You may hate buzzwords, but if you don’t know them, you may very well find your small business SOL (sadly outta luck). You’ll find them at every turn in planning, executing and evaluating strategies and tactics to grow the bottom line. In full disclosure, I am not a big fan of buzzwords. However, knowing the concepts and context by whatever name or acronym is marketing must.
The latest entry in the buzzword glossary is IoT, the Internet of Things, a future where people and objects communicate in unprecedented ways. It is the ever-growing network of devices with an on/off switch connected to the Internet. The impact is huge, with an estimate that by the year 2020, 50 to 100 billion devices will be electronically connected in the globally emerging IoT.
In the article, The Internet Of Things Is Not A Shiny New Toy, Marc Canter offers an excellent perspective on IoT. Namely, that the concept is not a new trend or fad, but rather a new era of smart solutions. Here are a few highlights.
Consumers don’t understand machines communicating with each other (sometimes referred to as M2M) or the cloud per se, as they see that as some weird form of Skynet. Based on public reaction to NSA spying, hackers hacking and Google and Facebook monetizing our data, I’d say IoT has a basic challenge in front of it to build basic trust in the minds of average consumers.
But the real problem with the IoT is that people see it as some sort of shiny new toy and not the all-encompassing, change the world, prepare us for the future thing it really is.
I see the IoT as the culmination of all modern technology that is finally uniting the online technological world and the real world.
By understanding context, both in terms of the end user and the world around them, we can now truly create “mediated conversations,“ real-time intervention and help, online augmentation of everyday experiences and ultimately “contextually aware” apps.
My head explodes with new kinds of solutions and creative expression, but I know that the IoT must also include mobile apps and social engagement, and we sure as hell better not leave out digital media and streaming content.
Read Canter’s article at techcrunch.com.
Need to brush up on frequently used digital marketing buzzwords and basics? Check out A Small Biz Guide to Digital Acronyms from Vertical Response (note that IoT has yet to make their list) and our previous post on digital marketing for small businesses.
Now, if all of the buzzwords have your head in a spin, LOL (laugh out loud) at what the Disney Channel’s Doof Daily has to say about useful Internet acronyms.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrotE9xNwxc&feature=youtu.be
What buzzwords do you hate but find necessary for your small business marketing? Feel free to share your favorites in the comments section of this post.
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GB O’Brien
Update: Since the original posting, the video referenced above is no longer available on YouTube. Instead you can view it here, on The Disney Channel.