Never before has there been so much data available on the web about people. For companies, this represents a great opportunity: customer information allows them to optimize their business strategies. This is where the Internet of Behaviors or IoB comes into action . Find out what it is, how it works or what its benefits and controversies are.
What is the Internet Of Behaviors?
It is a technological trend that refers to how to use the information that a company or organization can manage to change people's behavior.
It is, therefore, the analysis of data collected through different means such as, for example, social networks, location tracking or facial recognition.
One of its main purposes is to understand behavior patterns, preferences and tastes of people, in order to influence their behavior. But, in addition to being an effective tool to increase sales, the data obtained is also intended to test the effectiveness of advertising campaigns, personalize content and experiences, or help develop other programs.
According to Gartner, an information technology research consultancy, the Behavioral Internet is projected to reach more than half of the world's population by the end of 2025, and by 2023 the IoB is expected to digitally track the individual activities of 40 % of people .
How does it work?
The Internet of Behaviors is the expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT). The latter, the Internet of Things, collects user data and converts it into information. In turn, the IoB converts this information into knowledge in order to get to know the consumer in more detail and, as has already been explained, its purpose is to intervene in their decision-making so that they consume a certain product or service.
Thus, the Behavioral Internet uses big data to analyze user behavior from a psychological perspective. Information is collected and interpreted. In this way, the consumer obtains a personalized experience and an advertising offer that really adds value and, for their part, companies optimize their commercial strategies.
Likewise, the IoB can concentrate, combine and process data from various sources, among which are customer data, data obtained by public and government agencies, social media, facial or voice recognition and physical activity monitoring.
Therefore, it is clear that the increasing refinement of these technologies has allowed this trend to grow.
Who is affected?
Internet of Behaviors tools are highly powerful for marketing and sales departments because they offer very detailed and personalized information about customers. For example, with smartphones it is very easy to track movements or with home assistants to record searches and the user's voice. This allows companies not only to create an image of the consumer, but also to understand their tastes, habits and, of course, behaviors.
But they can be used in other areas.
A very clear example is companies like Uber, dedicated to transporting people through a vehicle and its driver. Thanks to the IoT, drivers and passenger locations and preferences are tracked. At the end of each journey, a survey is conducted to assess the customer experience. But with the IoB, such information can be collected without the need to answer the survey, since the behavior of the driver can be tracked and then the experience of the passenger can be interpreted. In this way, feedback is automatically worked on.
Also the software company BMC has developed a health application for smartphones that tracks patients. Your diet, sleep patterns, heart rate, or blood sugar levels. Its objective is to warn of complicated situations of the user's health and suggest healthier behavior modifications.
What are its advantages?
Apart from personalization and trying to create a good service, the main benefits of Behavioral Internet are:
- Study the purchasing habits of customers in all available media.
- Analyze data to understand user attitudes and behaviors when they interact with devices and products, which were previously thought to be impossible to collect.
- Obtain more specific information that allows knowing where the customer is in the purchase process.
- Provide notifications at a point of sale in real time and target.
- Ability to solve problems and close sales quickly and efficiently, without affecting consumers.
And its limits?
The IoB also has its controversies. And it is that, a technology focused on the behavior of the user, although for many it results in an increase in the efficiency of the service, for others it is an intrusion into their privacy .
The ethical debate about how much information companies can obtain about their customers and how they use it, is served.
Likewise, and as a possible solution to this problem, for consumers to transfer this type of data, it is necessary for companies to work on privacy and cybersecurity policies that convey trust and do not violate legal limits.
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