A fridge that orders groceries for you? Some would call it luxury, but appliance manufacturers are hoping that it will soon become a reality for many consumers. Gartner, Inc. estimates that 20.8 billion connected devices will be in use by 2020.

From the shows they watch to the brand of yogurt they buy, brand marketers will use data created by these “internet things” to understand their customers like never before. Layering on social affinities data will be invaluable to brand marketers in three ways:

1. Brand recommendations become much more relevant, one household at a time.

The smart fridge can restock your fridge, and your TV can recommend shows, but without an outside signal, these insights will be siloed and only applicable to the household that has the gadget. Social affinities can meaningfully extend the scope of insights delivered by the smart fridge. For example, a connected refrigerator that automatically reorders Vlasic pickles could also recommend the newest products from Jennie-O using social affinities – it turns out that these two go as well together on social as they do on a sandwich. Jennie-O can also take advantage of the exponential scale that comes from social engagers versus past purchasers.

2. Attribution will get a whole lot better.

There’s no topic more important to marketers today than measurement. Accountability is increasingly in demand. Imagine how powerful it would be to have a variety of datasets that can be an integrated single-source roadmap of the consumer journey. Affinities determine which households are most receptive to content and messaging from new brands, subsequent mobile + desktop behaviors proxy for intent, and the household appliance – the fridge, the washer and dryer, the coffee maker – records the actual purchase. This has long been the Holy Grail of marketers, and while we’re a long way from realizing the vision, the journey starts with social affinities.

3. Brand marketers will be one step closer to knowing the whole story.

As typical household appliances become smarter, consumers are going to draw less distinction between their “digital” and “analog” lives less and less. Social media reflects the most complete audience profile because of its accessibility – where else do consumers react to their experiences with brands at such scale?

Think ahead to 2020, when those 20.8 billion devices are in use. When social affinity is integrated with the data from a fully connected household, marketers will be able to fill in crucial gaps. For example, when that refrigerator recommended Jennie-O’s new products, did the level of social engagement increase among Vlasic pickles fans? If so, this indicates a level of success beyond just the purchase; it means that Jennie-O succeeded in gaining new audiences among Vlasic fans, and creating a stronger brand along with it.

Affinities are already introducing your brand to its most qualified audiences.

Schedule a conversation with us to find out how to put them to work for you.