Connecting Our Heartbeat To Our Phones
So what is this system or creepy stalker data collector that can record my heart rate from a simple Fitbit watch to my phone? How do they send the data over without me pressing anything?
This is called the Internet of Things (IoT) system. To put it simply, it is a system connecting devices all around by using the internet to exchange, share and collect data.
Anything in the market can become an IoT device, for example, the LED lights at home that can be controlled using an application on your iPhone, our local MRT that does not require drivers and smart wearable like the Apple watch.
Now that you know the basics and the rough idea of the IoT, let's look at how this helps marketers in their work.
It is calculated by Analyst Gartner that in 2020, IoT devices will likely reach 20.4 billion. Of course, marketers will have to step up with the trends and make full use of it to their advantage. With the huge amount of data that marketers can collect, they can:
- Build communities and allow conversations to flow between people and businesses
- Run more accurate predictive analysis
- Improve engagement and reach by personalising campaigns reach to target audiences on various platforms
- Tap on rise in e-commerce and online habits
People can easily share posts, information, news and updates to one another with this system. When marketers are able to group like-minded people together using such devices, it creates bigger opportunities for companies to make them into potential customers.
The vast amount of data available that marketers can collect can help them to run predictive analysis for understanding consumer behaviours even better by using past and current data, buying patterns, preferences, attitudes and other sort of relevant data to make marketing relevant to the target audiences.
After doing the analysis, personalise campaigns to consumers by e.g. sending out emails with customer's name and product recommendations based on user browsing history or saved items. This will give consumers a more personal touch, making them more interested in what they are seeing and at the same time, feeling more valued by the company.
With this advancement, customers can now shop online, search for store locations, make queries, track order statuses and check on in-store stock availability. Marketers can tap on this to reach them on the right channels since most people's lives are revolving around these habits and activities.
I think this IoT system is AMAZING! Being able to keep track of information that I could never access in the past automatically like my daily step count is wonderful. Aside from this, it makes my shopping experience online so much easier and painful at the same time because websites know what to recommend me that I will like, which is so accurate as they use what I have browsed in the past to predict my preferences and this causes a hole in my wallet because I will be highly tempted to add those items into my shopping cart. It has brought a lot of convenience in transport and commuting as well, allowing me to check bus timings without wasting my time blindly waiting and having taxi applications to help me book a cab easily with the geo-tag functions. How about yourself? What are some benefits you have reaped from this IoT system?
References:
- Deshpande , I. (2018, October 30). What Is IoT And Why Should Marketers Care About It? Retrieved from https://www.martechadvisor.com/articles/iot/what-is-iot-for-marketers/
- Ranger, S. (2018, August 21). What is the IoT? Everything you need to know about the Internet of Things right now. Retrieved from https://www.zdnet.com/article/what-is-the-internet-of-things-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-iot-right-now/
- Sisodia, S. (2018, August 7). 7 Real Life Examples Of IoT Applications. Retrieved from https://blogs.systweak.com/5-real-life-examples-of-iot-applications/
I totally agree and relate to your post!! Personally, IoT has effectively helped me so much In my everyday life. Just like the bus timing app, it has helped me to manage and plan my time so much better! I am able to check the arrival of my bus time in advance, to ensure that I will not missMy bus and to also ensure that I will not have to waste too much of my time waiting for my bus under the scorching hot sun. IoT has definitely ease my everyday life, where I feel so comfortable just by bringing my phone out with me. With my smartphone, I am able to make payments, browse and shop online, Use it for navigations, and even go for exercises and runs. Basically, with IoT, I am able to complete so many things On my smartphone! Don’t you think IoT will only keep getting better?
ReplyDeleteHi Rachel,
DeleteThank you for your comment.
Right! I think so too, it has helped a lot in our daily lives in improving convenience and efficiency. It's so difficult to live without such technology systems because I feel lost without such information. I can't imagine living in the past where we do not know how long we would have to wait for a bus and was just blindly waiting at the bus stop! Haha. Everything I want and need is in my handy device, I can just buy whatever I need online, how great!
It will definitely be elevated into greater heights in the coming years, making the world revolutionary. :) Hope you are looking forward to that as much as I am.
Hi Sarah,
ReplyDeleteAs great as the IoT sounds and the benefits are clearly visible, but don't you think that our privacy and browsing history could potentially be breached with us knowing it? Imagine all the companies whose technology you are using can map out your entire personality just by piecing together all the bits of information that you release through the usage of these devices. Anyone who pays enough can access your data or there could probably be unethical employees who has access to your data and might use it for malicious intent, it's scary just thinking about it.. What are your thoughts?
Anthony
Hey Anthony!
DeleteYes, I agree. Companies have to find ways to protect their consumers even on an internal level to make sure employees are ethical and cannot steal information, just like PDPA to protect consumer information or limited access based on roles played in the business operations.
With the recent uproar in mobile devices, it’s not surprising that these functions exist. It’s scary to think how connected we are with our devices but it’s nice to know that we can depend on it as they store almost anything and everything we need.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Sarah!
Hi Anon, thank you for reading. Indeed, it's scary, but also kinda useful isn't it? Haha
DeleteHey sarah, first of all, GREAT POST and I totally agree with what you've said above. It is true that IOT is a burning topic these days. It helps us to save time too. It is helpful to people in their daily lives because we are able to focus other important things. For example, we can now order food online without going to the physical stall itself. Not only that, we will be able to see the ETA for the food arrival. It makes the food ordering process so much easier as we do not have to do it traditionally. On the other hand, when we purchase food online, we get to browse the menu as and when we want and also get familiar with the deals the restaurants are offering. In conclusion, I feel that IOT is very efficient and I'm glad that it is immensely growing in the society that we are currently living in.
ReplyDeleteHi there, thank you for your kind words. Great to know that it has been useful to you so far, I can totally relate to what you mentioned about how food delivery services keep a record on your previous orders for convenience's sake.
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