As the Internet of Things (IoT) market grows, mobile applications will be a key determinant of success. This is according to Ross Tuffee, CEO of DOGFI.SH Mobile, who states that application development needs to be one of the main starting points for organisations looking to exploit the IoT, not an afterthought.
According to the McKinsey Global Institute, the IoT has the potential to generate annual revenues of $2.7 trillion to $6.2 trillion by 2025. However, businesses will struggle to benefit from this windfall if they fail to grasp the importance of mobile applications when taking their IoT services to market.
Tuffee commented: “Advancements in mobile devices, cloud computing and wireless technology are enabling the IoT to quickly become a mainstream technology. By enabling different devices to connect with each other, the IoT opens up a whole host of possibilities with the potential to change the lives of both businesses and individual users.
Moreover, the IoT presents a lucrative opportunity for companies that can effectively tap into this market, but many still need to grasp the importance of apps when taking their IoT solution to market.
“A business could develop a compelling use case for the IoT, and the utility for users might be there, but the design of the apps will ultimately determine how successful they are and whether or not they will gain traction and actually get used in the long term.
By way of example, a smart metering company can enable users to control their homes through an application on their smartphones. But unless these applications are intuitive and well-designed people will not use them as a matter of habit.
“If IoT companies can understand the psychology as to why end users engage in certain applications, then they will be able to design a product that can really captivate the end user. IoT companies should therefore leverage habit-forming technology, which has been successfully been used by some of the technology giants, to boost engagement and develop platforms that are built on impulse.
Ultimately, businesses want the end user to keep returning; this can be achieved by identifying the main hooks, including the ‘Triggers’, ‘Action’, ‘Rewards’ and ‘Investment’. In practice, this is more than simply satisfying demand for a product, it’s about tapping into the customer’s fundamental motivations and fulfilling their emotional needs.
“The IoT is still a relatively nascent technology. Considering this, the companies that are early to understand behavioural engagement patterns, and then create engaging mobile applications, will be the ones who will capitalise on the rapidly growing IoT market,” concluded Tuffee.
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