RFID System Helps Retailers Send Tailored Messages to Customers

"A store can have 20,000 or more products," says Nalwade. "The design challenge is, how do you narrow that to maybe 20 promotions or products that would be of interest to a specific consumer?" With the Consumer Vision software, he says, a customer's buying history and demographic data can be compared against thousands of items in the store. The system extracts items deemed most likely to interest that specific customer, then sends information about those items to the customer in a variety of ways. In the case of the Mumbai retailer pilot, messages will be sent to the customer's cell phone. In addition, Nalwade says, video screens in some store locations will display appropriate ads and promotions to passing customers. "The system is agnostic—it can connect to a wide range of devices," Nalwade says.

Thus far, Consumer Vision has tested RFID tags from multiple companies. Its decision to use specific firms will be based on their flexibility. "We're looking at the kind of form factors they could supply us. Our experience has been that for the retail format, there's no one size fits all. Some customers want a PVC card, while others don't want to carry that," he says. The latter might be interested in key fobs or circular inlays they can insert in a cell-phone battery compartment.

Retailers would pay for the RFID tags, readers and software, Nalwade says. He adds that the hardware "is very competitively priced, given that most of the design has been done in-house and manufacturing is locally outsourced." He estimates that "the system can potentially pay for itself in 18 to 24 months."

According to Nalwade, the company has developed partnerships with retail and marketing consultants in several countries, including Dubai, Singapore, the United States and Canada. Although the system's launch is taking place in India, Nalwade claims the company has set its sights on a global market and is seeking partnerships in international locations.

"It makes sense to develop and roll out [the system] close to home first," Nalwade states. He points out that business processes in India are the same as those found in more-developed countries, and that he believes the system could be adopted internationally.

Other companies, including NCR (see NCR Promotes RFID Cards to Give Customers the VIP Treatment), are presently offering similar systems in North America. A major difference with the Consumer Vision system, Nalwade notes, is its ability to communicate with a variety of devices, such as cell phones and store displays. Eventually, Consumer Vision expects to market its system to companies in other business sectors besides retail. "Our product supports applications for retail, banks, airlines, hotels and restaurants," he says.