Why IoT is a Game Changer for Businesses of All Types

IoT has been around for ages now, but it's only now that it's showing its true colors. There have been many innovations that have changed the game for businesses across the board. These businesses have been able to innovate on the backs of IOT as well as provide more engaging experiences for customers across the board.

With smart homes becoming a standard operation in each household, there is much to do in the IoT space just yet. When you can change your home temperature, lights and you can do a lot of magic around these areas. IoT has been at the helm for many years, and this time it’s here to revolutionize how we view business.

Growth of IoT

It seems like just yesterday that IoT was introduced to us in the world. In 2014, there were about a million devices connected to one another. In 2020, there will be around 230 million. This means that our near future is going to be all about connected devices and how much we can pull from them.

Whether that’s data or our need for automation, IoT has been changing the game for many companies across the board. It can supplement current practices and even provide more insights into many core business questions.

The biggest factor contributing to its growth is the fact that everyone can use it. There is so much scope in the technology that anyone with a smartphone, an Arduino, and a few components can prototype a connected device.

Now that these components are getting smaller in size, we can have much more innovation in limited time and space. We can fit a lot of stuff in our pockets that can allow us to do magic with this technology.

What started out as a few Roombas and connected dollies, has now become an industry-wide fascination. Everyone from toy companies to manufacturing lines is now obsessed with using IoT devices in their core businesses.

Introducing Smart Data Capture

The growth and proliferation of IoT have been in part, driven by the need for more data and analysis. We want to know much more about what’s happening than what we’re doing right now. Whether that’s a Fit Bit or Apple watch, we have the power of a computer in the palms of our hands.

Jeans companies are offering smarter tracking tech for charging and wireless capabilities. Mirrors are introducing new devices that have connected features in them. E.g. you can brush your teeth and read your emails at the same time.

That should be leading to a lot more implementation of this core tech and changing the way that we view the limitations of IoT. It’s not a gimmick anymore. It’s a sweeping technology function.

What’s the best part about capturing all that data? Brands know more about you and what you like.

That’s the key here. They want to capture as much data as they can and then share information internally to prepare the best products for you again. Since data is the next goldmine, no company wants to be left behind in the search for more insights.

Companies are raising billions of dollars of capital to be able to outpace their competitors so that they can use IoT features to the best of their abilities. They’re also investing in introducing core product lines that have IoT baked into the OS itself. Companies that are non-tech and are in traditionally boring industries have also jumped on the IoT wave to get a piece of the pie.

Security is Everything

When it comes to IoT security is the most important component that needs to be looked at. When brands try to do too much with IoT and RFID, they fail to get the basic security checks in place. They don’t appreciate the role of a good security balance and try to do too much in less time.

That’s why it’s important to think about security features like firewalls and distributed tech that can fight off any attacks and share data anonymously. Since we’re carrying all these connected devices with us at all times, we can see the direct impact of how we may get hacked. As soon as we login to a public Wi-Fi or take a connection from a friend’s laptop, we’re opening ourselves up to hacking.

Since customers may not be fully aware of the problems associated with security and connected tech, brands and entrepreneurs need to be extra careful. This time, the revolution will continue regardless of whether AI can catch up or not.

Manufacturing and B2B

IoT didn’t actually take off in the B2C space. It was the B2B applications of IoT that spurred innovation in the space. What was initially called M2M technology, IoT has changed the game here as well. With devices that measure and transmit real-time data on machines, labor, output, and schedules, companies can track their B2B data that much more.

IoT has revolutionized the way people look at logistics as well. Since the whole world orders something on the internet, there are many processes that run on the backs of IoT. IoT can empower machines, scientists and artists from across the world to do their best work in the field that they’re passionate about.

B2B was the start of a new revolution. The next wave is going to be what we can do with our imaginations.

Conclusion

While IoT has been in the world of tech for a long time now, it’s only now that it’s showing its true colors. IoT has been at the helm of innovation in both consumer foods and manufacturing, as well as B2B logistics and machine interactivity.

IOT has been at the forefront of it all. It’s been giving engineering graduates more hope about the tech industry, as well as providing new scope for startups to innovate on. IOT is a game changer from all angles and its only time until it really opens up its wings to take over how we view technology.