Dealerscope: ​In what ways has the dramatic consumer shift during the pandemic period towards an eCommerce shopping experience impacted the retail finance sector – particularly for the consumer technology and appliance industries? And do you expect the shift to sustain, even after buyers are able to shop for their tech products in person Orlando Zayas, CEO, Katapult: The pandemic forced financial service providers to shift focus from brick-and-mortar experiences to improving or creating a customer-centric ecommerce experience; it is not enough to just be online. The ecommerce experience and decision process is completely different from that of an in-store experience, it requires specific expertise and a strong understanding of the consumer. I anticipate that this trend will continue and ecommerce will continue to be an important segment to cater to. Martin Kuhn, President, Tempoe/SmartPay: Consumer buying behavior has moved aggressively toward ecommerce through the pandemic. In order for retailers make the most of each buying experience, offering a simple, integrated payment solution that reaches the widest potential customer base is critical. While we do expect a move back to more in-person shopping experiences, there is no doubt that a large portion of ecommerce buying behavior is now cemented into long-term consumer demands. Chad Lyon, Head of Electronics & Appliances, Wells Fargo Distribution Finance: The shift to an ecommerce shopping experience is one we’ve been following for some time. We expect this trend to continue, and feel the independent consumer technology and appliance retailers are well positioned for this movement. Seeing our retailers effectively add online capabilities to meet customer needs in a short period of time has been exciting to observe. They quickly invested in providing an omnichannel customer experience, one that is fully transactional with features aligning with evolving consumer behavior. Read More About Ciclk Here https://dealerscope.com/2021/04/smoothing-the-path-to-purchase/

A year ago, the worldwide population had to abruptly transform its normal daily activities to meet demands forced by lockdowns and social distancing measures. Naturally, being at home more than usual meant that we would prepare more meals, constantly switching between our kitchen appliances and laptops as we managed virtual meetings for parents and learning for children. According to Darren Seifer, food and beverage industry analyst for the NPD Group, consumers at the start of the pandemic fed their emotions, reaching for not-so-healthful options, snacking more often and consuming more sugar and alcohol as the lockdowns continued. As the months progressed and any hope of returning to “normal” anytime soon diminished, the population had an awakening of sorts. “They said to themselves, ‘I really can’t sustain this indulgence,’” Seifer explains. “And so we started to see consumers choosing better options. They were looking to indulge, but tried to do it more sensitively.” Foods such as nutrition bars or popcorn that were lower in fat or sugar suddenly became popular. Grocery shopping habits changed a bit as well — also a result of consumers being at home more. Instead of the proverbial “What’s for dinner?” question, there was a shift in focus to preparing more breakfast meals because families were not rushing out of the house for work and school. Seifer says that not only did pancake mix and egg sales increase, but also, sales of appliances — everything from waffle and bread makers to and juice and smoothie blenders — rose Read More About Click Here:_ https://dealerscope.com/2021/05/whats-cookin/

As the smart appliance market quickly grows as one of the most popular elements in the smart home, voice control represents a critical technology feature supporting it. According to research from SAR Insight, more than 66 million voice processors for smart appliances are expected to ship by 2024, representing a CAGR of 55% between 2019 and 2024. To that end, last week, Knowles Corporation, a global provider of advanced micro-acoustic microphones and speakers, audio processing, and precision device solutions, announced the AISonic™ White Goods (WGs) Standard Solution. According to Vikram Shrivastava, senior director, IoT Marketing, Knowles, the new White Goods Standard Solution was developed specifically to address the growing need for voice support in smart appliances such as refrigerators, ovens, microwaves, washing and drying machines, and others. VIKRAM SHRIVASTAVA, SENIOR DIRECTOR, IOT MARKETING, KNOWLES “As this market grows, so does the demand for voice integration. As such, OEMs and ODMs are being asked to deliver voice-enabled smart appliances that work correctly and efficiently, every time. This places mounting pressure on appliance manufacturers that are already attempting to build a multitude of complex, new smart features and connectivity to meet customer demand.” This new, complete development solution enables fast and easy voice integration for smart appliances, the company reports. The development kit enables OEM and ODMs to build voice-activated control and far-field speech recognition capabilities into smart appliances, including refrigerators, ovens and microwaves, clothes washing and drying machines, vacuums, dishwashers, and more. The Knowles WGs Standard Solution was used by Samsung in its FamilyHub™ connected hub for smart appliances. THE DEVELOPMENT KIT ENABLES OEM AND ODMS TO BUILD VOICE-ACTIVATED CONTROL AND FAR-FIELD