Understanding GS1
GS1 is the organization responsible for developing and managing global standards for business communication, primarily through a barcode, which is an electronically scannable symbol printed on products. That bar codes are a huge success is borne out by the fact that more than a whopping 6 billion of them are scanned every day.
GS1 Datalink New Standard
The GS1 Datalink New Standard has brought about a paradigm shift in the way that barcodes will be used via trillions of products and transactions across the world. TrackMatriX, one of the world’s leading solution providers for secure and smart packaging as well as document management now provides the GS1 Datalink New Standard, in the process upgrading its barcode capabilities in multiple ways. This includes making these codes scannable via customer phones, providing them seamless connectivity with the web by way of embedding web addresses instead of mere numbers and making the provision of a single barcode for any application, in place of the old practice of having numerous bar codes for different applications.
Benefits of GS1 Digital Link to Retailers
The deployment and use of the GS1 Digital Link accrues a number of benefits to retailers. Let’s look at what these might be-
- 1) The fact that these can be conveniently scanned by customers with the help of their smart phones enhances efficiency as well as enables better service to the consumers. For one the latter can authenticate the products they are buying in no time. Secondly, it allows retailers to promote their products by way of special offers. At the same time they can also obtain real time consumer feedback and insights.
- 2) The retailers can take advantage of the seamless web connectivity offered by embedding web addresses instead of just numbers in the bar code. This helps them not only tract and trace the products sold, but also obtain valuable consumer information, which can be leveraged to promote sales.
- 3) The fact that a single bar code can be used to facilitate myriad functions is a huge advantage to retailers. It helps them track and trace inventory, pitch marketing offers, obtain customer feedback and allow the latter to authenticate the products that they buy.
TrackMatriX® Lock Code used in PPE packaging providing enhanced security (covert info)
GS1 Digital Link in Conjunction with TrackMatriX®
When used in conjunction with the TrackMatriX® SaaS platform, the GS1 Digital link upgrade allows a single QR code or NFC tag to suffice for the entire supply chain right from the factory to the retailer’s premises. Besides, the TrackMatriX® Lock technology enables the GS1 compliant Data Link QR codes to be embedded with covert information that makes the cloning of a data link impossible.
In effect, the GS1 Digital Link works in tandem with TrackMatriX® Lock Code and a generic QR code app to render the supply chain safe, secure and inviolate. Besides, the TrackMatriX inspection app helps authenticate a product with a simple smartphone scan.
Enhanced Benefits to Retailers when using TrackMatriX®
Retailers leveraging TrackMatriX® technology in conjunction with the GS1 Digital Link benefit from a slew of advantages. These include-
- Improved ability to detect counterfeit products and fraudulent transaction.
- Superior inventory management.
- Real time feedback as well as alerts.
- Extremely secure and user friendly authentication method.
- Enables highly focused and targeted brand promotion messaging.
- Allows one to capture critical business intelligence.
- Empowers one to engage with customers on the basis of consumer preferences and purchase history.
Improved Consumer Engagement
The GS1 Digital Link is a game changer with regard to consumer engagement. This is because unlike traditional 1D bar codes that are useful only within the supply chain and not at the consumer’s end, the GS1 Data Link transforms bar codes to QR codes that can be scanned by end consumers with the help of their smartphones. This allows the consumers to validate the authenticity of the product in question in a jiffy and therefore take the decision to make a purchase in double quick time.
The real time consumer data obtained with the help of the GS1 Digital Link updated TrackMatriX® services enables retailers to better serve the needs of their consumers, leading to an increase in sales and an enhanced bottomline.
Conclusion
The new generation GS1 Digital Link empowered TrackMatriX® solutions greatly empower retailers by helping them track and trace as well as secure their products from the beginning of the supply chain till the end. Significantly, the empowerment of the end consumers to authenticate products with the help of their smartphones is a force multipliers when it comes to enhanced sales. That, apart it enables the collection of real time intelligence that gives a boost to focused consumer engagement resulting in enhanced sales. Going forward, one can expect more and more retailers and retail chains around the world to benefit from the new GS1 Digital Link enabled solutions from TrackMatriX® to revolutionize the way that the retail industry operates.
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