Internet of Things (IoT) has immersed in our everyday lives. These devices are everywhere with us, from wearable technologies that track your fitness 24/7 to electrical devices in our homes. The shift to mobile devices has turned how we interact with the world around us. By 2027, the global Internet of Things (IoT) market can top $1.4 trillion, up from $250.72 billion in 2019. Many government agencies and businesses are adapting to IoT in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic.
These IoT devices provide valuable insights into users’ behaviors, interests, and preferences, coined as the Internet of Behavior (IoB). This concept is nascent, but analysts predict numerous possibilities for using the Internet of Behavior in businesses, personal finance, workplaces, and more. To be precise, the Internet of Behavior illustrates how to turn meaningful data collected through user activities into something valuable for companies. Let’s explore this article to know more about the Internet of Behavior (IoB), businesses that value it and benefit from it.
History of Internet of Behavior
The concept of the Internet of Behavior originated in 2012 when psychology professor Gothe Nyman explained the possibility of gaining detailed data on customers’ behavior and use as they interact with the Internet of Things (IoT). Researching on consumer behavior and habits is not new to us. Now we have an automated ecosystem of analytic processes that collect, track and attempt to understand the vast amounts of data we generate through our internet and online activities.
Gartner, in its recent strategic predictions for 2021 announced that the Internet of Behavior is something we’ll become largely aware of in our daily lives and work. It integrates existing technologies that focus on the individual directly, including facial recognition, location tracking, and big data, and connects the resulting data to associated behavioral events, such as cash purchases or device usage, said the research firm.
Businesses use this data to influence human behavior. For instance, to monitor compliance with health protocols during the ongoing pandemic, organizations might leverage IoB via computer vision to check whether employees are wearing masks or via thermal imaging to identify those with a fever.
Importance of Internet of Behavior
Psychology and marketing go side by side from the beginning of advertising. Similarly, behavioral analysis and psychology have enabled new insights into the data collected by the Internet of Things.
The Internet of Behavior can be a powerful new marketing and sales tool for businesses worldwide. These tools will help you gain a deep understanding of your customers, which is crucial for every business.
Analytics, SWOT analysis, A/B testing, and many other techniques have helped companies for years to create their product and marketing strategies to build and promote products that users will want to buy. Internet of Behavior intends to produce a significant boost in the development of the sales industry.
This concept will enable companies to analyze past performance and predict the future. Companies can get the foundation to plan their development, sales, and marketing efforts with the data gathered through the Internet of Things.
Applications of Internet of Behavior
1) Achieving Long-Term Financial goals
Internet of Things-enabled devices collect users’ data that banks can analyze to get insights into users’ spending patterns. This kind of app could monitor the spending behavior of an individual. The IoB-driven system could be designed to activate encouraging notifications that could improve the strength and assist users in achieving their long-term financial goals. The system could help customers track their spending behavior and send alerts when they are exceeding their spending limits. It could also help customers adjust their behavior according to their long-term financial goals.
2) Accurate Pricing of Car Insurance Premiums
Internet of Behavior can be used in addressing the challenges faced for optimizing the car insurance premium. IoB-driven app can gather information, such as distance traveled, speed of the car, the time of the day customer is traveling, and more. Car insurance companies can utilize this data to set the premium price more accurately. This implies that responsible drivers will have to pay the lowest premiums.
The Aviva Drive app exhibits such a type of apps. The app uses GPS on your smartphone to collect data on different driving behaviors, such as how you brake, accelerate, and corner. After 200 miles of recorded driving, the app provides individual driven feedback and drive score that may result in a safe driver discount.
3) Enhancing Travel Booking Experiences
Travel companies can provide dynamic offers and recommendations based on analyzing a user’s past online behavior and social-demographic characteristics. The Booking Experiences allows instant booking of venues and attractions in a specific location. The app continuously tracks and analyzes the data to provide the traveler with personalized venue suggestions, improving the in-destination experience.
The Daynamica, an open-source app, provides a practical approach for collecting and processing detailed data despite travel mode—driving, walking, biking, or taking transit. It integrates smartphone GPS sensing with advanced statistical and machine-learning techniques to automatically detect, identify, and summarize characteristics of daily activity and travel experiences. The app then enables users to view and interpret information at their convenience.
Cyber Security and the Internet of Behavior
IoT and the integration of behavioral data come with a dark side; it can allow cybercriminals to access sensitive data that unveils consumer behavior patterns. Cybercriminals can gather and sell to other criminals hacked property access codes, delivery routes, even bank access codes – the potential is endless. The rapidly expanding network of IoT devices indicates that new cybersecurity protocols are under development and that businesses need to be even more proactive and vigilant.
Many experts believe that the IoT is problematic because of its legality or lack of structure. Interconnecting our data with our decision-making, the Internet of Behavior approach demands a change in our legal and cultural norms, which were established before the Big Data and Internet ages.
Technology that asks people’s data and influences their behavior must be accompanied by adequate transparency in a way that does not violate privacy rights. These rights vary between the world’s jurisdictions, which will end up having a significant impact on the scale and adoption of the Internet of Behavior worldwide. Conclusively, the safety of personal data will have to be the ultimate priority and center of the regulator’s concerns. As this technology continues to expand, the trust between individuals, businesses, and other stakeholders should be maintained.
Conclusion
Internet of Behavior is still in the early stages of development. But as new data and analysis will be available, companies will have to ensure they understand consumer behavior or trends. A robust security posture followed by best practices in data governance, the introduction of cybersecurity training and awareness programs would drive businesses to stay ahead of the curve.
Pooja Patil is a versatile Content Writer with proven writing capabilities in all genres. She holds more than 2 years of experience in the content marketing field, working closely with B2B, B2C, and entertainment businesses providing unparalleled content with enhanced search engine visibility. Content writing expert by day and technophile by night, Pooja enchants her readers with insightful information displayed artistically.