SPEECH RECOGNITION CAPABILITIES INTO SMART APPLIANCES. The WGs Standard Solution solves a few problems, explained Shrivastava. “The development package itself is built on the AISonic Audio Edge Processor, which enables the most accurate contextual audio and sensing on the market for voice. Using advanced voice processing algorithms, much of the audio processing is moving to the edge and away from the cloud. This has helped simplify user interfaces and lower latency for more accurate voice recognition so that a consumer’s voice can always be heard, even in even in noisy kitchens or utility rooms where there is a lot of background noise.” Shrivastava further explained that the edge is also more cost-effective in terms of dollars and bandwidth. Selective wake-word detection and algorithms, rather than those that are always-listening, waiting for input, require less power consumption and bandwidth, which can translate into a better experience for consumers. “The ability for a consumer to ask their refrigerator to read aloud a grocery inventory, play a recipe video while cooking, or ask the oven to pre-heat while they prepare dinner, all contribute to the user experience and improve time spent in the kitchen or throughout the home,” he said. The Knowles White Goods Standard Solution supports voice service interoperability, allowing multiple voice assistants to be integrated into a single device and enabling customers to talk to the service of their choice in a secure manner by simply saying its name. This enables the Knowles WGs Standard Solution to be integrated into a broader ecosystem of smart appliance devices, allowing for greater product development freedom and innovation. Shrivastava recognizes the barriers with voice technology. “Voice has become a critical component of how end-users access their smart devices in the home. The single biggest barrier to widespread voice adoption remains accuracy. If a user has to ask a voice assistant to turn off the lights or to turn on their dishwasher three times, that is no more convenient than manually doing it. “By processing voice and audio on the edge, this friction is removed, providing high performance in a small size that support smart appliances that can more accurately listen to and immediately act on user requests – i.e., ’Alexa, turn my oven to 350 degrees.’ This level of seamless control and accessibility has a trickle-down impact on adoption. The more that consumers have a positive experience with voice control, the more they’ll want to adopt more devices using it and so on. So, getting voice integration right now is critical to supporting future growth of the smart home.” Retailers should expect to see more appliances with voice control built in as manufacturers begin to widely implement audio processing on the edge for voice, Shrivastava said. Integrators should continue to be aware of this trend and how it benefits consumers. “Recommending and installing smart appliances, like the Samsung FamilyHub™, that leverage audio edge processing for voice integration from companies like Knowles is a good place to start,” Shrivastava noted. For more information, visit Knowles.com.

It is a well-known truism that nothing succeeds like success. This maxim certainly applies to the modern smart home, where a new category of connected devices has been rapidly growing in adoption since 2014. This phenomenon has not been accidental. Parks Associates data indicates that 88 percent of U.S. households currently have broadband access. The pervasiveness of broadband access in the typical household has created a fertile ground for connected appliances, electronics, and other smart devices. Parks reports that 34 percent of broadband households own at least one connected device, with consumers owning an average of 13 connected devices (of any type) in their home, up from 9.2 in 2016 — a dramatic 41 percent increase in less than five years. Supercharging the smart home has been a rising desire by consumers to address and solve problems in the home. While the technical landscape of the smart home has been evolving (and continues to), new and existing homes must be “reimagined” with connected devices in mind. Parks Associates recently engaged with GE Appliances to develop a white paper that identifies the opportunities, headwinds, triggers, and dynamics in addressing the macro smart home opportunity. Many of the white paper’s chief findings and insights conjure up a whole host of topics that smart home companies should heed in their mission to address this growing but challenging technology category. Smart home device demographics Parks Associates’ research has identified convenience, comfort, and peace of mind as the central factors driving adoption. These primal factors have been abetted by traditional marketing attributes like increased brand/product awareness and co-marketing partnerships (particularly in legacy industries like energy providers, insurance companies, and energy providers). The smart home space, from its origin, has always had a DIY (Do-It-Yourself) guise, with the ensuing installation and setup consequences that early adopters and fast-follower consumers are willing to accept. Nevertheless, the overall percentage of U.S. broadband households owning three or more smart home devices increased by more than 64 percent in the past two years, up from 14 percent in 2018 to 23 percent at the end of 2020. It is hard to argue that COVID-19 has not played a central role in the scorching growth of video doorbells, as stay-at-home consumers (increasingly working from home) found unique appeal in the ability to monitor online deliveries and observe visitors to their homes, often in a remote manner. Parks data indicates that video doorbells experienced the highest growth level — up 86 percent over the past six years — of the most popular smart home devices. Contributing to the appeal of video doorbells, especially with the rise in crime in many urban and suburban areas around the United States, is the product’s ability to facilitate the overall safety of their neighborhoods by posting crime-solved videos of nefarious activity. Read more About: connected appliances

