The Internet of Things (IoT) is starting to take shape in new and interesting ways. Initial forecasts that we would have a collective 50 billion connected devices by 2020 may have been a bit optimistic, but that’s not stopping frontrunners like Amazon and Google from racing to see who can control the most devices by that pivotal turning point.
Smart TVs, smart refrigerators, and other smart devices are rolling out consistently, but the big focal point seems to be home-base “hubs,” where users can directly control all their appliances (and peruse the web) conveniently throughout their home. Amazon Echo and Google Home are two early and popular examples of this, but Amazon is trying to take the next step forward with the Amazon Echo Show.
Enter the Echo Show
Amazon recently announced the Amazon Echo Show, a variant of the original Amazon Echo device that serves many of the same functions, but with the addition of an interactive video screen. Blurring the lines between tablet, IoT hub, and personal digital assistant, the Amazon Echo Show’s functionality has only been introductorily explored, but already it has some big implications for online marketers.
Capable of sending and receiving video calls to/from other Echo Show users at any time and enabling a more intuitive user interface, this could be the spark of an entirely new wave of home-based devices.
What can marketers learn from this, and how should they prepare?
The Dawn of Video Search?
Voice search has been heralded as the future of search, and to be sure, users have been relying on voice searches in increasing numbers, steadily, since its first emergence on the scene. Some estimates claim that by 2020, 50 percent of all searches will be performed through vocal commands, and up until the Echo Show was announced, that seemed reasonable. Personal digital assistants keep getting better at recognizing language and providing helpful results—but what happens if a convenient, hands-free video screen suddenly enters the mix?
Echo Show employs voice search, but with a new twist; a more responsive, steady user interface that smartphones can’t provide. It may represent a new transformation of voice search, to something more akin to voice-driven video search, which could adapt based on user preferences and search intent. Needless to say, the SEO world could be turned on its head, forcing marketers to optimize for visual searches.
Better Hands-Free UI
I’ve written before about how traditional websites may be dying a slow death, making way for mobile apps and other direct-access interfaces that don’t require a web browser or search engine as a portal to retrieve content. The Echo Show, with its hands-free user interface, may end up accelerating that death. If users grow accustomed to getting all the content they need provided directly by this kind of hub, traffic to conventional websites will decrease, and brands will have to scramble to find new ways to achieve visibility.
Marketers will need to rethink their online “hubs,” produce apps for their customers to use, and may even need to partner with existing apps and brands to achieve higher or different kinds of visibility.
Division of Home and Mobile
One peculiar aspect of the Echo Show is its weight, clocking in at nearly a kilogram. Historically, as technology progresses, devices have become smaller and lighter, but the Echo Show seems to be a step in the opposite direction. Why? Because I believe we’re reaching an era where home-based devices and mobile devices are mutually exclusive. Smartphones aren’t the best tools for every digital job, but they specialize in mobile functionality, leaving an open space for IoT hubs like Echo Show to carve a new niche for themselves.
A rise in home-based device prevalence would cause a split in marketers’ goals. For the past five years or so, mobile devices have dictated everything from our website design to our content strategies. So what happens when mobile devices are only relevant for 50 percent of a customer’s time? Granted, many mobile strategies (like responsive web design and AMPs) will remain relevant, but new strategies will likely emerge to cater to home device users.
Of course, like smartwatches, home-based hubs could turn out to be a premature or misguided bet. Only time will tell if consumers are ready for them.
Device Integration and Data
Users will also be looking to integrate their Echo Shows with other internet-connected devices, stitching together the first initial IoT networks in individual residences. Of course, that also means Amazon (and any other companies that enter the ring) will suddenly have an influx of rich data on their users. In the short-term, this could mean better, more diverse advertising opportunities for companies willing to exploit that data. However, it also raises privacy concerns for users—which means brands will need to be careful not to be seen as intrusive or “creepy” for the types of data they use in their ad campaigns.
Looking to the Future
The Amazon Echo Show is available for pre-order now, but it won’t be released until June 28th. At that time, we’ll need to take a closer look at the true range of its functionality, and whether it counts as a basic upgrade to the Amazon Echo, or another big step toward an IoT-connected world.
It’s unlikely that one device will be enough to spark an entire marketing revolution, but it’s worth preparing for the potential upcoming changes—just in case.
