Customers Often Buy for Reasons Not Directly Related to Supplier Messaging

The practical reasons information technology or communications technology get deployed often are different from the reasons suppliers suggest. Edge computing, for example, is “supposed” to be about support for ultra-low latency applications. 

But a survey of 800 enterprise IT decision makers by IDC suggests the practical reasons have more to do with bandwidth costs or security than latency. 

Nearly 30 percent reported that the “cost of bandwidth” was a reason for using edge computing. Some 27 percent said security was the reason for edge computing deployment. About 19 percent cited latency as a primary motivation for edge computing. 

source: IDC, Lumen Technologies 

On the other hand, latency below 5 milliseconds also was cited as a primary requirement for edge applications. 

There arguably are more prosaic rationales, on the supplier side of the business. Consider 5G, for example. “Periodically the telecom industry needs a buzz-worthy topic to engage potential customers,” says Matt Bramson, founder of consultancy Advantary. “It starts conversations” that allow firms to sell something to a customer, even if it is not 5G. 

Basically, 5G drives interactions with customers and prospects that can result in sales, Bramson notes. Granted, that is not why global standards bodies, service providers and infrastructure suppliers support 5G.

But the actual value can be distinct from the formal justifications. IoT, 5G and edge computing give service providers and infrastructure suppliers a reason to talk to their potential customers and prospects. 

The same sort of process often happens with gigabit internet access. Even when the marketing message is “gigabit,” prospects often wind up buying some level of service other than gigabit internet access. The point is that the marketing message creates a selling opportunity, even when the specific messaging and specific products are not, in the end, what the customer buys.