It is a well-known truism that nothing succeeds like success. This maxim certainly applies to the modern smart home, where a new category of connected devices has been rapidly growing in adoption since 2014. This phenomenon has not been accidental. Parks Associates data indicates that 88 percent of U.S. households currently have broadband access. The pervasiveness of broadband access in the typical household has created a fertile ground for connected appliances, electronics, and other smart devices. Parks reports that 34 percent of broadband households own at least one connected device, with consumers owning an average of 13 connected devices (of any type) in their home, up from 9.2 in 2016 — a dramatic 41 percent increase in less than five years. Supercharging the smart home has been a rising desire by consumers to address and solve problems in the home. While the technical landscape of the smart home has been evolving (and continues to), new and existing homes must be “reimagined” with connected devices in mind. Parks Associates recently engaged with GE Appliances to develop a white paper that identifies the opportunities, headwinds, triggers, and dynamics in addressing the macro smart home opportunity. Many of the white paper’s chief findings and insights conjure up a whole host of topics that smart home companies should heed in their mission to address this growing but challenging technology category. Smart home device demographics Parks Associates’ research has identified convenience, comfort, and peace of mind as the central factors driving adoption. These primal factors have been abetted by traditional marketing attributes like increased brand/product awareness and co-marketing partnerships (particularly in legacy industries like energy providers, insurance companies, and energy providers). The smart home space, from its origin, has always had a DIY (Do-It-Yourself) guise, with the ensuing installation and setup consequences that early adopters and fast-follower consumers are willing to accept. Nevertheless, the overall percentage of U.S. broadband households owning three or more smart home devices increased by more than 64 percent in the past two years, up from 14 percent in 2018 to 23 percent at the end of 2020. It is hard to argue that COVID-19 has not played a central role in the scorching growth of video doorbells, as stay-at-home consumers (increasingly working from home) found unique appeal in the ability to monitor online deliveries and observe visitors to their homes, often in a remote manner. Parks data indicates that video doorbells experienced the highest growth level — up 86 percent over the past six years — of the most popular smart home devices. Contributing to the appeal of video doorbells, especially with the rise in crime in many urban and suburban areas around the United States, is the product’s ability to facilitate the overall safety of their neighborhoods by posting crime-solved videos of nefarious activity. Read more About: connected appliances

It is a well-known truism that nothing succeeds like success. This maxim certainly applies to the modern smart home, where a new category of connected devices has been rapidly growing in adoption since 2014. This phenomenon has not been accidental. Parks Associates data indicates that 88 percent of U.S. households currently have broadband access. The pervasiveness of broadband access in the typical household has created a fertile ground for connected appliances, electronics, and other smart devices. Parks reports that 34 percent of broadband households own at least one connected device, with consumers owning an average of 13 connected devices (of any type) in their home, up from 9.2 in 2016 — a dramatic 41 percent increase in less than five years. Supercharging the smart home has been a rising desire by consumers to address and solve problems in the home. While the technical landscape of the smart home has been evolving (and continues to), new and existing homes must be “reimagined” with connected devices in mind. Parks Associates recently engaged with GE Appliances to develop a white paper that identifies the opportunities, headwinds, triggers, and dynamics in addressing the macro smart home opportunity. Many of the white paper’s chief findings and insights conjure up a whole host of topics that smart home companies should heed in their mission to address this growing but challenging technology category. Smart home device demographics Parks Associates’ research has identified convenience, comfort, and peace of mind as the central factors driving adoption. These primal factors have been abetted by traditional marketing attributes like increased brand/product awareness and co-marketing partnerships (particularly in legacy industries like energy providers, insurance companies, and energy providers). The smart