How to Leverage the Internet of Things (IoT) For Social Media

Internet of Things
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Imagine that things around you begin to talk to you and start offering information more smartly.

How would you feel if your alarm clock, knows traffic conditions, knows your office location and path, and is learned enough to create an estimate of your arrival time and wakes you up accordingly?

No traffic on road, so you can enjoy some extra sleep.

Wouldn’t it be nice if your umbrella updates you about the weather by beeping and telling you to carry it?

Wouldn’t you like to have hot coffee while you are on your way home just via an app?

Wouldn’t it be interesting if you could control all applications in your house remotely? Get security updates or maybe your Home can have a Twitter/Facebook ID where it will update its conditions like electric consumption, room temperature, or other things.

Wouldn’t it be great to get updates about your office employees, if they start becoming spyingToms?

Well, this is just the tip of the iceberg. IoT in short is activating things around you to send information over the internet

There are over 8 Billion People in the world and over 90% of the Earth’s surface has connectivity. There are over 1 billion devices connected to the internet.

The amount of information if stacked on top of each other could take you to pluto and back 7 times and IoT is just going to increase this exponentially.

To put it in simpler words “Internet of Things will activate things around you to update their status on the internet”

It is a blend of Sensors (input), Processors (brain), and Actuators (output) with the charm of the internet. Electronics have become smaller and faster. The Internet has become simpler to use.

And the degree of possessiveness of human beings is ever-increasing. That is why I feel that the internet of things is on the cusp of eruption.

Every giant in the industry in all domains wants to have IoT as a part of digital marketing strategy and I will go right ahead to recommend that it should become yours too.

What is the Internet of Things (IoT)?

Internet of Things refers to the giant network of connected devices and the technology that simplify communication between devices and the cloud and the capacity to transfer data over a network without requiring human-to-human or human-to-computer interaction.

It refers to the billions of physical devices around the world that are connected to the internet, all collecting and sharing data and making our lives easier to live. It is enhancing the productivity of staff and reduces human labor.

Internet of Things (IoT)
Image credit: Pixabay

Some Great Examples of IOT

#1. Self-driving cars. It can be via smart dash cams, infotainment systems, or the vehicle’s connected gateway.

#2. Home security systems like security cameras, door locks, and water leak detectors can detect and prevent threats, and push alerts to homeowners.

#3. Amazon facilities make use of internet-connected robots for tracking, sorting, locating, and moving products.

#4. Dishwashers, heating, refrigerators and cooling systems, fitness trackers, and smart blackboards in classrooms are some examples.

Types of Internet of Things (IoT)

The networking, communication, and connectivity protocols depend mostly on the specific IoT application deployed. Just as there are different IoT devices, there are also many types of IoT applications based on their usage.

Here are some of the most popular ones:

#1. Consumer IoT

Mainly for daily use.  CIoT is the use of IoT for consumer applications and devices, like smartphones, smart assistants, wearables, home appliances, and more.

Typically, CIoT solutions leverage Wi-Fi, ZigBee, and Bluetooth to facilitate connectivity.

These technologies offer short-range communication fitting for deployments in smaller venues, such as homes and offices.

#2. Commercial IoT

Mainly used in the healthcare and transport industries. Commercial IoT delivers the benefits of IoT to bigger venues, like commercial office buildings, supermarkets, stores, healthcare facilities, hotels, and entertainment venues.

There are different use cases for commercial IoT, including managing access to corporate facilities, monitoring environmental conditions, and economizing utilities and consumption in hotels and other large venues.

Many Commercial IoT solutions are geared toward improving business conditions and customer experiences.

#3. Military Things (IoMT)

Mainly used for the application of IoT technologies in the military sector.  This is often referred to as Battlefield IoT, the Internet of Battlefield Things, or simply IoBT is exactly what it sounds like: the use of IoT in military settings and battlefield circumstances.

It is mainly aimed at boosting situational awareness, strengthening risk assessment, and improving response times.

Common IoMT applications include connecting ships, tanks, planes, soldiers, drones, and even Forward Operating Bases through an interconnected system.

In addition, IoMT produces data that can be leveraged to enhance military practices, systems, equipment, and strategy.

#4. Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT)

Mainly used with industrial applications, such as in the manufacturing and energy field.

Industrial IoT is perhaps the most dynamic wing of the IoT sector. Its focus is on amplifying existing industrial systems, making them both more productive and efficient.

IIoT deployments are commonly found in large-scale factories and manufacturing plants and are usually associated with industries like healthcare, agriculture, logistics, and automotive.

#5. Infrastructure IoT

Mainly used for connectivity in smart cities.  Infrastructure IoT is focused on the development of smart infrastructures that incorporate IoT technologies to improve efficiency, cost savings, maintenance, and more.

This includes the ability to control and monitor operations of urban and rural infrastructures, such as railway tracks, bridges, and on- and offshore wind farms.

Technically speaking, iIoT is a subset of IIoT. However, due to its significance, it’s usually treated as its own separate thing.

