This is a guest post by Patrick Donnelly. Donnelly is the creative producer for 2ergo, an international mobile business and marketing solutions company.
Whole Foods has already used Microsoft Tag to share recipes and provide a great mobile experience to its customers. However, this Tag in the dairy section gives the user a very informational experience, explaining the origins and freshness of this farmer's eggs. Upon scanning this Tag, a shopper is directed to a video that shows the farmer talking about his farm and chickens.
I think this simple media experience adds value to the physical product and makes customers feel they're getting more for their money. Not only is a shopper given a validation of the item's freshness, but they're also entertained. Since Whole Foods is being transparent and giving us the option to see how this product is produced, shoppers are likely to feel better about the quality of their purchase. Instead of a transaction, this becomes an experience via mobile video.
Not that any of the other eggs have anything to hide, but psychologically one may note that the other products don't have the same level of transparency. The use of mobile tags in this instance not only adds value to this particular carton, but also the culture of the Whole Foods brand.
How can you use mobile and Tags to lend value to your brand and products? Would you be more likely to buy a product if it had a mobile tag?