How to Identify Potential IoT Use Cases

Now that you understand the six categories of value created by IoT Solutions and the three phases of value unlocked by IoT Solutions, let’s explore how to come up with IoT use cases. We’ve created this resource of potential IoT use cases which can help as a starting point, but the universe of viable use cases is much broader than we can possibly capture.

Questions to Ask Yourself

To identify potential IoT use cases, you can use the following questions as a framework.

#1: Do you have unique insight into any industries where you see problems that could be solved with automatic, real-time data?

This is most applicable to entrepreneurs setting out to create a startup, though it might also apply to larger enterprises. There are many industries with problems that could be solved by the application of IoT technologies, and the only thing standing in the way is knowledge. The companies that are facing the problem don’t have the necessary knowledge about IoT to solve their own problem. The companies that could solve the problem with IoT might not have the knowledge that the problem exists.

For example, you might have deep knowledge of the medical device industry which is how you know that the OEMs have a problem with their surgical kits. The surgical kits are extremely expensive, and therefore the OEMs want to rent the surgical kits to hospitals as frequently as possible (i.e. high inventory turn). However, the OEMs have no idea where all their surgical kits are (to ensure they’re being utilized to generate revenue) and when the hospitals are done using the kits (to ensure the kits get reallocated to a different hospital that’s willing to pay to maximize inventory turn for the kit). With this deep industry knowledge, you have the opportunity to create a startup that solves this problem with IoT which is exactly what QMed Innovations did.

#2: What IoT use cases have been successful in other regions that aren't yet widespread in your own region?

This is called “geographic following” and can be very effective for identifying use cases. If you see use cases that have been successful in other regions, you can have greater confidence that those use cases will work in your region too. However, it’s important that you also examine why those use cases aren’t yet widespread here in your region because there might be good reasons ( differences in regulations, market structure, customer expectations, local infrastructure, and more).

#3: What existing customers do you have who are interested in IoT solutions?

This is applicable to large enterprises with an existing customer base, but not for entrepreneurs creating a startup. It’s always easier to sell to existing customers than it is to win entirely new customers because you already have the relationship, contacts, and the necessary contracts/billing to work together. Therefore, it’s worth examining whether any of your existing customers are interested in IoT Solutions. Talk with your sales and/or account management functions to see if your customers have been expressing the desire for any IoT Solutions.

#4: In what major physical industries (agriculture, manufacturing, transportation, and more) do you have existing customer relationships?

Even if you don’t have any direct interest in IoT solutions, you should still review your existing customer base to see if there are any major physical industries that are represented. Remember, for large enterprises, it will be easier to sell into existing customers than to win entirely new customers, so if you already have a lot of customers in transportation (for example), then a use case in transportation would put you in a position of strength.

Large industries that have significant physical components are good candidates. Some examples include Transportation, Wholesale and Retail Trade, Construction, Field Services, Logistics, Utilities and Energy, Government, Healthcare, Education, Manufacturing, and Food and Beverage.

Questions to Ask Your Customers

Go to your customers and ask them the following questions:

1. Are there things that consistently get stolen or lost?
   • What are those things?
   • How expensive are those things?
   • What is the cost to your business on an annual basis?
2. Are there things you consistently need to send people to go check manually?
   • What are they checking?
   • How expensive is it to send to people each time?
   • How many total times do people get sent?
3. Do you have people who manually collect data?
   • What data is it?
   • How frequently do they collect that data?
   • How long does it take them on a daily basis?
   • How much are those people paid?
4. Do you incur any regulatory penalties for failing to comply with regulations?
   • What are the penalties for?
   • How expensive are those penalties?
   • How often are you penalized?
5. Do you provide a service to customers where expectations and communications about wait time are important?

Assessing Viability

Once you’ve asked these questions of your customers, the next step is to evaluate the viability of your potential IoT use cases. Read part 4 of this series to learn how to effectively evaluate IoT use cases before you invest in building them.