When people discuss the Internet of Things (IoT) it’s often in the context of something of such scale that only large businesses with extensive budgets will truly be able to leverage its benefits.
It’s not surprising, then, that many owners of small businesses have concluded that the cost of exploiting the opportunities presented by the IoT will be prohibitively high and have prioritised other avenues when they consider their long-term strategic goals.
But whilst it may be true that many smaller companies will not have the financial wherewithal to build IoT infrastructure and develop the apps necessary to run and manage it, the IoT still offers small businesses the chance to grow their success in ways that haven’t been possible until now.
At a base level, your small business is also a consumer, and so the IoT will allow you to convert some of your existing analogue systems to smart digital systems that enable you to better monitor and control consumption.
An obvious area where this might be beneficial is in having better oversight of energy costs through smart meters for gas and electricity, and improved climate control in office and retail premises through automated systems.
The IoT also enables small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to improve efficiency through production, supply, and logistics chains, either by moving to new suppliers or by partnering with smart-enabled businesses that can give you access to tracking systems.
Understanding and being able to manage how your raw materials or wholesale supplies reach you, and then being able to have the same control over how your own products then reach your customer base allows improved communication and the potential to avoid problems before they become problems.
This, in turn, aids customer retention and builds loyalty.
Erosion of brand loyalty often stems from poor customer experience - for example, when something goes wrong, and the business doesn’t communicate with the client or can’t rectify the problem properly.
Yet the tracking and monitoring systems made possible by the IoT enable your business to identify problems in real time – allowing you to be proactive in your customer service.
In the end, most customers accept mistakes happen – but they judge you on how you respond to them. If you can retain more customers, and benefit from repeat orders as a result, you ultimately add value to your bottom line.
The IoT already offers smart automation, and this will only grow over time. Because automation often translates into savings on overhead costs, smart small businesses can align their long-term strategies to integrate IoT systems where the benefit of doing so outweighs the cost.
Digitising your business
Of course, the biggest barrier to leveraging the IoT lies in the fact that many small businesses are not set up to do it.
While every business now has some degree of digitisation – even if only in its network of computer workstations – taking advantage of the IoT does require a modest investment in smart mobile technology to ensure you have the equipment necessary to run the systems you need to.
This can be something as simple as a mobile device – such as a phone or tablet – loaded with the apps you need to keep on top of your monitoring, tracking, and consumption.
Having the right mobile systems and hardware is important because this allows you to expand your smart operations as opportunities arise, and as your business continues to integrate with more IoT technology, device security will also become an important consideration.
If you’d like to talk to us about how we can help you to engage with the opportunities the IoT offers and the best way to ensure your device security is providing the right protection for your digital assets, we’d love to talk to you.
