FingerTec Newsletter - September -

Grupo Ejje Paints El Salvador Green with FingerTec® TA100

Grupo EJJE, established in 1995, is a $6mm company based in El Salvador that provides integrated technological solutions to customers in Central America. Grupo Ejje provides three types of solution, data capture and inventory services, retail and restaurant software and IT services.


	When and why were you decided to go into biometrics business?
	Grupo EJJE is the leader in providing data capturing solutions to businesses in the areas of barcode, magnetic stripe and check reading (MICR) technology. We had observed the development of biometrics in the industry and we figured that it could be an important area to complement our solutions’ portfolio.

	When did you start to market FingerTec®?
	The marketing of FingerTec® started after several months of testing and learning about the products. We had to make sure that Grupo EJJE has the capability to provide full service to our clients and to transform biometric technology to become efficient solutions that add value them (our clients) and therefore, this product could satisfy Salvadoran market needs.

	What made you choose FingerTec® amongst other brands in the market?
	FingerTec® is an integrated hardware and software product while some other products require purchase of license separately. Its multiple connectors and competitive pricing also are nice additions. We also appreciate its product design and marketing materials.

Grupo EJJE Technician, Mr Giovanni Campos

What were the marketing activities that Grupo Ejje have done for FingerTec® and which one yielded the best results in terms of enquiries and sales?

Grupo EJJE has done the following activities for this year, telemarketing, e-mail marketing, print advertisements in magazines specialized for small and medium companies. We also do print ads in newspaper targeting a special segment in Human Resources and lately we invest in outdoor advertising i.e. telephone booth. The marketing activities that gave the best results so far were magazine and newspapers.

How many resellers do you have in El Salvador right now and from which industries are they?

We have at the moment two committed resellers of FingerTec. One is selling solutions to the Garment Industry and the other one selling office equipments.

How do you conduct training to your resellers?

We conduct training through our full time technician who provides two types of training given in our facilities:
(1) Basic Training: Directed to all customers to focus on the basic use of TA102 series.
(2) Master Training: Directed to resellers them to provide support to their customers, for example, our technician accompanies our reseller’s first 3 installations.

How do you do reseller selection? Do you do interviews or background checks or you just recruit them as they come?

To select a reseller, we check the financial and technical background of the company and if the market that they cover could not be reached by us, we would closely guide them on the services they should provide.

Grupo Ejje focuses on time attendance system at this moment; do you foresee the change in trend soon?

FingerTec® TA100

We will remain in time attendance especially as we move more into selling to the apparel and shoe retailer market. We are evaluating other FingerTec product like the AC900 door access and time attendance system, because in El Salvador there is a segment of the market (bigger companies) that also requires door access solution.

Grupo Ejje has sold a considerable number of FingerTec® time attendance system; who are your prominent clients so far in El Salvador?

We are targeting small and medium size companies with Fingertec´s TA102 series especially from the following market niches: Bakeries, Supermarkets, Pharmacies, Labs and Private Security Agencies.

From your experience, what do you think is required from your market for door access and time attendance products?

In my opinion, AC900 is THE solution since it’s competitively priced. What we need to develop, as with the TA102 series, is an integrated approach that includes the installation of the whole door access system.

What do you like about FingerTec Worldwide?

FingerTec adapts Spanish language into their hardware as well as in the manuals. FingerTec Worldwide has shown us professionalism by respecting our exclusivity in El Salvador. They send us the contacts of the companies in El Salvador that are interested in selling FingerTec products, so we could proceed to do reseller selection.

What are the major obstacles for you in selling biometrics in the your market?

In certain Salvadorian industries, where the hands are exposed to grease, water and other fluids, it is difficult to capture their fingerprints. We are facing some limitations in the software part as well for example it does not determine categories of extra hours, it does not allow multi users to administrate or view data, it does not allow security access levels to administrate or view data, it does not have the facility to add an employee in more than one schedule.

Who are your biggest competitors El Salvador and what’s your strategy to beat them?

Our biggest competitor is ITR El Salvador, a division of a company located in all of the Central American countries. They have been in businesses for the past 25 years handling hardware solution called Hand Punch. However, their strength is in the software side as they customize software for each customer according to the local labor laws. There is no direct competition for fingerprint solutions however. Most of our competitors actually are from the barcode and magnetic stripe sector We strategize to reaching customers that need products in multiple locations because FingerTec® product is priced competitively and the fingerprint technology is seen as an advanced technology which benefits them in the long run.

What is your future plan for FingerTec?

We will strengthen our distribution network with the aim to sign up with a couple more resellers to tap into other specialty markets. On top, we will do more marketing activities including participations in relevant events as well as we look forward to diversify the product offering from FingerTec to offer our customers.