Internet of things for social media

How is IoT changing the Social Media Industry?

In no time, IoT has captured the social giants. The increased connectivity between devices, systems, and humans is compelling companies to bring in new technologies and superior communication tactics to reach more customers.

The technologies form an intelligent network that draws out valuable information online, which can be directed to enrich marketing strategies and bring improved conversions.

Features like radio frequency identification, sensors, power conservation, and collection devices offer advanced and smart facilities.

Keeping these new technologies in mind, engineers are coming up with cloud-based applications and machine learning technology to help you utilize the devices to the fullest. To discover how IoT leverages the internet of things for social media, read on.

How to Leverage the IoT for Social Media?

#1. Iot Lets You Control All of Your Different Connected Devices

The magic of Social IoT is that it lets the user control all different connected devices – including everything in their home and office from appliances to locks, to trash cans.

With a text, a WhatsApp,  or a tweet, Social IoT offers you this control regardless of the technology’s ecosystem (Android vs iOS), the manufacturer (Samsung vs Huawei), or the brand.

Pick up your mobile, and go to your Contacts. What do you see? You see people. Social IoT enables you to now add your smart home, your connected car, and (sooner than you may think) your smart city as contacts on your phone.

With Social IoT, you can have normal communication with all of your different devices.

Because of the tech media’s current focus on smart home technologies, some people think IoT is just CIoT, however, it has equally strong (i.e., interesting ROI) use cases for GIoT and IIoT.

#2. Leverage IoT for Social Media Monitoring

If you are looking for a great way to analyze social media insights, nothing can beat the IoT experience.

When IoT devices are connected to social media tools, you get useful details to move forward in your social media marketing efforts.

For the last ten years, people have been connecting globally via these social media networking sites. It has never crossed anyone’s mind that these connections can lead to some vital inputs.

In the upcoming years, companies plan to connect individuals to devices and get all the necessary information they need.

Recently, Facebook has declared its partnership with a home security outfit, Chamberlain and Roost. The latter has rolled out the Parse platform for the Internet of things devices already.

Here are a few more examples of how some brands are leveraging IoT in social media monitoring.

#1. Visible and Radian6, SaaS providers, have switched to social media monitoring to collect facts and deliver those to clients in real-time leveraging IoT devices.

#2. N&W, a clothing line, is soon to launch visual recognition of buyers. This feature will collect data from the buyers’ past choices, food habits, orders, and demographic data.

These insights can be gathered through social media monitoring.

#3. Apotek, a Swedish pharmacy, is promoting digital advertising, which reaches people selectively based on their tastes.

#4. Do you know Disney is also leveraging IoT for their MagicBands? These are RFID-based that enable guests to access Disney parks, reserve rides, pay for items, etc.

By understanding guests’ tastes with media tools, Disney figures out how guest interactions can be done in the future. The team is planning to see how guests react to the immediate surroundings inside the park.

#5. The developer of WeChat, Tencent, is partnering with Alva Networks, a cloud provider, to develop an operating system that connects all devices.

It can also discover how users can have power over their surroundings with WeChat’s aid.

#6. Life360 is another great social app that helps in focusing on connecting friends and family and has also adopted IoT- empowered tools for social screening. It affiliated with Nest to add security devices to its app.

#3. Enables you to share every detail of your life with Friends

IoT allows you to share every detail of your life with your social media friends and community. For instance, if a senior is having a heart attack alone in his house, using IOT, a Facebook, WhatsApp message, or Tweet will be sent to his neighbors and family immediately. So, social media is entering a modern age of connecting every object, service, and living creature on the planet.

Conclusion

What did Social IoT look like 40 years ago? Visiting my grandmother always felt like participating in the trials for the Olympic stair-running team.

Every time I visited, much to the relief of my grandfather, it was “James, go downstairs and see if the washer is done yet.”

I  was the Social IoT between my grandmother and her washing machine, giving both real-time alerts and notifications.

I would run down three flights of stairs to see if the wheezing old washer had completed its wash cycle, breathlessly running back upstairs to accurately report back to my grandma.

Flash forward to my mother’s washing machine. Looking back at her then state-of-the-art Sears “Laundry Center,” it’s hard not to view it today as anything but dumb and outdated. It had a buzzer to communicate when the wash cycle was completed.

It’s now 2023, we have the internet. There is wireless connectivity and we have our mobiles. We have a swiftly increasing number of smart devices.

Then came Social Media. And now we have the Social internet of things. I am not alone in expecting my next washing machine to send me alerts and notifications about everything I like to know

This article has covered so much on how to leverage the Internet of things (IoT) for social media. I hope you have a clearer idea of how to utilize IoT now better than when clicked to start reading this guide.

Eugene Agoh

Eugene Agoh

Founder at AdsTargets | Online advertising expert | Search engine optimisation expert | Social media marketing expert.Eugene is a Passionate writer on topics relating to online advertising, branding and generally interested in creating digital marketing content. He is curious about the future of digital advertising.Follow Eugene on LinkedIn @ eugeneagoh

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