Companies are poised to start ramping up their use of wearable technology, with many believing that the devices will help improve customer service. That’s according to a new study from Salesforce, which found that 86% of survey respondents plan to invest more in applications for smart watches, lanyards and eyewear over the next year.

“These devices can give you the right intelligence and predictive information you need, at the time you need it,”said Lindsey Irvine, global director of strategic partnerships for Salesforce.

Interestingly, a growing number of business professionals are already leveraging wearable technology. The Salesforce survey revealed that more than one-third of the approximately 1,400 respondents currently use these emerging technologies on the job. Given the recent release of the Apple Watch, it’s perhaps not surprising that professionals are most excited about smart watches, with nearly half (49%) of survey respondents saying that the devices will have the biggest positive impact on their businesses. In particular, adopters of the technology anticipate being able to use the watches to do everything from accessing customer information in real time and giving instruction guides to field service teams to getting instant alerts about pricing changes and average call-center wait times.

After smart watches, survey respondents identified digital lanyards/badges (37% of respondents), smart glasses (36%), fitness bands (33%) and smart cameras (33%) as the devices likely to be most beneficial to their businesses. Overall, proponents say, wearable technology can help companies improve service to customers, helping to keep clients satisfied and loyal.

“Data intelligence derived from wearables allows employees to know their customer’s behavior and patterns in advance, to better serve and know them in that micro-moment,” Eric Berridge, CEO of Bluewolf, a marketing and sales consulting company, said. “Wearables allow enterprises to optimize this. The interface is on the body, rather than in pockets and bags where opportunities might be missed.” – CR

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