One of the biggest issues facing the wine and spirits industry is transparency. Customers are looking for as much information as possible about what they are drinking, and beverage companies have not always been able to provide that information.
With the rise in popularity of RFID tags, though, more transparency is becoming a more realistic option. Here’s how the newest developments in RFID technology are helping accelerate bottle digitalization in the wine and spirits industry, and how the data can be used to make a difference for organizations.
Smaller and smarter
RFID tags are not brand new to the wine and spirits industry—they have been used for years to help with tasks such as inventory management. As with any other technology, each iteration of RFID has resulted in more accurate tags, as well as more convenience. They can be smaller and less noticeable while providing more information to users than in previous years.
One major development is in an area where there has always been a problem for the wine and spirits industry. RFID tags have not always worked best when liquid is involved, so there have needed to be accommodations such as tagging bottles near the top, away from the liquid line. Now, though, organizations have the ability to use RFID labels that are not affected by the liquid in the bottles.
Benefits of RFID
Organizations can use RFID for a number of reasons. Inventory management was one of the original benefits. Instead of a painstaking process of counting or searching for bottles, RFID tags allow for the information to be available with the touch of a button. The technology is used in warehouses and for shipping purposes, and it can also be used in restaurants if a server is looking for a particular bottle of wine.
The increased transparency from labels is something the industry needs. Companies rely on that information to keep track of bottles at every step of their process, knowing exactly where a bottle is when it is in transit, and often providing information about the surrounding environment. Some companies track the cases in which wine bottles are shipped for information such as temperatures and other conditions that could affect the quality of the product. The labels allow for some of that same information in relation to individual bottles.
The information makes a different for consumers, too. They want to know where their wine is coming from, and about ethical practices in winemaking. By collecting that sort of information through RFID and providing it to customers by a QR code on the bottle, it holds companies accountable and allows buyers to make informed decisions about their purchase.
Making sense of the data
Having as much data as possible is essential to decision-making, whether that is customers choosing what to buy or organizations figuring out how to conduct their business. RFID tags allow for lots of information to be gathered quickly, whether that’s a high-speed environment during transit or as bottles are sitting waiting for their next destination. All of that data is just one step of the process, though. Organizations need a business intelligence solution that can help them make sense of the data.
The right analytics solution can turn that data into actionable information that can improve sales and reduce costs. Whether it’s getting a sense of how long items are sitting in one place, how certain brands are selling, or figuring out whether a transportation route is the most efficient, all of the data can be turned into reports that help answer the questions organizations have about the best ways to run their business. The information can be turned around on any device as quickly as the tags collect them, allowing for real-time decision-making that can mean the difference between staying ahead of a competitor or falling behind.
Information is coming fast and furious in today’s industries. You need an analytics solution that can act just as quickly to use that information to your advantage. While RFIDs can help collect data points that an organization needs, an analytics solution can help show an organization why that data matters and how it can impact its business.
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