Authored article by Shradha Agarwal, COO, Grapes Digital
First, there was the internet. And then, there was the Internet of Things
Now, the IoT is not something new to most people. In fact, 50% of the Indian youth aged 18-25 think that IoT equals smart homes or smart phones. Some go on till the extent of including smart watches and bands in it. Yes, IoT is about connected devices. Yes again, IoT is about your geyser kick-starting right when your alarm goes off and your coffee being ready once you come out after a nice hot shower. Or something that helps you combat FOLO(Fear of Leaving the Lights On) every time you step out of the house. IoT successfully takes care of cross-checking lights, appliances and the gas and ensuring that they are turned off, a fear that an overwhelming 65% of Indians have.
But is that all the IoT can do? Think again.
IoT is not only making our lives easier by bettering our efficiency in chores, it is also pre-empting needs and fulfilling them. A case-in-point are Smart Fridges that self-order groceries when you run out of them and also pays for them with your signed-in payment account. Essentially ensuring that you never run out of supplies even if you never bother to order them yourself. Sounds too good to be true? You might want to Google LG Smart Insta View and Samsung Family Hub 2.0 right away.
But that’s not all. Brands are using IoT to do experiential marketing like never before. Amazon’s unique Dash button allowed you to have small buttons for multiple household products like washing powder, toothpaste and so on. Every time you ran out of them, all you needed to do was press the button, and the item would be reordered for you. With nearly 75% of Indians wanting to purchase tech that can get them groceries, a bigger IoT takeover is imminent. I sure hope Amazon Pantry is reading this.
New product launches have used the power of IoT to add innovation to their events. To add a layer of ‘crowd-sourced fun’, the Ignis Launch event by Nexa had an interesting IoT integration. Every 1000 tweets by the crowd activated confetti machines and streamers placed around the stage, letting people be a part of the social noise, while simultaneously creating a huge chatter on social. Talk about killing two birds with one stone! You can check it out
So that’s about your personal life and experiential marketing. Let’s revisit that question. Is that all IoT can do?
Nope. Think again.
IoT is around you even when you step out of your smart home. With ‘Connected Vehicle’ dashboards, brands from a Maruti to Eicher Volvo are all using the technology to learn about stats such as traffic, engine health, vehicle tracking, fuel efficiency among other things. Google and Tesla cars have already been the talk of the town for a while now. IoT has come as a boon to the B2B sector, allowing them to remotely monitor hundreds of vehicles from a single point and make split-second decisions based on the received information.
IoT, along with AI and Machine Learning are changing our lives as we speak. From how your Google searches work, to the ads that you get served, these technologies are also impacting diverse categories like Medical and Agriculture. Combined with Big Data and predictive analysis, they are helping create a better and more informed tomorrow for us.
According to a Nasscom report, the IoT market in India is poised to hit $15 Billion by 2020. With so much data available, brands can have real-time interaction with consumers through IoT devices whenever they feel like. From Alexa to Echo, these technologies are increasingly becoming a part of our lives. It is also empowering the digital marketer, who can now, based on the analysis of customer buying cycles, create hundreds of personalized marketing campaigns. One can expect wider implementations in the B2C sector, with brands using IoT to be better understand and serve their customers with almost real-time solutions.
The new currents of IoT have already hit Indian shores and brand marketers are already cashing in on it. Are you ready to ride the wave?
(This is an authored article and views expressed do not in any way represent the views of tvnews4u.com)
