Marketing consultancy O.agency's Original Thinking podcast explores a whole host of topics facing modern leaders today, from finding originality in a world of AI to how to manage the pace of change in your business.
In June’s episode of the podcast, O.agency Managing Director Kirsty Ostell talks to Peter Oram, Chief Executive at PervasID.
PervasID is a world leading RFID technology business, supporting retail brands all over the world. They are the tech behind the tags you see on every item of clothing in a store. Their tech ensures tags can be detected by in-store sensors, and that data helps retailers manage stock, support the supply chain and create a smoother customer experience. Very clever stuff!
Read some of the conversation Kirsty and Pete had around brand, business growth, creative thinking and why clear messaging matters in a crowded global market.
When you joined the business, what did you think the brand needed?
The company needed to do more than just fit in with global competitors. In a market crowded with corporate blue and white sameness, PervasID had to stand out. Moving to a black-and-red visual identity, while retaining elements of the company’s heritage was part of a broader strategy to define the sector rather than be defined by it.
Was that rebrand mainly about the visual identity?
The brand was visually important, but the real work was in clarifying the message. In a space where RFID can feel like black magic, the business needed language that explained not just what the technology is, but what it delivers. As the messaging sharpened, clients stopped asking what PervasID does and started asking how it works and what more it could offer them.
You have been on a big funding journey. How important has that clarity been in conversations with investors and the board?
It’s been essential, we needed to stand out from the crowd, be different and lead in the industry. If a business is willing to invest in sales, it should recognise brand-building as just as critical to growth. Since we’ve changed our brand, we’ve quadrupled our website hits and inbound enquiries began increasing straight away.
What happens next once that brand platform is in place?
We are now bringing more sales resource in-house, particularly in the US and Europe. Without a clear brand and message already in the market, that wouldn’t be possible, because they would lack the sales enablement tools they need. You want that message to be clean and clear from the start, so you know how you’re being perceived in every country.
Where do your best ideas tend to come from?
Training for endurance events such as triathlons gives me time to really focus in on something, because you’re out there running for a long time! I also look outside my own sector for inspiration, to see what they are doing differently that we can bring into our industry.
Have you ever taken creative risks with businesses?
When I started my own business, Evolution MRO, there were multiple businesses called ‘evolution’ at the time. But we stuck to our guns because we knew the company was on an evolution journey and, in the end, we stood out from the crowd because the tagline was different.
Have you ever had an idea that you’ve really had to fight for and how do you get people behind it?
You’ll always get pushback on new ideas initially. As long as the message is clear, then people will start to come on board. Can you explain the impact in a sentence on the back of a post-it note? For example, we use RFID in the healthcare space, where the impact of losing medical equipment is very different to the impact of a consumer not being able to buy the top that they thought was in the store. Put simply, our technology is saving lives.
What is your view on AI and originality?
AI is a good thing as long as it’s managed correctly, so I am a pro AI guy! We use a lot of AI now and it really assists in what we do, it speeds the process up of a lot of things. However, I think the problem we have is when you ask a question, it is always looking at the past and it’s not necessarily looking at the future. So, getting original thought coming out of AI doesn’t necessarily happen. Original ideas generally still come from that a human element.
To hear to the whole conversation head to O.agency’s Original Thinking podcast on Spotify or via www.o.agency/news