What is the Internet of Things (IoT)?

From smart homes with smart fridges, smart heating and smart burglar alarms, to wearable technology tracking your health, fitness and sleep, to smartphones talking to your desktop your smartwatch and your home entertainment system – the Internet of Things (IoT) is already amongst us in a big way, and only set to spread its techy tendrils through even wider aspects of all our lives as we head into the very futuristic future.

What is the Internet of Things?

IoT refers to the interconnection of unique and independent objects and devices over the internet.
That being said, when we hear talk of the Internet of Things, what’s being referred to is more than, say, the machine-to-machine (M2M) relationship between your remote control and your hi-fi system. Rather, it’s the more sophisticated end of the spectrum – i.e. the advanced level of interconnectivity between devices, systems and services that’s being described.
It’s your smart fridge alerting your smart car that you’re out of milk as you drive past the shops, and your smart car’s dashboard notifying you to pull-in to the next store to pick up the essentials.
It’s your smart weathervane acknowledging a drop in temperature, and thusly turning up the heating inside your house.
It’s when you step outside and lock your front door behind you, your smart home automatically turning off all the lights and appliances, setting your burglar alarm, and sending a signal to your car telling it to fire up its engine – it’s about to be taken for a spin.

The IoT Is All About Automation

IoT is a broad term, but what it essentially refers to is the smart communications that smart objects and devices use between each other to enable the automation of functions – completely bypassing any deliberate human input – and covers everything from smart kettles to heart monitoring implants.
The Internet of Things is a big thing indeed, and is only set to become an even bigger thing as more and more “Things” are connected.

(Image source: forbes.com)
(Image source: forbes.com)

Gartner forecasts that there will be 26 billion connected “Things” by 2020. ABI Research reckons that the figure will be even higher – 30 billion. And there’s more dispute. Cisco says that there will be 50 billion objects connected. Intel says 200 billion. And IDC says it will be more like 212 billion!
Whichever of these research giants have made the more accurate guestimate doesn’t really matter – the IoT will have a staggering presence in just a few short years.

Beyond Consumer Products

Unsurprisingly, the IoT goes far beyond the interconnectivity of smart devices designed to enable greater consumer laziness convenience.
No, apart from objects and devices, the Internet of Things is also about sensors and the gathering of data. It’s “Things” like iBeacons being attached to every shop wall and street corner, monitoring consumer behaviour. Other innovations such as smart cement that monitors cracks, stresses and warpages in the very buildings, bridges and roads underneath, up above and all around us – these “Things” are the IoT. As an article in Wired puts it:
“If there’s ice on the bridge, the same sensors in the concrete will detect it and communicate the information via the wireless internet to your car. Once your car knows there’s a hazard ahead, it will instruct the driver to slow down, and if the driver doesn’t, then the car will slow down for him. This is just one of the ways that sensor-to-machine and machine-to-machine communication can take place. Sensors on the bridge connect to machines in the car: we turn information into action.”
In the medical field, the IoT is already being used for remote patient monitoring. In aerospace, Rolls Royce aircraft engines in flight today contain sensors that send real-time data on the engine’s functioning back to command centres on the ground. Microsoft uses software to detect which features on its products are being used the most, so it can thusly strip back support on those that are being used the least.

Final Word

In short, the Internet of Things is set to be a global disruptor of practically every organisation in every industry. Try and imagine having to go back to using phones that are just, well, phones… It almost doesn’t bear thinking about.
The same will soon enough be true of roads, cars, homes, medicine, shopping, marketing, government and everything else.
What is the Internet of Things? Well, it’s everything. And, in a minute, it will be everything else as well – and all businesses need to consider the forthcoming impact the IoT will have on their industry and prepare.

Subscribe to our newsletter

The Many Benefits Of Using Marketing Automation

The Many Benefits Of Using Marketing Automation

Despite the hype, the adoption of Marketing Automation remains limited in today’s business landscape. However, once mastered, automation can lead to a wealth of benefits each one of which contributing to create the optimal marketing strategy.

According to data from MarketsandMarkets, Automation software sales amounted to an estimated $3.65 billion in 2014. In 2019, sales are anticipated to reach $5.50 billion as the technology matures and businesses begin to realize the full potential of marketing automation.

So what are the key benefits?

With the use of an automated marketing tool it's possible to create, test, manage and deploy multiple campaigns simultaneously. Campaigns assets such as blog posts, tweets, LinkedIn or Facebook status updated can be prepared ahead of time and then scheduled for posting. Automation can also be effective in terms of making repetitive tasks redundant and improving the efficiency of the team. It eliminates manual processes using automated systems so employees no longer have to deal with the more mundane marketing tasks which are  handled by the tool.

 

More than just time, financial savings can also be enjoyed by having an automation tool for your marketing strategy. Automation minimizes the time needed for the creation and distribution of messages, which means your team can focus their time and budget on creating new, exciting and engaging content.

 

Another significant benefit of Marketing Automaton is that its foundation is built around the principles of  ‘relationship marketing’. Using simple nurture techniques marketing automation engages buyers across different channels, including both online and offline platforms, with relevant, timely, dynamic and personalized content.

 

As long as you choose the right platform for automation, it is going to offer simplicity. Even if users are not tech savvy the experience will be effortless whilst you deliver great business benefits.

 

In one piece of research from the Harvard Business Review, it was revealed that “businesses that tried to contact potential customers within an hour of receiving a query were nearly seven times as likely to qualify the lead”.

 

It provides Monitoring and can help identify and Determine Improvements
With Marketing Automation, you can also easily determine the progress of each campaign. Whether it’s social media, content marketing or email, automation software will help you to keep track of progress. It can provide custom reports to ensure users and senior management are making informed decisions about sales pipeline management and are prioritizing opportunities. In turn, you can use this intelligence to determine the improvements that are needed providing you with better business outcomes...

Subscribe to our newsletter

How to Make an Efficient Landing Page?

Creating lead generation from your pages can be a tough thing to do, especially when you’re a beginner. Not only do you have to know all the ins and outs of your website, but also how to effectively promote the products that you sell.

Research shows that companies reach 55% higher conversion rates when they increase the number of landing pages across their site. This increase in lead conversion is attributable to a great layout of your website which provides a clear customer journey.

Designing tips to make your landing pages efficient

If you want to become successful in your inbound marketing strategy, it’s critical that you understand just how important landing pages are. Most successful websites today don’t just create one homepage for everything that they offer. Instead, they create different customized landing pages for every campaign that they offer.

It’s not just about creating more and more landing pages to increase your lead generation. These customized pages should perform well by having great design and attractive content. Here are some quick design tips in order to make your landing pages efficient:

  1. Get straight to the point. Every marketer knows that people often go to a website in order to get an answer to their problems and that almost everyone in this world doesn’t want to read blocks of words. That is why when you’re creating content for your landing page; it should be straight to the point. Make sure that you include all the right words that your customers would like to see in order to catch their attention.
  2. Keep your images simple. One of the many things that can effect a users experience of a website is visual clutter. Although it’s rather attractive to see all those beautiful pictures, research shows that too many images in one page distracts your customers from understanding the main point. Make sure you keep your page simple and use images that support your intentions.
  3. Social proof. Most of the time, people would need to see proof that your business really helps people. Find a case study that proves your main cause and check out your social media sites. Get some positive reviews from your customers and add them to your pages. This is a great marketing tool that will allow the visitors on your page to trust you even more.

When looking to find a ways to improve site efficiency make sure that you do not cross out the importance of a landing page. Not only will it help your customers understand what your main goal is, but being consistent in every page that you have is the most important element to make your website successful.

Subscribe to our newsletter