Touchless event tech has been front and center since the pandemic began. Although innovations in this space were already ongoing prior to Covid-19, many have arrived sooner than anticipated and will be the standard for many live events going forward.
Wristbands have generally been the go-to touchless option to enable streamlined access, cashless payments and more at events. While they certainly still have a use case, event tech company WRSTBND has recently launched its new Passport product that is revolutionizing touchless with a digital wallet. Passport requires only a smartphone — something that almost all fans already have and would be bringing to an event anyway — for contactless and secure entry, onsite payments, and brand engagement.
For venue and event operators who have historically relied on easy-to-copy barcodes and QR codes, Passport’s digital wallet integration offers the gold-standard security of RFID wristbands while eliminating the need to order, fulfill, and ship physical wristbands. It works much like airline boarding passes that can be securely added directly to a fan’s smartphone wallet, but there is no code that needs to be scanned. Event entry and payments can be made by the proximity of your phone, using near-field communication (NFC) technology on top of WRSTBND’s road-tested platform.
“It's really fun to watch people enter an event using mobile wallet-based NFC,” says says Jonathan Foucheaux, WRSTBND Partner and CTO. “Most people want to turn their device screen over like they do with boarding passes at the airport. They are confused and honestly amazed their ticket works without a barcode.”
Passport's native iOS and Android integration senses when a smartphone is near the entrance scanner and sends a push notification to prompt the fan to pull up their ticket without the need for additional apps to download or phone permissions to opt into. From there, event guests only need to wave their phone near the scanner to enter.
While some venues are being outfitted with WRSTBND’s tech to use for all of their events, the company offers a portable, simple, and cost-effective rental program for more ephemeral events such as festivals. “Our permanent venue clients install them, and they stay in place,” explains Foucheaux. “For festivals and other short-term events, we bring out our team to set them up, and then remove after the event. Passport is the only portable digital wallet pass solution available today, making it an excellent solution for festivals, one-off events, and event tours.”
Foucheaux explains that the increased popularity of Apple Pay and Google Pay have in turn found many fans already familiar with how digital wallets work. “Since Passport uses the same digital wallet and contactless workflow that your phone uses for mobile payments, it's much easier for people to understand how it works and how to use it now,” he says.
The rise of Apple Pay also makes a stronger case for the use of something like Passport for ticketing — if people are using their smartphones for payments anyway, they don’t necessarily need wristbands to have that cashless experience. Why not have everything in one place?
“Consumers really appreciate not having to worry about whether or not they'll receive their wristbands in the mail and that they don't have to remember to bring anything with them to the venue,” says Foucheaux. “Your mobile device is your ticket.”