# Towards a Maturity Model for IoT Adoption by B2C Companies
## 4 Identified Dimensions from the Literature Analysis
### Communication with Consumers  
Another important perspective to consider while investigating IoT adoption concerns the viewpoint of consumers. Here consumers are understood as end-users, who use and interact with IoT solutions. [PERSON], [PERSON], and [PERSON] [31] found that the most important variables figuring in the implementation process apart from already discussed information privacy and security concerns are perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, trust, and cost. While the last factor is straightforward for understanding from the point of view of the consumer, the others require a more thorough analysis.  
Although formulated slightly differently, the term perceived usefulness is present in several models (i.e., technology acceptance model, unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, diffusion of innovation) and explains a single concept in all of them--the added value to the performance users of the new technology expect to obtain from adopting it [31]. [PERSON] and [PERSON] [32] found that the consumers' perception of usefulness is the most significant predictor compared to other mentioned variables. Equivalently, [PERSON] [33] reports that the level of satisfaction with the actual IoT product compared to the expectations is said to have an impact on consumer's trust, which in turn affects the willingness to adopt that product. This finding was also backed up by an empirical study in the same research, where perceived usefulness received the highest number of responses indicating it as a favourable factor for the IoT technology adoption. Having said that, it is sufficient to conclude that developers of IoT products and services need to ensure that the usefulness of their offer is clearly communicated to the end users.  
Similar to the previously discussed concept, perceived ease of use has also received a lot of support as a factor greatly influencing the IoT adoption process [32; 41; 42]. [PERSON] [43], defines it as _\"the extent to which a person believes that using a system would be free of effort\"_. That being said, IoT product developers should ensure that consumers find it easy enough to adopt and use. However, as stated by [PERSON] et al. [23] it is crucial to keep the balance between the design simplicity of the product for customer attraction and the strength of cybersecurity for reducing the probability of hacking attacks.  
Trust is proved to be another significant factor in the IoT adoption process, as it is precisely what offers consumers the incentive to use an IoT product even considering all the risk and uncertainty involved [33]. The author further stresses the need to include trust in the adoption models with the aim of gaining insights on the aspects influencing consumers' willingness to adopt an IoT product or service. For consumers to develop and retain trust in the product, IoT providers must ensure strong data protection and a high level of product functionality. The aforementioned factors, i.e., perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use, apart from being independent influencers of the IoT adoption process, also appear to have an impact on the level of consumer trust from the product-related dimension. Socialdimension variables, such as consumer networks were also found to affect consumer trust, however, not to the same degree as security- and product-related factors.