased tracking time from about three seconds per scan to one second
• The badge can be upside down, in the billfold, in the purse, and the receiver can still read the data.
• In addition to simply measuring attendance, the system can be used for a real-time display in the opening session that not only shows how many attendees are in the room at any given time, but also separate them by chapter on a large map.
• Because RFID readers can process hundreds of tags simultaneously, show organizers can eliminate crowd-flow bottlenecks in and around entrances of sessions.
• Ability to capture large amounts of data and analyze the information quickly and accurately.