How can RFID and Analytics Make You Smarter?
RFID as a technology is robust, although most talk about RFID is directed toward the technology’s horizontal market growth, such as the number of industries currently benefiting from it. The vertical market within each industry is also extremely impressive. Inside each industry, RFID technology is not just used for tracking items, but for a multitude of different applications that are emerging daily.
The textile and retail services industries benefit mainly from using RFID technology for inventory purposes and finding lost or stolen items. Within a subset of those industries, many companies primarily focus on renting garments, textiles, and linens. These companies can use RFID to learn more about both their items and customers. Mentioned in Benefits of Managing Your Textile Rental Stock with RFID, RFID technology can keep accurate, historical records of each rental item. Records for each rental item can help in three major ways:
Keep track of item wear & tear
Measure item popularity
Understand who is renting this item
Recording item wear and tear allows a company to keep accurate documentation of any rips or tears in the textile and provides insight into an item’s typical lifecycle. Basically, the record is essential to keeping track of when the company needs to order a replacement.
Item popularity is important for a company to understand because it could potentially increase business. If a current item is rented every week or month, then there could be an opportunity for the company to benefit from adding a second, duplicate item. This way, both items can be rented at a time, meeting customer demand and increasing sales. Using the captured RFID data, a resource management system can identify popular items in demand.
Item historical records can additionally be used to learn about customers. When a business starts to market to consumers, the collected RFID information can be a vital tool. If each purchase is recorded in a database, data mining can reveal customer preferences. Knowing that a particular customer frequently rents a kelly green table cloth offers the company insight into the customer’s purchasing decisions. The company can then suggest additional or alternative products. For example, the next email to that customer could recommend matching napkins or table runners that the customer could pair with the kelly green table cloth.
Historical data records collected using RFID hardware and software can be a key impetus to business growth. While an RFID system is managing inventory, lessening out of stocks, and tracking lost items, it can also help that company grow through personalized marketing.
If you have any additional questions about garment/linen tracking using RFID, leave a comment below or contact us for more information.