• by Tyler Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_tyler, February 23, 2015

It remains difficult for brands to link digital engagement to physical sales.

“That’s a big challenge,” acknowledged Luanne Bryant, digital marketing manager at City Furniture, at OMMA Miami on Monday. “We are limited by the technology that we have in the retail establishments; the point of sale is a little old school. I think that’s a huge challenge not just for us, but for retailers in general.”

It’s a challenge marketers are actively attempting to conquer. Rocket Fuel claimed last week that its new mobile targeting technology, which uses Placed for location-based ad targeting, has a significant impact on physical sales. Oracle also shelled out a reported high hundreds of millions of dollars to acquire Datalogix, an audience-targeting firm that specializes in connecting digital ads to physical sales.

A significant piece of the puzzle is also in the process of falling into place: beacons. Beacons are opening up the prospect of “physical retargeting,” among other things.

“Beacons are about to change the entire way to market to people [in retail],” said West Herford, managing partner at On Ideas.