Post CES – Looking Beyond the Shiny Objects by Luke Eid TBWA\WW
I promise this is not another CES trend report! I’m sure by nowyour inbox and newsfeed has provided you with the generalthemes of the year; sensors for everything, the word “smart” preceding names of objects, mundane or not, 3D printing of titanium to food. Ks and curves. Autonomous cars. And the Internet of Everything summing up how it has transcended from computers and browsers to part of our physical lives.
I was torn on writing a post CES piece so far out from the event, but I felt that beneath all the recent hype there were some much more fundamental and encouraging trends occurring. Signs of the tech industry maturing, which will have implications on brands as the technology continues to influence human behaviours and the direction of business today.
Let me start with the end user. To date, the first-gen applications of tech are usually very ‘tech for tech’s sake’; an experiment to learn how far we can push technology without really focusing too much on the end user or the real world application. Think Google Glass: an amazing piece of tech but not really solving a real-world problem.
Google even acknowledged it just this week by announcing they will stop selling Glass while reassessing its application. Or if we look further back, there was the first-generation smart fridge that brought an internet browser to the kitchen so that we could look up the recipe for tonight’s chicken cacciatore. Again, not really solving a real human pain point.
However, this year, there was an emphasis on solving real human problems. The latest smart Fridge by Bosch actually had some of the most basic technology in it; a camera on the inside of the door and one at the rear of the fridge so you could take a peek at what’s in there from the supermarket via your smartphone. Simple. And solves a real world problem (well, a first world problem). There were examples of this throughout the event such as the football helmet that can analyze for concussions after a tackle or the ability for diabetics to check their glucose levels simply by plugging a small device into the headphone jack of a smartphone.
“ Consumers will be less interested in shiny objects & more in how it truly adds value to their lives.”
While there were still many cases of pushing technology for innovation’s sake, it was apparent our application of technology was maturing and with it we saw a bigger emphasis on the end user rather than just experimentation. Brands and agencies need to take heed as they continue to bring tech into their products and marketing.
Consumers will be less interested in shiny objects and more in how it truly adds value to their lives. If you can’t answer the simple question; how does this benefit the end user, then it could end up being a very costly experiment.
From a business value perspective, there was also a change in direction. Particularly on the platform side of things. I joined briefings by Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Shazam on their future developments and I was struck by a similar chord in each discussion. We have shifted from talking about advertising technology that will increase targeting and clicks while decreasing costs, to now focus on how they can drive and measure real business value.
You might think we have been talking about this the whole time, but we haven’t. We didn’t truly know if Facebook was making an impact on the bottom line. I’m sure you all remember the bombshell General Motors dropped right before Facebook’s IPO to stop advertising on the platform as they felt the rewards weren’t justifying the cost. Fast forward to today, GM is back on the platform and Facebook is now putting more emphasis on measuring the true business impact of their platform, mainly underpinned by their acquisition of Atlas and through smarter use of their Facebook ID across the entire customer journey (beyond Facebook itself). They are also opening up their insight-rich audience data to brands and agencies to help inspire creative ideas rather than the data just going to the machines that do all the work when click ‘buy’ on your sponsored ad post.
Even with the other players, the conversations had moved from ad formats and clicks to how they can enhance a brand experience on the platform or in Shazam’s case, become a bridge or conduit between any format of traditional media like TVCs, retail, print etc... and link people through to digital content. A problem that to date no one piece of tech has truly solved. Bless the QR code for trying.
DESIGN & USER EXPERIENCE IS THE DIFFERENTIATOR
This year, there was an immense amount of duplication. Tech and functionality was no longer the product differentiator. There were dozens of smart watches, 3D printers for everything, even half a floor dedicated to fitness trackers. The big players were no different, curved TVs, 4K, etc... It was the same tech in a different package.
Cue... the need for design and ultimately the perfect user experience. It was the tech players who had clearly allowed designers to join the team that won the show.
Wearable tech imageFrom a product design perspective, Withings was a standout as they had bridged the craft and style of analogue with digital in their Swiss-made Activité watch which only uses a single hand devoted to providing whatever data you need on your wrist.
Apple has always been a leading example for bringing design to function but
it seemed manufacturers weren’t just taking a leaf from Apple’s book when it comes to design. They were actually bringing Apple into their products. Audi had big presence this year showing off their latest advancements but between all the hype around autonomous driving and the latest laser light technology, you could see Apple Car Play running on their multimedia interfaces.
