How Does Thing Commerce Transform the Way We Do Business?

Have you heard of the Internet of Things or IoT? Well, it has been one of the hottest trends in the IT industry in recent years. IoT touches every aspect of our lives but shocking is its continuous growth in the world of e-commerce, leading to what we are now calling "ThingCommerce".

From our Jawbones to our smartphones, the increase in the number of connections in the world is changing industries at an alarming rate. For many brands interested in taking full advantage of Thing Commerce, the most important one is finding a way to connect their devices to the internet. In doing so, they expose their business to these promising e-commerce opportunities.

Thing Commerce creates an improved visibility fulfillment process that enables retailers to meet their online customers’ demands. It further allows companies to track all orders from the moment they are placed until the time it arrives in the ‘hands’ of the consumer. Each part of the inventory is monitored using a robust management system that automatically locates all goods from any location!

Because all durable goods require constant replenishment, for example, detergents, printer ink and fabric softeners, there is an excellent opportunity to automate their ordering process. Thanks to Thing Commerce, you can streamline the entire process by measuring the frequency of how a particular family orders certain items.

Thing Commerce can also enable the accurate measuring of the durable product itself. For instance, GE and Whirlpool Appliances have integrated the Amazon Dash Replenishment service into their business to allow automatic reordering of supplies based on their consumption.

Manufacturers now produce refrigerators and washing machines with lifecycles of 15 to 20 years. This limits the constant interaction with their consumer base. However, with Thing Commerce, they can establish a relationship through connected automobiles or appliances and remain in the minds of their customers for an extended period. For example, the manufactures of printers could offer services for cartridge replacement.

Apart from just creating a long-term relationship with consumers, Thing Commerce could also help businesses create fresh business models for their loyal customers. For instance, they could adopt service-based business models by offering things such as:

• Performance analytics
• Remote monitoring
• Predictive maintenance

The growth of Thing Commerce means there is more data marketers can use to gain moreinsight into their customers’ behavior. Using this additional information, they can applybetter methods to address their consumer’s needs and influence them to purchase their products.

Their biggest challenge will be to find ways of navigating through the large amount of brand-new data. However, if done correctly, this massive chunk of data will eventually allow them to effectively tailor their services and products to the benefit of their large number of consumers. 

Although the rise of Thing Commerce, in the era of the Internet of things, is not without challenges, the above opportunities make it worth the investment. Finally, as a company head or a business owner, remember that it is always good to give your customers what they want, when they want, before anyone else does. Thanks to these innovations, youwill have captured your market share before your competitors do.