What’s the difference between a smart thing and dumb thing? Sound like a bad joke? It’s not. It’s the topic discussed during a panel held by OMD at CES 2016 called “Internet of Things: The Connected Consumer, Smarter Homes & Cities.” And the answer is quite simple: data. Marrying data with physical things takes the physical universe from one of simple things to smart things. Simple chairs and tables are no longer so simple. Now they’re things that measure your posture as you sit and or that provide information about the caloric makeup of the meal you’re eating. With data, no longer is a thing just a thing.
When asked about the definition of the Internet of Things, the panel of experts from various industries had unique perspectives of what this acronym means to them and their brand. The panelists included experts Andy Hobsbawm, Founder & CMO, EVRYTHNG; David Siroty, VP of Communications, Coldwell Banker; Peter Marx, Chief Innovation Officer, City of Los Angeles; Jeff Levick, Chief Revenue Officer, Spotify; Warren Kay, VP of Advertising, Under Armour; moderated by Courtney Cochrane, Group Vice President, CBSi
Whether we’re talking about your home, your city, or your body, connecting things can have a big impact. For instance, Kay says Under Armour works everyday to help athletes live a better life. They achieve this through connecting health & fitness data to hardware & software to live a better life. He states IoT is about “things in your life talking to each other.”
The idea of the physical world becoming part of the web means bringing the applications and content of the web to the physical things of our world. Hobsbawm, Founder & CMO of EVRYTHNG talking about how we now need to manage the identity of every object in the world, as an object can exist more as data than it actually exists as an object.
Coldwell Banker’s VP of Communications, David Siroty, spoke about how homes are an emotional part of our lives and now with the Internet of Things, “the home wants to become a member of our family. It wants to make our lives, simpler, easier and more efficient. By allowing the things in our home to connect with one another and use data to create a personalized experience, we’re on the edge of the new era for the home.”
With more than 50% of homeowners either already owning smart home technology or ready to invest in 2016, training is more important than ever. As Courtney stated, “we’re at the beginning stages; it’s a little irritating going through that clunky part. But, you’ve got to make it easier; you’ve got to make it more transparent. “
With that in mind, now the responsibility for brands like Coldwell Banker is all about telling stories to make data and things come alive. And that, to us, sounds pretty smart.
Be sure to follow along on the smart home conversation using the hashtag #CESCB.
