Study: Are retailers ready for IoT?

Retailers know the Internet of Things (IoT) is coming and will bring significant changes. But their preparedness for it is less certain.



According to a new survey from RSR Research, “The Internet of Things in Retail – Great Expectations,” 42% of surveyed retailers strongly agree and another 38% agree that IoT will drastically change the way companies do business in the next three years. IoT is generally as a network of “smart” devices with Internet connectivity that can automate many retail functions, such as ordering products or sending alerts when they need repair or replacement.



In addition, similar percentages of respondents strongly agree (39%) or agree (41%) IoT will have a dramatic impact on consumer products in the next three years.



However, there is far less industry agreement on how prepared retailers are for these impending changes. When presented with the statement “My company has no idea how IoT will impact our own operations in the next three years,” 13% of respondents strongly agreed and 21% agreed. This means one-third (34%) of surveyed retailers admit they are not prepared for IoT.



Another 22% are neutral on whether or not they have an idea about IoT’s impact. Thus less than half of respondents are confident enough in their IoT preparedness to disagree (30%) or strongly disagree (14%) with the statement.