• by Chuck Martin , Staff Writer, June 26, 2016

Some serious marketing dollars may have to be spent just to get consumers aware of smart home products and how to go about getting one.

Most consumers don’t know where to turn to buy smart home products or services, that is, if they even know about them.

The reality is that smart home devices are relatively new and not likely to be on the average person’s radar until they need or want a particular new or replacement device for their home.

And when someone decides they want a so-called smart home device, many don’t know where to turn at that point, based on a new study.

Fewer than a third (30%) of households are familiar with where to buy smart home products or services, according the study by Parks Associates.

And of those, fewer than half (40%) prefer to buy the smart products at retail outlets, particularly home improvement stores.

But there still is a gap between stores selling smart products and consumers acquiring them.

I routinely visit retailers including Home Depot and Best Buy and ask salespeople about what smart products they sell.

After a blank stare or question of what that means, I’m typically directed to ‘the person who knows about that’ or referred to the small display where a smattering of smart light bulbs are stacked.

Roughly 40% of U.S. broadband households familiar with smart home products learned about them from TV or the Internet, according to Parks, suggesting that smart home companies are developing more robust TV and Internet consumer marketing strategies to reach consumers who have no idea where to get smart home products.

Interestingly, it may not be only the retailer who benefits from the campaigns.

Of those familiar with where to buy smart home products, 31% would rather get them from a home security provider, 23% from an Internet service provider and 12% from a pay-TV provider, according to Parks.

As of this year, about a quarter (24%) of households plan to buy some smart lighting, such as smart light bulbs or smart in-wall outlet/switches and 11% plan to buy a smart thermostat.

It looks like the next round of marketing and advertising dollars for the Internet of Things will be heading to educating consumers about the benefits of smart home devices.

Then they, or the retailers, better let them know where they can get them.

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The MediaPost IoT Marketing Forum is being held Aug. 3 in New York. Check it out the agenda here