home space, from its origin, has always had a DIY (Do-It-Yourself) guise, with the ensuing installation and setup consequences that early adopters and fast-follower consumers are willing to accept. Nevertheless, the overall percentage of U.S. broadband households owning three or more smart home devices increased by more than 64 percent in the past two years, up from 14 percent in 2018 to 23 percent at the end of 2020. It is hard to argue that COVID-19 has not played a central role in the scorching growth of video doorbells, as stay-at-home consumers (increasingly working from home) found unique appeal in the ability to monitor online deliveries and observe visitors to their homes, often in a remote manner. Parks data indicates that video doorbells experienced the highest growth level — up 86 percent over the past six years — of the most popular smart home devices. Contributing to the appeal of video doorbells, especially with the rise in crime in many urban and suburban areas around the United States, is the product’s ability to facilitate the overall safety of their neighborhoods by posting crime-solved videos of nefarious activity. Read more About: connected appliances

It is a well-known truism that nothing succeeds like success. This maxim certainly applies to the modern smart home, where a new category of connected devices has been rapidly growing in adoption since 2014. This phenomenon has not been accidental. Parks Associates data indicates that 88 percent of U.S. households currently have broadband access. The pervasiveness of broadband access in the typical household has created a fertile ground for connected appliances, electronics, and other smart devices. Parks reports that 34 percent of broadband households own at least one connected device, with consumers owning an average of 13 connected devices (of any type) in their home, up from 9.2 in 2016 — a dramatic 41 percent increase in less than five years. Supercharging the smart home has been a rising desire by consumers to address and solve problems in the home. While the technical landscape of the smart home has been evolving (and continues to), new and existing homes must be “reimagined” with connected devices in mind. Parks Associates recently engaged with GE Appliances to develop a white paper that identifies the opportunities, headwinds, triggers, and dynamics in addressing the macro smart home opportunity. Many of the white paper’s chief findings and insights conjure up a whole host of topics that smart home companies should heed in their mission to address this growing but challenging technology category. Smart home device demographics Parks Associates’ research has identified convenience, comfort, and peace of mind as the central factors driving adoption. These primal factors have been abetted by traditional marketing attributes like increased brand/product awareness and co-marketing partnerships (particularly in legacy industries like energy providers, insurance companies, and energy providers). The smart home space, from its origin, has always had a DIY (Do-It-Yourself) guise, with the ensuing installation and setup consequences that early adopters and fast-follower consumers are willing to accept. Nevertheless, the overall percentage of U.S. broadband households owning three or more smart home devices increased by more than 64 percent in the past two years, up from 14 percent in 2018 to 23 percent at the end of 2020. It is hard to argue that COVID-19 has not played a central role in the scorching growth of video doorbells, as stay-at-home consumers (increasingly working from home) found unique appeal in the ability to monitor online deliveries and observe visitors to their homes, often in a remote manner. Parks data indicates that video doorbells experienced the highest growth level — up 86 percent over the past six years — of the most popular smart home devices. Contributing to the appeal of video doorbells, especially with the rise in crime in many urban and suburban areas around the United States, is the product’s ability to facilitate the overall safety of their neighborhoods by posting crime-solved videos of nefarious activity. Read more About: connected appliances

The connected kitchen is catching on: As appliances become smarter, more consumers are seeking smart white goods that make life easier. By 2025, it’s expected that 11.6 percent of U.S. households will have some form of smart appliance, ranging from dishwashers to refrigerators and everything in between. Retailers are rising to meet the demand both online and in-store. Despite this groundswell, a study by CEDIA, BSH Home Appliances Corporation (a company of the Bosch Group), and CE Pro revealed that 38 percent of custom integrators have not completed a single project involving smart and connected appliances. While the majority of home technology pros want to integrate appliances into their product mix, learning to talk to consumers about how these products fit into the bigger “smart home” picture isn’t as simple as it might seem. A jumble of different options, inconsistent interoperability across devices, and varying control features can all make for a complicated conversation. As more leading smart appliance brands like LG and Bosch enter the custom integration space, dealers and integrators must step into consumers’ shoes. They’ll need to take the time to understand what the customer is hoping to achieve with a smart appliance, other goals an appliance might impact, and which devices should be