This article was contributed by Laurenz Dallinger who works as an Application Engineer at Cedalo.
The integration of cutting-edge technologies in business processes is a must-have for any company’s development and keeping its leadership in the market. The deployment of IoT in business allows organizations to fundamentally shift how they collect, analyze, and use information.
This article explores how IoT technology helps build a customer-centric business that leads to increasing customer engagement and profits.
What is a Customer-Centric Approach in Business?
Customer-centricity is a business philosophy that puts the customer at the center of all decision-making processes. This approach means that every time a business makes a decision, it analyzes its impact on clients. For this, it needs to identify users’ needs and preferences and the problems that they want to solve.
Сustomer orientation improves the customer experience, builds loyalty, and increases customer engagement. Manufacturers utilize this strategy to create products and services that meet the customers’ needs and exceed their expectations.
However, a deep understanding of customer needs is a challenging task. This process requires detailed market research and analysis of large volumes of data and customer feedback. Employing emergency technologies, like IoT, in businesses enables obtaining and analyzing large amounts of customer data using fewer resources.
IoT’s Influence on Business Operations
IoT implementation in businesses gives companies the chance to optimize the interactions with the customers, personalize the marketing campaigns, and improve the customer service process. Let’s take a closer look at how organizations use IoT and what impact it has.
Enhancement of Data Collection and Analysis
IoT sensors and devices generate real-time data on product performance, consumer trends, customers purchasing behavior, and preferences. AI and ML algorithms automatically process the received data, identify trends, and predict customers’ future needs. These technologies allow companies to update products’ features or modify future models to meet customer needs, make data-based decisions, and strategically plan their business.
Improvement of Customer Engagement and Personalization
Analyzing customer preferences and behavior allows companies to provide personalized recommendations, promotions, and discounts. In addition, companies use this information to adapt their products and services to customer needs. This helps increase customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Supply Chain Optimization
IoT sensors enable the optimization of the delivery process. Thanks to this, customers can track the entire delivery process in real-time and know when they can receive the product.
Improvement of Goods’ Quality
IoT devices and sensors allow organizations to monitor production processes and analyze the quality of manufactured products. When smart devices detect deviations from the norm, they can send notifications, allowing employees to change production processes and improve the products’ quality. In this way, it is possible to ensure that end users receive a high-quality product. This leads to increasing user satisfaction and brand loyalty.
Improving Customer Service
Companies use IoT devices to collect and analyze data about customer behavior. This data allows businesses to understand customers’ needs better and implement relevant features.
Smart devices can send information about users’ technical problems to customer service centers. Customer support specialists can contact clients and offer assistance instead of waiting for customers to call on their own.
Examples of Customer-Centric IT-Based Solutions
IoT technologies are widely used in various industries, such as retail, agriculture, healthcare, etc. Let’s discover some practical examples of how the Internet of Things helps to create a customer-centric business.
Connected cars
Connected cars are gaining wide popularity in the world. In 2021, their number reached 237 million. According to forecasts, the number of connected vehicles worldwide will increase to 400 million by 2025.
Using IoT sensors, car companies can collect valuable information about the performance and technical characteristics of the car. They also analyze customers’ preferences, experiences, and features which they use. This information is utilized to design future cars to improve their comfort and performance, adding customers’ desired features.
Built-in sensors enable monitoring of the technical characteristics of the car and send notifications to the owner if it needs maintenance. In addition, this information can also be transmitted to the operator of the service center for him to contact the customer and offer an appointment.
Smart Homes
Smart homes leverage the power of IoT devices and systems to automate routine activities and enhance their owners’ convenience, comfort, and safety. The development of the Internet of Things will lead to a significant rise in the number of smart homes worldwide, reaching 400 million in 2024.
Here are some of how smart homes can change the everyday lives of homeowners:
- Increased security. Security cameras and motion sensors can give a home extra protection by watching over the house when no one is at home. They can send alerts to homeowners’ smartphones when suspicious activity is detected. Smoke detectors with IoT technology can alert the inhabitants of smoke in time to prevent fire.
- Personalized automation. Smart thermostats equipped with IoT sensors can learn the temperature preferences of residents over time and automatically adjust the climate accordingly.
- Remote management and control. Smart appliances such as refrigerators, washing machines, and ovens offer advanced functions such as remote control, scheduling of automatic operations, and optimization of energy consumption.
MQTT retained messages increase data exchange reliability between devices in smart homes, ensuring seamless communication and preventing data loss.
Smart home system manufacturers use data analytics and machine learning algorithms to analyze usage patterns and customers’ feedback. They employ this data to optimize smart home systems and anticipate changing user needs.
Companies release regular software updates that keep smart home devices safe, reliable, and compatible with the latest technologies. Customizable device options allow residents to adjust their smart homes to their lifestyles and preferences.
Conclusion
Creating good relationships with customers is essential to build a successful, competitive business. Companies can achieve this by learning customers’ preferences and by being able to meet their needs.
Applying IoT in business makes it possible to automate the process of collecting and analyzing large amounts of data, which further leads to the precise identification of customers’ requirements and the creation of such products that customers need. This results in the improvement of the level of customer satisfaction and loyalty and, consequently, sales and profits.
About the author
Laurenz Dallinger is an Application Engineer at Cedalo. He is a technology enthusiast specializing in digital transformation, particularly within the realm of IoT. As a valued team member at Cedalo, the driving force behind the leading MQTT broker, Laurenz actively shares his knowledge and ideas. His passion lies in guiding developers toward innovative and efficient approaches to device communication.
Last Updated on February 27, 2024 11:09 am CET