Technology has been rapidly developing from the last decade. The rise of the smartphone and constant internet connectivity has changed consumer behavior drastically. Not only phones but the rise of social media and e-commerce has also been a great driver in this behavioral change. As technology advances, a change in behavior of consumers is to be expected.
The change in the consumer behavior will only accelerate with the rapidly advancing technology. These changes will impact everyone drastically. Here are five technologies that will reshape consumer behavior and what that means for companies.
1. Smartphones
The advent of smartphones brought about high speed wireless internet; this helped social media become the most popular websites in the world then e-commerce platform services came up. All of this was triggered with the arrival of smartphones. If there would be an award for the technology that changed the world, smartphones would be the prime candidate for it.
The development isn’t complete yet, there are more and more innovations coming forth that involve smartphones as their base. Smartphones have already changed our social behavior with emails, messengers and online shopping. Sectors like commerce, law enforcement, social behavior, etc. will see radical changes and it will all be around smartphones.
Companies can get benefit from this as the 24×7 connected customers offer more data on their behavior and help the companies understand them better. Smartphones also allow companies more frequent engagement.
Nowadays, various eCommerce platforms provide eCommerce website along with access to mobile application. One can easily create their online store within 5 minutes using eCommerce platforms.
2. Cloud Storage
Cloud storage means the storage of data on a remote server from which data can be extracted, edited or added when required from anywhere. A huge chunk of our personal data is already on the cloud. Services like social media, banking and music streaming are just a few to use the cloud for convenience. The rise of cloud technologies has also brought the concept of Software as a Service (SaaS). SaaS allows businesses to have their data and software outsourced to a service provider.
With increase in the popularity of cloud storage, we will see a decline in the need for local storage. Devices that need to access data can connect to the server and retrieve it through the network. This will change the way consumers use devices like smartphones, tablets, laptops and peripherals.
Data on a central cloud allows companies with access to it to analyze it and improve their algorithms to help them serve their customers better. Cloud storage allows for companies to monitor consumer behavior like never before.
3. Wearables
Apple Watch, Google Glass and Fitbit are just the beginning of an era of connected Wearables. These devices connect to the internet through a smartphone and improve the level of convenience for the user. These devices extend the reach of the users and give them access to all the relevant data that they need. The future generation of wearables will enable the consumer to pay for goods by just using them or walking out of the shop with it. This technology has the potential to bring about the phenomena of augmented reality, where the customer can pull up any information from the internet just by picking up an item and looking at it. Wearables also allow for better tracking of employees, monitoring food and exercise habits to help insurance companies adjust premiums and assess claims more accurately.
4. Internet of Things (IOT)
Increased demand for automation has given birth to the concept of “Internet of Things”. At the first glance it seems like it is a bit over-hyped but a closer look will reveal the enormous potential that it has. IoT means even common devices like the refrigerator and the coffee machine are connected to the internet. This gives rise to smart homes and offices where most of the work is done by the appliances themselves, you just have to give them the order, or in some cases not even that.
This frees up a lot of time from the consumer and will likely trigger a shift in consumer behavior. This will change the way to buy things, consume utilities and spend their free time. 24×7 connectivity of appliances also means huge amount of data for companies to work on to deliver a very personalized experience to their customers.
5. Personalized Analytics
All of these technologies will bring massive amount of data for companies to work on. Marketing departments will be actively engaged in analyzing consumer behavior and increasing their reach. This results in better prediction of consumer behavior and a highly personalized marketing campaign.
Even at present, ad-retargeting allows companies to target customers wherever they go. When they look up a product on a website, the ads that are shown to them will be focused on shopping sites that offer those products. This is just what is possible through tracking online behavior. With access to offline behavior marketing will evolve into a behavioral analytics field where every single person will be targeted at a near perfect moment.
Predictive analytics tools will allow companies to offer customers what they want, when they want it and where they want it. For example, if you are planning a wedding then you will be shown ads for cake shops, wedding photographers, event planners and the likes. This makes life easier for the customers and businesses alike.
Conclusion
Technology has always changed the way we behave. With continued advance in tracking technology marketing will evolve into a very sophisticated field with accurate results and less prediction. Computers will take over the manual and labor intensive tasks. Consumer research professionals will become the key strategist in determining company operations. Insight professionals will see a rise in demand as more and more companies will realize the importance of interpreting what the collected data means. All of these changes will mean that the companies will get closer to the customers to sense their requirements and deliver them before even they realize their needs.
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