Listening to your customerâs fridge: why the âinternet of thingsâ will be the next Big Data challenge for brand marketers

Extraordinary fact of the day: 90% of data ever produced in the history of humankind has been generated in the last two years. This is not surprising in the age of social media. It also poses an interesting question: is the volume of data available set to significantly increase? The answer is yes.

This is mainly as a result of the introduction of exciting technologies driving data capture in the home. To see the potential of ‘smart objects’ in the home, we only need to look at smart TVs which are already enabling marketers to tailor specific advertisements to localised regions.

One of the most interesting developments is the perceptive radio currently being developed by Future Media North. This innocuous radio collects real-time data and tailors the content depending on location, background noise and colloquialisms it picks up in conversation. The project is being developed in partnership with the BBC and is yet to be commercialised, but the power it holds for targeted advertising is huge. If this is not enough to illustrate the power of ‘smart objects’, we only need to look at Apple, who this month announced theiRadio which streams music according to the listener’s preferences and existing iTunes library.

Furthermore, the Samsung smart fridge, which hosts a touch screen, allows the owner to sync it with their smart phone and build lists and recipes, wherever they are. We are now seeing a move towards what’s been termed ‘the internet of things’ where everything electronic is linked to the internet; but let’s not forget that what’s underpinning these new platforms is data.

It also poses the question where next in the age of ‘internet of things’ with CISCO predicting50 billion things will be connected to the internet in 2020 generating a big increase in touch points?

Will our fridges soon alert us to what foodstuffs we’re running low on when walking past a shop? Will our vehicles automatically head to the nearest petrol station when very low on fuel?

It means the data collected from the ‘internet of things’ will allow marketers to delve more into customer habits; for instance, what temperature their home is and what food they buy. Furthermore, because these devices are linked it’s easier for marketers to spot patterns; that’s where analysis is becoming increasingly important. It could be the next big thing for marketers after social media. It’s real time, responsive and personalised in a way that social can’t hope to be.

In fact, with technology moving so fast in five years time will the best marketers be widgets that can absorb and make the best learnings from data and deliver activity with minimal human input? Be assured, there’s a new revolution underway.

By DMA guest blogger Francis Wallinger, Chairman of Alchemetrics