Why Social Hardware May Be The Most Important Wearable Application Yet

In our last post, we introduced the next wave of wearables - social hardware. Wearables have continued to evolve, exploding most recently in the health sector where they help us track, manage and even diagnose conditions. Technology on our bodies can now help us understand what’s going on inside of our bodies to gain greater control of our health. 

However, health doesn’t just stop at the physical. Much of the state of our health stems from the emotional and mental rigors we face just by going about our days. Chief among them? How we connect with others. Now that we live in a world where most of our exchanges happen digitally behind a screen, we’ve gotten more gun shy about how we act when we’re face-to-face with one another. It’s intimidating to approach someone new and strike up a conversation, and so much of our human nature spurs us from the discomfort. 

Going beyond the general hesitation innately built into social interactions, social anxiety disorder (SAD) is actually an increasingly prevalent problem. It’s estimated that 15 million American adults suffer from SAD, which means they experience heightened feelings of fear and anxiety in social situations.  

Of course, this is a real, medical condition - and there are several others - that should be addressed by a healthcare professional, but at Proxfinity we understand the weight of social interactions and want to do our small part to make them better. 

And why is that? Well, because we know the value of face-to-face interactions. In fact, a recent study found that in-person meetings were 34% more successful than email. Sure, email is quick, convenient and easy, but it removes the ability to build trust, and ultimately, relationships. 

That’s why we started with business applications. In-person interaction can have direct ROI and help people grow professionally. Our CUE smart badge is the perfect tool for business events - allowing people to network easily by connecting them via shared information displayed on their badge. This means you are meeting the right contacts and can then use the information aggregated on our back-end platform for easy follow up that hopefully turns into a rewarding and fruitful engagement.

Easing stress between colleagues and potential contacts in the workplace is important, but there are so many other social interactions that deserve the same support. Think of how many other social environments that make people vulnerable. Recruitment fairs, alumni gatherings, even speed dating. While, generally, we understand everyone is there for a similar reason, it can be hard to weed through the crowds to find the right match and make a meaningful connection. A simple ice breaker could be the difference maker for finding a new friend, the right contact for a project or even a spouse? 

That’s why the possibilities are not only endless for social hardware, but necessary. While technology and new-age tools have made it easier and faster for us to meet and communicate, we must look at them as a complement to, and not a supplement for, the connections we make in the flesh. 

As we grow at Proxfinity, we want to adapt the CUE smart badge for a wide range of social environments - helping people overcome the hurdles to making connections, not just professionally, but personally as well.