Farmers use weather, soil and air patterns to know the best time to plant. Trucking companies use traffic and geography data to finish routes in record times. Coffee shops use local foot traffic and Google search trends to push the perfect promos. Telemetry is for everyone — what can your business do with it?
In today’s business landscape, many companies seek data-driven insights to improve their decision-making processes. The ability to collect, analyze and derive meaning from vast amounts of data can drive sustainable growth and foster innovation within your organization.
Telemetry has emerged as one way to help businesses of all sizes optimize their operations and drive better business outcomes. With recent advances in cloud service offerings, you can now harness the power of telemetry more effectively than ever before — and without a hefty price tag.
In this blog, we share what telemetry is, explain why you should include it in your data collection plan and offer pro tips to re-imagine your enterprise data strategy.
What Is Telemetry?
Derived from the Greek words tele (far away) and metrōn (measure), telemetry is the process of collecting and recording data from remote, difficult-to-access places using specialized tools like sensors, devices, applications and networks. Telemetry data encompasses a range of parameters, spanning performance metrics, user behavior, environmental conditions, and more. By harnessing telemetry, you can cross-reference patterns from these diverse sources to gain visibility into your own operations and see how your business fits into the world around you.
A Few Fun Examples of Telemetry’s Potential
Not sure what telemetry could mean for your industry? Here are a few fun examples of how different sectors are unlocking its potential.
Let’s say you run an expanding chili pepper farm in New Mexico. By keeping your supplier, distributor and sales data in the cloud, you’ve been able to outpace local competition. But with rising temperatures and labor shortages, you’ve started to worry about your business’s position within the broader natural world and economy.
You turn to smart-connected farming, or telemetry-based farming, for help.
Telemetry-based farming allows you to monitor your crops’ health in real-time by using sensors that pick up on weather, soil and air data; area-specific climate change projections; commodity pricing and wages; and even global market trends. Together, these patterns can help you:
- Protect your crops from environmental threats.
- Naturally ward off pests.
- Predict crop yields.
- Retain your staff.
- Optimize your distribution strategy and more.
Telemetry insights can even let you know the best time to plant, irrigate and harvest. Now that’s a hot pepper strategy.
Here are two other real-life examples of industries taking advantage of telemetry data-driven insights:
- Predictive Maintenance: By analyzing telemetry data from machines and equipment, organizations across sectors can detect early signs of equipment failure, allowing them to proactively schedule maintenance, reduce downtime, and strategically allocate resources.
- Fleet Management: By leveraging telemetry data from GPS trackers, engine diagnostics and fuel sensors, logistics companies are able to plan better routes, monitor vehicle performance, reduce fuel use, and lower operational costs.
Companies are coming up with new, creative ways to use telemetry every day. What are some innovations from your field?
A Simple Way to Include Telemetry in Your Data Collection Plan
Cloud technologies can connect even small- and mid-sized companies with telemetry insights. If your business already uses cloud technology, you’re on the right track. A simple way to get started with harnessing the power of telemetry is to combine telemetry data with your existing cloud data.
First, invite your team(s) to a data brainstorming session and ask them to think about all the data sources that might give your business a boost. (The right data sources will depend on your sector, field and area of focus.)
Once you and your team make your data wish list, you’ll need to determine the best:
- Tools for gathering data (such as sensors, devices, web data, publicly available data repositories, and so on).
- People or teams to upload them to your cloud.
- Processes for combining cloud and telemetry data if your cloud technology doesn’t do this automatically.
Depending on their capabilities, your IT team might be able to walk you through these steps. If not, a third-party vendor or consulting firm can help. Likewise, if your company hasn’t yet adopted cloud technology, a consulting firm can work with you to determine which solution fits your business needs.
The Benefits of a Cloud-Based Approach to Telemetry
Merging your cloud and telemetry data can give your business a strategic advantage thanks to:
- Scalability: Cloud platforms offer flexible storage and processing capabilities, which can help your business handle vast amounts of data. As your business needs grow, the cloud can effortlessly scale to accommodate increased data volume.
- Real-Time Analytics: Cloud-based analytics tools can process telemetry data in real time, providing instant insights for critical decision-making. This capability lets you respond to changing market trends and customer demands right away.
- Cost-Effectiveness: Cloud solutions eliminate the need for extensive on-premises infrastructure and large up-front investments. By opting for pay-as-you-go models, you can manage costs, paying only for the resources you use and the value they generate. Once your cloud solutions prove their value, you can further improve them with reserved-cost models, which allow you to pay upfront for advantageous cloud services at a discounted rate.
- Data Security: Reputable cloud providers implement robust security measures, which protect stored data from unauthorized access and ensure your data complies with industry regulations.
Telemetry Is for Everyone
To equip your enterprise data strategy with the most strategic sources, consider integrating telemetry data with your cloud services. From start-ups to large enterprises, cloud-based telemetry solutions have leveled the playing field, empowering businesses to thrive in a shifting business landscape.
With efficient data collection plans and storage infrastructure, real-time analytics capabilities, scalability and robust security, cloud-based telemetry solutions have enabled organizations to gain valuable insights to support their goals and objectives. As cloud technology evolves, we can expect even more innovative ways to leverage telemetry for the benefit of businesses everywhere.
Data governance is essential to creating trustworthy, sustainable and repeatable value through data. What does that mean for you?