part of the same smart home network. With a complete picture, dealers and their integration partners can help their customers take full advantage of smart home appliance features and avoid a Tower of Babel in their networked device communications. Understand the client’s existing set-up The first step is to understand the client’s existing ecosystem and how new appliances can further enhance or complicate it. Smart devices connect more than just homes; they connect lifestyles and add simplicity to day-to-day tasks. In bringing smart appliances into the conversation, begin by investigating which technologies the client already has in place, which AI assistants they are already using, and what they hope to achieve with smart appliance technology. As with other smart home solutions, the interface and features of these appliances should be comfortable and consistent with the rest of the home. If the homeowner is looking to add a smart appliance to a home without much tech beyond a voice assistant speaker, they might be open to a voice-activated fridge or washing machine that leverages the same cues and removes a lot of the intimidation out of taking on new technology. On the flip side, if a client has a fully integrated control system already in place, it’s important to offer the technology that will not only blend seamlessly into the ecosystem, but also enhance the convenience and function rather than detract from it. The smart home is meant to make life easier, with each device easing the burden of everyday tasks. That said, smart appliances aren’t hitting their full potential if they can’t co-exist with the network that’s already in place. To ensure that clients are getting the most out of smart appliances, interoperability should be a consideration early in the process. If a customer needs a separate app to help manage the dryer, or if it’s not tied into the whole-home control system or voice assistant they’re using, chances are these new features won’t be very helpful to them. Really, whatever tasks the smart dryer is supposed to alleviate have just been replaced by the new task of having to download, learn, and manage a new software program. Focus on the right features Outside of interoperability, features, and perks also need to be at the forefront of the conversation to make sure the appliances will deliver on what the homeowner is seeking. From mobile connectivity to remote-start the dishwasher, to smart mics that pick up voice commands from across the house, smart home devices should automate convenience. The right mix of features will depend on lifestyle: While some customers are interested in devices that prioritize safety sensors and remote control, others will want to prioritize efficiency. Some might even be seeking a bit of razzle-dazzle from a sleek, impressive device. Dealers can turn whatever perks appeal to homeowners into selling points. For example, if the customer is interested in monitoring and managing their home energy consumption, then they need smart appliances that are capable of reporting such data. Major appliances are some of the biggest energy suckers in the home, so no home energy management portrait is complete without them. Ideally, the smart home manager should be able to send remote commands to optimize efficiency as well, running cycles at off-peak power consumption hours, for instance. Some AI assistants can even make lifestyle recommendations based on data for connected devices, letting customers know if they should consider changing temperature settings or cycle durations for certain appliances to help meet green-home goals. These features aren’t merely virtuous; they demonstrate the literal value of smart appliances by quantifying utility savings over time. When offering a customer a smart appliance to meet green goals, always emphasize the financial savings as well. When making purchasing decisions, customers tend to value both environmental and cost considerations, but prioritize the latter. By offering smart appliances with eco modes, remote control, scheduled start, and other means of energy management, dealers can give customers the best of both worlds. Reduce the learning curve for the customer Some users will be driven more by pure convenience. In this case, the dealer and integrator must understand the existing device ecosystem well and ensure interoperability. They should also strive to limit behavior changes required from the customer. In the best cases, once the smart device is fully set up, it becomes proactive, giving the user suggestions and notifications through communication channels that the customer is already using. However, getting over that initial setup hurdle can be daunting. Bundling the appliance with setup services can not only increase the margin on the sale, but also improve the customer’s satisfaction with the purchase. As a bonus, it also gives the dealer insight into the customer’s smart home ecosystem, increasing opportunities for future sales. Smart appliances will only continue to find their way into connected home conversations: From asking the fridge for a head count on grocery items to telling the oven to preheat to 350 degrees when elbow deep in a turkey on Thanksgiving, smart appliances offer a unique advantage to the connected home ecosystem. Integrating them into the holistic home system can greatly enhance the user experience. Dealers and integrators should be prepared to start the conversation about which devices are the best fit for any consumer’s lifestyle.