Beyond the feature trap: how manufacturers turn digital tools into revenue and relationships

​Most manufacturers who build smart products end up with apps that customers barely use, and the numbers bear this out: 80% of smart home apps have one-star ratings.

It’s not that these companies lack technical capability or good intentions, it’s that they’re solving the wrong problems in the wrong order, and by the time they realise it, they’ve spent months and significant budget going down a path that leads to poor adoption and little return.

This session looks at what separates the manufacturers who succeed in digitisation from those who don’t. We’ll walk through the critical early decisions that determine whether you’re building a welcome mat or barbed wire for your customers, why connectivity choices matter more than features, and how the 12% who get it right think about their digital products differently from the start.

We’ll also cover the business model question most manufacturers skip: how do you turn a companion app from a cost centre into something that drives revenue and builds ongoing customer relationships, rather than just another feature that comes in the box? And for companies with sustainability targets, we’ll look at how smart product data can help you influence customer behaviour in ways that support your Scope 3 goals while also improving retention.

This isn’t about adding AI to everything or chasing the latest tech trend, it’s about making smarter decisions earlier in your product development process so you don’t end up rebuilding six months down the line. If you’re working on connected products, IoT strategy, or trying to figure out how digitisation fits into your broader manufacturing business, this will give you a framework for thinking through these decisions with more clarity.