Don't guess what users are thinking. This is the explosive temperament of smart devices.

Just like maintaining the homeostasis of the human body, achieving equilibrium in the commodity market also requires a similar feedback adjustment, that is, producers use user reactions as information to adjust product production strategies.

This is particularly important for the current smart hardware market. Against the backdrop of economic downturn, capital and consumers are beginning to return to rationality. Whether they can accurately target user needs and grasp market trends is increasingly becoming the key to determining the survival of smart devices.

In the second half of last year, iResearch cooperated with JD Intelligence to conduct an in-depth investigation on the smart hardware industry and recently released the fifth article in the series of research reports, "China Smart Hardware Industry Series Research Report - Purchase and Outlook". Combining the user feedback data and JD+'s many successful cases, we may be able to give a "profile" to the hot smart hardware products.

1. Practical functions and reliable performance

According to iResearch survey data, nearly 60% of users buy smart devices because they are attracted by the unique functions of the products. This can be confirmed by the sales volume of the products: wearable devices are one of the smart hardware categories with the highest sales volume on JD.com. These devices usually have practical functions such as health and sports monitoring.

In fact, whether it is intelligent or not, satisfying user needs is the ultimate mission of the product. In addition to basic needs such as health and safety, higher-level needs such as social and emotional needs are also of concern to users. The Elvis Radio took advantage of sentimental endorsements to capture users' nostalgic needs and became the first product in JD+'s first launch history to sell over one million units in a single week; the Jiluoke dashcam started with users' social needs and added a one-click video sharing function, which once became a star product on the JD platform.

From another perspective, behind user demand is the market. An investor once revealed that whether there is sufficient market scale support is an important indicator to judge the value of a project. It is reported that in 2016, the intelligentization of travel, audio and video, kitchenware and other fields will be the major directions that JD+ will focus on. It can be seen that the rigid demand of the consumer market has always been the focus of the strategy of large enterprises.

In addition to practical functions, product performance such as safety and accuracy will also greatly affect users' choice of smart devices. In turn, performance directly affects user reputation and brand image. Consumers' screening of performance will gradually eliminate those products that are just for show.

2. Convenient management and simple interaction

In further investigation of users who pay attention to these functions, iResearch found that human-computer interaction and interconnection are the two most popular functional modules among users.

If specific functions ensure that the product can solve specific problems, then reasonable human-computer interaction and interconnection design ensure that the product solves the problem without causing additional trouble to the user.

In terms of human-computer interaction, the introduction of some immature and inappropriate technologies will only cause confusion to users; in terms of interoperability, the lack of unified protocols among equipment manufacturers has added a lot of unnecessary learning and management costs to users.

On the latter point, the coordination of third-party platforms has alleviated the over-fragmentation of the smart hardware market to a certain extent. Take JD.com Microlink as an example. It mainly solves this problem. Through this solution, users can connect smart hardware of different brands and categories and manage all devices with one application. In addition, users can also define different personalized application scenarios according to their preferences to create their own smart life.

Some users want the smart experience of fashionable technology but are reluctant to give up their favorite traditional home appliance brands. The emergence of JD.com Weilian can make these users no longer entangled. At present, Weilian has covered 42 categories and more than 1,000 products, and has cooperated with many well-known home appliance brands to launch new smart products, such as Hisense, AUX, Galanz, etc.

3. Re-define the scene to change habits

Smart hardware has strong Internet attributes, and online channels such as e-commerce platforms and official shopping malls are the main ways for consumers to purchase smart products. Among e-commerce platforms, JD.com is the main battlefield for domestic smart device retail. According to iResearch data, 46.2% of smart device users choose JD.com.

According to JD.com's sales, there is another category of products that are particularly popular with consumers. This type of product breaks the original usage habits and creates a new usage scenario for users. The XGIMI screenless TV and dual-user accounts belong to this category. The former subverts the traditional TV image of watching images with a screen, while the latter brings people a plug-in smartphone dual-user experience.

In addition, JD.com itself is also trying to change user habits with smart products. JD.com Laidian is a smart device that can realize one-click purchase function. When commonly used products are about to run out, it will trigger a purchase reminder to remind users to buy. At the same time, consumers can also get door-to-door services such as housekeeping and laundry with one click. The birth of this new hardware has greatly improved the efficiency of users' purchase of goods and services.

VR, which has been very popular since the second half of last year, has this feature, and it is also one of the directions that JD+ is optimistic about. The relevant person in charge said that in the coming year, JD Intelligence will strengthen cooperation with manufacturers in this field.

Possessing the above characteristics may ensure that your product has a place in the market. In 2016, which may be the most difficult year, survival is undoubtedly the first priority. But don't forget that Steve Jobs said that the goal of an enterprise is to create needs that users need but cannot express. In the days of depression, the market's desire for genius will only be more urgent.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.