All players in the smart home ecosystem – chipmakers and component providers, device manufacturers, software and platform providers, service providers, dealers and distributors – must have a strong understanding of consumer preferences, intentions and biases in order to develop effective product development and communication strategies.

Smart Home Matrix: Consumer ^TM provides quarterly consumer tracking data on buyer behavior and preferences, unique segmentation with personas, brand analysis, and quarterly “focus topics.” Designed for business decision-makers in the smart home ecosystem who rely on timely insight into consumer preferences, intentions, and biases.

2023

Volume 1: Smart Home and Single-Family Homebuyers and Renters

How does smart home tech compare with other new amenities for homebuyers and renters? What are their preferences for product selection, installation, and payment? How do expectations for smart home pre-installation influence the homebuying process? What platforms are preferred? This edition of Smart Home Matrix takes a look at single-family homebuyer tech preferences along with trending data on product adoption, purchase behavior, and application of Interpret’s trademark segmentation of the general population to their aspirations and lifestyle preferences.

2022

Volume 1: Consumer Segmentation and Brand Alignment report

Interpret research puts a priority on understanding how smart home buyers progress through stages of ownership and interest in interoperability as they move toward a complete smart home experience. This report provides an update on Interpret’s market maturity segmentation model that is tracking substantive movements. The report also applies that segmentation model and its underlying demographics to better understand how leading brands compare to one another.

Volume 2: Consumer Trends Update & Smart Access Control report

Interpret research puts a priority on understanding how smart home buyers progress through stages of ownership and interest in interoperability as they move toward a complete smart home experience. This report provides an update on Interpret’s market maturity segmentation model that is tracking substantive movements. The report also applies that segmentation model and its underlying demographics to better understand how leading brands compare to one another.

Why do consumers buy networking hardware from sources other than their ISP? What home networking features or service are they most likely to pay for?  What is their likelihood of changing services and why? The report also introduces Interpret’s new proprietary segmentation of US adults drawn from over 50 data points around smart home attitudes, lifestyle preferences, use case interest, fears, and values: Meet the Starters, Safe N’ Sounds, Savers, and Socials.  Our quarterly update on product ownership and intentions, purchase behavior, and user experience preferences is included as always.

How are buyers of security products changing as DIY security solutions gain in share? How satisfied are they with available features? How can smart security system owners and potential owners be segmented in a way that provides more nuance than merely DIY and Pro? How satisfied are smart security system owners with their self- and pro-0monitored systems? As this report takes a deeper look at home security, it applies Interpret’s two proprietary smart home segmentation models to deliver a more three-dimensional look at consumers that can inform more highly targeted sales and marketing strategies.  Quarterly trends updates provided along with dashboards for 14 product categories.

2021

Volume 1: Owners of Smart Security Systems vs. Standalone Security Devices

Products like Wi-Fi cameras and video doorbells can complement or compete with smart security systems. This report clarifies fact from fiction, with insight into how system and device owners differ, and where they overlap. Tracking data on sixteen smart home product categories covers adoption, purchase intentions, and sentiment of product owners.

Volume 2: Understanding Smart Home Buyer Personas

Until recently, many device makers believed their target audience was a male, gadget-loving technophile. While this group continues to be important, the largest buying segment leans slightly female, and tends to own one to three products. Connecting with this buyer segment requires an understanding of where she lives, shops, goes for entertainment, and who are her influencers. This report focuses on four unique smart home buyer segments and identifies unique buyer personas.

Volume 3: Tracking Smart Home Purchase Journeys

Smart home buyers are increasingly varied in their purchase motives, channel preferences, sequence of acquisition, and benefits sought. Interpret applies its unique customer segmentation model to trace the patterns and paths key segments take along their purchase journey. This report provides insight into priorities shaping subsequent purchases, with implications for where and how certain segments can be won over.

Volume 4: Smart Cameras and Video Services

Consumer interest in Wi-Fi camera products is surging with new form factors, features, and attached services providing an array of options. This report looks at adoption, brand, purchase considerations, price points, installation, and the uptake rate and fees paid for cloud storage services.

Smart Home Matrix Global: Western Europe

With consumer familiarity rising and pandemic restrictions driving home investments, the smart home market in Western Europe has accelerated to new highs. Interpret’s latest study, Smart Home Matrix Global: Western Europe draws on an annual quantitative study of consumers in 15 countries. Western Europe findings include data from UK, France, Germany, and Spain. Topics include adoption, purchase intentions, and recent purchase levels of 12 smart home product categories and digital service subscription levels. The report includes forecasting metrics on annual purchasing behavior: single unit vs bundle, new vs replacement or additional unit, average price paid, and purchase channels. Also, this year’s report provides a special look into home networking hardware, purchase channels, payment methods, purchase motivations for BYOD networking devices, and the demographics of those who purchase hardware from an ISP versus those purchasing from other channels.