At trade shows around the world, product companies are rolling out a variety of networking devices to gain a foothold in the growing market for the Internet of things.

From industrial equipment to sportswear, connected devices are becoming a part of our work and daily lives, and there are even more products that affect us in ways we dont understand.However, many companies dont think of the Internet of things beyond connected devices.

Its easy to think of the Internet of things as just connecting devices to the Internet, but its certainly more than that.While connectivity is one of the cornerstones of the Internet of things, companies that focus exclusively on connected devices are in fact ignoring its main advantages.

According to a recent report from Forrester, connectivity is a top priority for product companies, not a primary one, but less than a third (29%) of companies actually use the data collected to create actionable insights that benefit customers and expand business opportunities.This suggests that there is still work to be done to fine-tune the companys approach to the Internet of things, and points out that people are missing out on getting the most value out of it.

Connectivity is the foundation of the Internet of things, but it is not the most important reason or purpose for the existence of the Internet of things. In the journey of networking products, network connectivity is the only way to new experiences and new functions, but not the final destination of the journey.

Truly successful networking products should add value to the enterprise.The Internet of things should lead to better products. Data collected from connected products can provide new interaction models for products, and provide data to help companies understand customers and how customers use products, thus helping companies build and improve better products.

Networking products should also provide better support for active user participation, allowing support teams to use product-generated data to solve problems quickly and remotely, even before customers discover problems.In addition, creating connected products also improves a companys sales expectations, and iot data on how products are used can help companies achieve cross-selling and up-selling opportunities.

Business benefits are easy to see, but implementing them is not easy, and as the number of devices and data points increases every day, one of the biggest challenges is managing the devices and understanding all the data.Its basically useless without a way to manage data, which is where the networked product management (CPM) comes in. CPM can help companies navigate this new space, help them manage continuous communication, and ensure a seamless customer experience across all networked products.

The truth is, the Internet of things isnt really about devices.Its about the new user experience that can be provided, and how much it can bridge the gap between the product company and the customer.Before the Internet of things, product companies had only anecdotal information about how customers used (or didnt use) their products.The Internet of things has dramatically changed that, enabling customers and product companies to go hand in hand and communicate at every stage of the experience.

There are many benefits to the Internet of things, but for connected devices to realize their unquestioned potential, product companies must first understand how it can (and will) change their business, and think beyond connected devices, to see the bigger picture.

In the increasingly competitive Internet of things market, there will be no shortage of devices capable of performing similar functions, and the network connection itself is not enough to become the main advantage of differentiated competition.On the contrary, user experience and value-added services will become the main factors for differentiated competition, and the product companies that grasp this and take actions will put themselves in a favorable position and get the most benefits from the Internet of things.