Sony made a similar move with their latest TVs, announcing at CES that they will drop their own operating system and replace it with Android TV. In both of these cases, Sony and Audi have put the end user’s experience ahead of their own interest. LG played it a bit safer hedging their bets by adopting Android for their smart watches but also further developing their own WebOS platform.
The learning here is; focus on what your brand does best and don’t try and create something you’re not good at. Audi was never a software company, they are engineers. Apple makes the best operating systems in the world. It seems simple, but too often than not do I see brands and agencies trying to create their own products and software rather than looking at who’s providing the best user experience (or building them) and then partnering with them.
I’m OCD... all this data about my every move is going to drive me insane. Even if you’re not addicted to knowing your heart rate level and how many steps you take each day, it can become overwhelming to know so much just by looking down at your wrist.
Fortunately, I saw something different happening this year. Yes, there were literally thousands of wearables giving some form of data output. But this time, there were a few examples where the data from your wearables was not for your own vanity, but actually there to make your life better.
A standout was iFit which has a range of fitness trackers and smart things like everyone else. But the difference here is, the data is used to tailor to a variety of devices already involved in your daily routines (e.g. gym equipment, your bed and even food around your activity). If you have a bad sleep then your treadmill will adjust your daily workout to compensate for the lack of sleep. Your bed will even wake you up softly by slightly elevating the top half when it’s time to wake up. OK, not quite groundbreaking, but the intent to use the data to personalise other products and devices within the ecosystem was a positive step forward.
GM also made an announcement at the same time as CES. Using their OnStar technology installed in many of its vehicles, you can now opt in for GM to track your driving behaviors and rather than just display it back to you, it can use this data to determine how safe of a driver you are, which can lower your insurance premium.
There is already a personal version of this with other companies using fitness and health trackers to tailor health insurance to your activity, such as Validic, although they weren’t present at CES this year.
As we get closer to the projected 50 billion connected devices expected to come online by 2020, brands will need to consider how all these data feeds can be used to understand their customers better and ultimately provide a more personalised experience, rather than just displaying a bunch of numbers on a screen.
By far the most encouraging trend I saw this year, was a move to become a more open world. It wasn’t obvious at first but if you looked closely, there were signs of this throughout the event. Facebook has opened up its vault of data to brands and agencies to tap into responsibly. Whitings, one of the leaders in smart devices and wearables has an open API enabling brands and developers to build services and experiences around the data collected.
Beyond open data, there were evolving examples of open ecosystems. Sony and Audi chose to adopt Android and Apple OS respectively rather than keeping a closed ecosystem. Even the world’s smartest thermostat become an open ecosystem with NEST announcing their “Works with Nest” program with 15 other smart devices for your home included in the roster, such as baby monitors, washing machines and even your car. As I write this I just saw the announcement by Microsoft to enable Chrome Extensions on their latest internet browser. It may seem counter intuitive but opening up your ecosystems can mean more brands and developers can enhance and add to your product experience. It also means your customers have a better experience as they can move seamlessly between products and devices.
And finally, while it wasn’t apparent on the floor, the idea of open innovation is becoming more important than ever. I saw technologies of all kinds that could potentially disrupt a brands category if they didn’t cultivate and embrace these emerging technologies. In the years to come, 3D scanning and printing will be a scary one for any brand that has physical objects
as part of their product. I believe it will have a similar impact as what downloadable mp3s did to the music industry a decade ago. Brands will want to be ahead of the curve this time and find a way to bring the tech into their products rather than try and resist it.
“Some of these new tech companies have the potential to completely disrupt entire brand categories”
In saying that, I saw a lot of tech that could wither away without the type of support big brands can provide from a marketing, infrastructure and distribution perspective. Brands and agencies generally look inside for ideas and solutions. However, by opening up to the notion that an idea can come from outside the company and partnering, incubating, acquiring or whatever it takes to work with emerging tech players, they can evolve their own products and services, or even their marketing initiatives.
The risk if they don’t? Some of these new tech companies could completely disrupt a brand’s category. Think of what Square has done to payment services in the finance category. The risk of lost opportunity is big, but the risk of doing nothing and then finding your product becomes irrelevant in years to come is fatal.
LUKE EID, TBWA\WORLDWIDE JANUARY 2015
