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IDC: Relationships over tech when looking at IoT vendors
Fri, 14th Feb 2020
FYI, this story is more than a year old

Relationships and partnerships are proving to be of most importance to large enteprises across New Zealand when looking at Internet of Things (IoT) vendors.

New research from IDC says New Zealand's large enterprises are looking to build and maintain commercial relationships and partnerships with IoT vendors.

IDC's 2019/2020 Global IoT Decision Maker Survey: Australia and New Zealand Insights report found that companies say their top vendor selection criterion is not technology related; it is relationship related. Companies choose IoT vendors based on their existing trusted commercial relationships or partnerships.

"New Zealand organisations prefer to select vendors that they know," says Liam Landon, associate market analyst at IDC.

"Enterprises are also looking for vendors with cost effective solutions.

"This creates opportunities for vendors that are able to put themselves in front of customers and begin to develop a continuing relationship," he says.

"Vendors that have strong relationships with customers in adjacent fields may find benefit in offering IoT. Conversely, IoT vendors may gain from partnerships with adjacent vendors that already have strong customer relationships," Landon explains.

Additionally, just over 80% of New Zealand organisations that have or plan to deploy an IoT solution intend to seek third party vendors to assist them in building or implementing IoT solutions, the research found.

 "Vendors that can establish themselves as market leaders and put themselves in the eye of customers will generate business with new customers," says Landon.

"They will create the opportunity to cultivate mutually beneficial relationships," he says.

When implementing IoT, the survey reveals New Zealand organisations are driven to invest to improve business productivity, improve product quality, and reduce operational costs.

 "New Zealand organisations deploy IoT to improve their internal productivity and efficiencies," Landson says.

"Vendors should focus on showing how their solutions can help to achieve these goals and demonstrating how their products are differentiated from the competition."

In December, GlobalData reported the marketplace for Internet of Things-related services will reach a total of $96 billion in the Asia Pacific region by 2023. It said the APAC IoT market will be dominated by software and services. However, growth from connectivity and devices will accelerate with the launch of more cellular-based IoT networks supported by 5G.

In order to grow their revenue from the IoT marketplace operators in APAC are increasingly moving from beyond offering simple IoT connectivity to provide end-to-end IoT platforms, often with an industry specific focus, GlobalData said at the time.