Nivea Sun Kids promises to protect children?s skin at the beach and now, building off the idea of protection, the brand is giving parents a way to help prevent kids from running off by themselves via a protector strip with a built-in locator and mobile application so parents can track their children.

The protector strip print ad appeared in a recent issue of Brazil magazine Veja. Parents remove the strip, which is embedded with Bluetooth 4.0 technology, from the ad, put it on a child?s wrist and then download the Nivea Protégé app to identify the bracelet and set the maximum distance the child can go. If the limit is exceeded, the app notifies parents and the radar indicates if they are approaching or moving away from the signal.

?One of Nivea?s main characteristics is the constant search for innovation, modernity and new technologies that provide comfort and safety to our customers,? said Tatiana Ponce, marketing director of Nivea Brazil. ?Therefore, we want to offer not only products guided by this kind of premise, but also amazing experiences that makes our customers? lives better and easier.

?Nivea?s goal is to offer benefits that go beyond skin care,? she said. ?This ad is an example of an innovative idea directly linked to our positioning that will help parents and children enjoy the sun comfortably and safely.

?We went beyond our products and created this ad, so parents could feel even more secure to enjoy some quality time with their kids.?

Piece of mind
Parents can monitor the bracelet to a distance of approximately 30 meters.

The bracelet is made from humidity-resistant paper and can be reused.

Parents can activate multiple bracelets via the app.

Beauty brands, in general, have been flocking to mobile and social as a way to deepen their engagements with customers.

For example, a growing number of beauty marketers are turning to Instagram to drive product awareness (see story).

Beauty brands such as Olay and Herbal Essences are also tapping mobile ads to drive brand engagement (see story).

A watchful eye
These marketers also continue to look for ways to bridge their print advertising with mobile experiences. While many brands have leveraged QR codes and image recognition technology to give consumers a way to engage with their print ads, Nivea?s approach is unique in that it leverages location technology to and take a very utilitarian approach.

However, tracking children with a mobile app presents its own set of challenges, namely that a child could take off the bracelet.

"This reminds me of the phone and apps that claim to track children,? said Jeff Hasen, chief marketing officer at Mobivity, Phoenix. ?What's to stop a kid from taking the bracelet off, then leaving it somewhere only to go off elsewhere.

"In this case, it's the location of the bracelet, not the kid, that is tracked,? he said.

?A better way is to teach a kid where to go and not or to keep a watchful eye independent of any mobile app or device."

Final Take
Chantal Tode is associate editor on Mobile Marketer, New York