How to Do Wearables the Right Way

With the announcement of the Apple Watch, wearables are once again a hot topic in the tech world.

However, the Apple Watch – along with similar offerings from Samsung and others – only deals with one segment of the market for wearables. There are plenty of other wearables out there with different form factors and use cases.

I’ve had the privilege of working with some of Applico’s clients to help take a few of these wonderful wearables to market – some consumers know (like prototypes of the early smart watches for global device manufacturers) while others they might not (such as a forthcoming fertility tool). So whether you’re looking to build the next smartwatch, thinking about building a software platform on top of one or doing something else entirely, here are eight lessons for how to make a winning wearable.

Address an inelastic consumer demand

In other words, pick a use case consumers will be determined to satisfy, like achieving or avoiding pregnancy. We have learned from the FuelBand and other moderate-to-vigorous activity monitors that interacting with general “quantified self” data is interesting, but it becomes less useful to consumers as they familiarize with their normal patterns of activity.

As a result, many of these devices experience user attrition after a period of six-or-so months. However, if a couple is trying to become pregnant, they will likely adhere to a regimen until they are successful, despite “fatigue” incurred by wearing or using the device over time.

Enable the previously impossible

Shockbox and ICEdot are helmet sensors that detect impact. If a football player gets a concussion, Shockbox will immediately notify a guardian, and if a motorcyclist falls forcefully, ICEdot calls 911.

Before “instrumented” helmets, an unconscious rider would not be able to seek help. Now, using an ICEdot helmet could mean the difference between life and death. Connectivity in helmets is a category-buster that will compel people to buy new products even if they weren’t otherwise planning to do so.

Size your potential consumer and producer markets

By “consumer” market we mean the users who would opt-in to using the wearable, and by “producer” market we mean the developer users who might potentially build software or other related experiences on top of your platform. It takes just as much time and effort to build for a big addressable market as it does to build for a small one, so choose your playing field wisely.

Foolproof the onboarding process

In software, developers have limited opportunity to acquire new users and often do so at considerable cost.

Without a proper introduction to a new experience, users have a lower likelihood of converting on intended behaviors. Hardware adds another layer of complexity, and often, a price barrier to users who buy new equipment and learn new interactions with the device and accompanying software.

Expose the most granular insights

Sensors can gather very contextual information about users, such as which products they are investigating in a brick-and-mortar store, how much topspin a tennis player places on a serve, or how regularly a patient ingests prescribed medicine. When a behavioral outcome can be measurably improved, it becomes easier to measure producer and consumer ROI.

Define emotional indicators

If you can identify markers of a consumer’s upbeat mood, the consumer’s lifetime value increases. Research shows that people are more likely to spend money when they’re either especially happy or sad, which means developers can push commercial offers to consumers during at the right time with higher conversion rates than offers based on categorically-tagged interests alone.

Consider whether new hardware is necessary

Producing new hardware involves all sorts of R&D costs including business strategy, product strategy, user-centered design, prototyping, validation, procurement, manufacturing, distribution, and sometimes even regulatory approval.

A more approachable option for a first-time wearable pioneer would be to identify a use case that can be satisfied by software running on another development platform, such as the Apple Watch or Android Wear. If you can gain traction on the software first, migrating an existing user base and building a business case to support new hardware will be easier.

Build an ecosystem before it’s too late

Whether speaking about a hardware product, a software application, or a combination of the two, every product has a limited timeframe before it has to be retired.

Before that happens, you need to build the network effects that will grow your value proposition and keep your users coming back, especially when it’s time to re-up at the end of a product’s lifecycle.

There’s a ticking clock to build an ecosystem, invite 3^rd party content and experience producers to the platform, cross-sell related products and services or build user profiles sufficient to recommend behaviors to all platform participants.

Ultimately, the network effects constitute a platform beyond the novelty of the wearable’s initial use.

Filed under: Product Engineering | Topics: apple watch, platforms, Wearables