"All too often companies that think they should be targeting Millennials but have no real idea as to why or how. Challenging these perceptions can deliver greater insights and opportunities"
Euan Stubbs, Digital Director
The Evolution of the IoT
The digital industry has come a long way from dialling up a ‘Smartmodem’ in the nineties at 56kbps; and mobile phones consuming our attention with built-in cameras and microphones in the noughties. Now, almost every device is becoming smart and interactive; from connected cars to connected homes, heating and even connected healthcare. We live surrounded by the Internet of Things.
The shift has gone from consumers wanting entirely digital to a need for an interactive world involving more physical and sensory experiences. Research from Salesforce tells us that 75% of people now expect a consistent experience when they engage with brands. Hence the reason for the boom in smart and connected devices swamping our homes - such as the Amazon Echo, Google Home, and the latest Apple HomePod offering a high-end speaker combined with Siri.
Personalised Experiences
The research also said that customers expect companies to automatically personalise in-store and online experiences, with 61% willing to share personal data to have this. Companies need to proactively address their customers current and future needs – which is what smart devices in this ‘Connected Age’ are doing.
We can be told everything - what time we need to leave for work in order to beat the traffic, or the state of our dental health, measured by a toothbrush that tracks our brushing habits. Over 4 billion consumer devices come with AI-powered digital assistants, and that number is expected to hit 7 billion by 2020.
Byton, a new car designed by the brains behind BMW and Apple, have just unveiled what the future of SmartCars might be like. Merging personal life outside the car with experiences while driving. With the clever tagline ‘It’s not a car, it’s a smart device’.
What can marketers learn from the smart device invasion?
Consumers are slowly starting to rebel against digital as we know it - which is proved as Nokia unveil a rebooted version of the classic Nokia 8110 - the want for digital and physical worlds to be combined is now evident.
As marketers, it is important that we see digital and physical as one and the same. Designing physical experiences that connect consumers with the world around us, facilitated by digital devices, is the future of our day-to-day lives.
Using data to help
Building experiences that deliver against rising customer expectations sounds daunting but with more data than ever available it’s not something to worry about. Data first is a principal that Whitenoise Media truly believe in. Understanding consumers habits and interactions shapes the digital strategy that we deliver.
All too often companies that think they should be targeting “Millennials” but have no real idea as to why or how. Challenging these perceptions can deliver greater insights and opportunity into just who your customers really are and they behave.
The rise in social marketeers over the past three years has caused a one sided approach to strategy. Understanding behaviour through data allows you to create compelling, engaging content on any channel whether its mobile, Facebook, Google, Youtube, Snapchat or Instore.
For more information on how WhiteNoise Media can help, visit our website www.whitenoise.media or email euan@whitenoise.media.
