IDIS looks set to continue to make its mark on the security industry after a strong start to the year with participation and top events, such as Intersec and ICE Totally Gaming. Jamie Barnfield, Senior Sales Manager, IDIS EMEA, has given SecurityNewsDesk an exclusive look at the company’s plans for the rest of 2014.
You’ve been with IDIS for nearly a year, what are your main goals for IDIS, particularly for the UK? And how has your focus changed in 2014?
To begin with it was all about launching DirectIP™ and creating momentum in the market. By the time we launched at IFSEC last year, we’d definitely created a buzz, as a result, we stimulated the interest every sales manager is looking to achieve. As a previously unknown brand, we really made people sit up and ask ‘who are these guys?’
We developed some strategic partnerships including iCenter HD as well as strong relationships with leading installers and integrators. There are a series of other partnership announcements in the coming weeks, which we’re all pretty excited about.
The year ahead
Educating the market to the fact we have something very real and different in HD and networked surveillance with DirectIP, is still the major priority for 2014. IDIS is not a new company, we are the number one DVR manufacturer, with a rich history of developing patented and pretty cool technology since 1997.
DirectIP is a one-stop-shop in the sense that we develop and manufacture every element of the solution from the software to the network switches. That differentiates IDIS, because if you dig a little, you find that a lot of security vendors, especially in surveillance, are outsourcing at least some element of their offering. So when you buy a DirectIP surveillance solution from IDIS, you know the whole system is ours and wholly support by us and I think that’s important for both installers and end users. We want to make sure we communicate our domain expertise, research and development and manufacturing capability this year.
We’re increasing our training and demonstration capability because with surveillance, seeing really is believing. Every person experiencing DirectIP, is impressed by the performance, simplicity and subsequently its affordability. So you’ll see us strengthening our sales and marketing capability in 2014 to build on the foundations we put in place last year to continue the momentum.
What can we expect to see this year from IDIS UK?
There will also be more of a focus on solutions for specific vertical markets, especially where we’re seeing DirectIP really delivering tangible benefits such as in retail, gaming and leisure, among others. We have already exhibited at ICE Totally Gaming to showcase DirectIP to the gaming industry last month.
As already mentioned, we have some new strategic partnerships that will be announced in the next couple of months. Plus, we’ll also be unveiling some new products at IFSEC in June including extended integration capabilities that will appeal to the enterprise market. I’m really excited about the show, especially now it’s back in London, so you’ll have to wait and see!
Do you foresee any challenges to your plans for the company, or the industry as a whole, and how would you overcome them?
Not enough hours in the day! But more seriously, for me and my team, there is resistance to overcome after the early promises HD and IP failed to deliver along with a certain level of continued hype from some vendors. The frequently used term “real-time HD,” is one of them. By real-time we mean 30ips across multiple cameras; recording, playback and live monitoring, simultaneously, with little to no network latency. Few companies can offer that level of performance and the same goes for plug-and-play. Yet a lot of companies make these claims when the reality is often smoke and mirrors.
That’s why we’re investing in our field and technical sales to show a bigger audience that DirectIP does exactly what it says on the tin. And of course that’s one of the challenges, getting our sales folk out in the field fast to meet the demand, but it’s also a very nice problem to have! It’s also a case of continuing what we’re already doing and getting our message out there this year supported by customer references.
We’re also supporting our partners to value sell with tools and case study examples of where DirectIP is delivering tangible value for money. For example, we can now demonstrate significant energy savings over the lifecycle of the system due to the low power consumption of DirectIP cameras and that’s pretty powerful for any end user. Combine this with no license fees and we have a very powerful proposition for even the most price-sensitive of customers.
What’s your long-term vision for IDIS UK?
To be the leading provider of HD and networked surveillance. We have the right solution suite, the right people and the right capabilities to be a major brand and we’re already some way toward achieving that.
While not many people had heard of IDIS until last year, we turnover $271 million with 300 employees worldwide and accolades from Forbes, plus a highly accredited back office and manufacturing capability, so we’ve been a major player in surveillance for the last 16 years. We’ve also seen consecutive year-on-year growth even during the tough economic climate, so that puts us in a very strong position, especially as we’re starting to see recovery across a number of our key markets, including the UK. It’s exciting and busy times!
