I have been following the Brazilian radio frequency identification market daily for eight years, and in that time I have accumulated a great deal of learnings. By listening closely to many players with whom I have a close relationship, I’ve been able to analyze all of the different views and come to my own combined conclusions. Below, I will highlight the incredible flexibility that vendors have when negotiating their solutions with companies that are or will become users of this technology.
What do I mean by “flexibility”? Well, it is a feature of the technology market overall, and it works best with RFID because of the benefits inherent in this particular type of technology. That is, if the economy goes bad, RFID sales will be realized since companies will need to save money by cutting costs and increasing efficient automation. If the economy is doing well, on the other hand, the competitive edge will be the driver of many deployments to enhance the power of business planning and action with broad potential for achieving success ahead of competitors.
It may seem that sales come effortlessly, or that it may be easy for an RFID provider to become successful. Reality, however, shows that even the most mature entrepreneurs and suppliers in the RFID market have yet to learn some basic marketing primer learning.
The RFID market, like all markets, has its problems. One is the failure of some suppliers to deliver what they promise. There are some cases in Brazil of contracting companies that have had bad experiences with RFID not because of the technology itself, but because of poor project management by contracted suppliers. The result is that RFID’s reputation ends up tarnished, as though the technology were ineffective.
To separate the chaff from the wheat, it is worthwhile for RFID contractors to have tools to assess the quality of their potential suppliers before they even sign the first check. These tools for locating good suppliers become success stories published by the media, including RFID Journal, thereby providing companies with market best practices and well-crafted technology solutions, and enabling marketing campaigns that involve these success stories or the tools developed by these suppliers.
Another way to select a quality supplier is to analyze the awards earned by the company in question. The main awards in the RFID market are the RFID Journal Awards, held annually by RFID Journal in the United States, as well as the IoT RFID Award, from the Brazilian RFID Industry Association (ABRFID) and the GS1 Brazil Automation Award. All of these awards have created and followed technical criteria, ensuring reliability and respect.
Of course, for contracting companies to know which suppliers have been awarded, which have good success stories in their industry and which offer cutting-edge technologies, strong communication and focused marketing work are a must. It is not enough to have many achievements—it is also necessary to make them public. After all, as Brazilian comedian, radio and TV personality José Abelardo “Chacrinha” Barbosa famously noted, “Whoever does not communicate will be in trouble.” Translating this into the language of the business world: those who cannot tell others of their best qualities will lose the chance to succeed in business.
Edson Perin is the editor of RFID Journal Brazil and the founder of Netpress Publisher.