While traditionally outdoor activities and all things tech hardly coincided, the situation has changed significantly throughout the years. Technology has become the backbone of outdoor companies and is influencing them in every aspect.
Find out how exactly tech innovation is transforming the outdoor industry and gain useful insights you could adapt to your business needs in this analytical overview.

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High-Tech Outdoors: What Are the Advantages?

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Outdoor businesses turned out to be the opposite of industries threatened by technology. On the contrary, outdoor companies are reaping the benefits from integrating tech solutions. 

Here are the top factors indicating that digital progress is in favor of the outdoor adventure industry:

1. Building Like-Minded Communities

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One of the major benefits of tech innovation for outdoor brands is the limitless opportunities to stay connected with suppliers, partners, and clients. Social media channels are perfect for companies willing to convey their values to their target audience and share updates with the world. 

Hence, platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok are used by a variety of renowned outdoor brands, including:

• Patagonia
• Wild Rye
• The North Face
• REI
• Billabong

Check out more impressive social media marketing examples among outdoor brands here.

2. Harnessing the Power of Digital Memberships

Whether it’s a subscription to exclusive outdoor content, an educational course, or members-only discounts, a business has plenty of ways to monetize digital memberships and create a community passionate about the outdoors. 

Here are some brands that have succeeded in doing so:

• Nomadik - Monthly gear subscription boxes.
• WildKind - Digital community that helps families with young children improve outdoor experiences.
• REI - Subscription with exclusive offers for the members.

Subscription services are trending, with nearly 75% of direct-to-consumer businesses predicted to feature at least one such offer by 2023. Thus, while not so many outdoor brands have hopped on this trend so fat, it’s safe to assume that we’re going to see more businesses joining in soon.

3. Improved Gear Development

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The development of tech solutions accelerates the creation of improved outdoor gear. Here are some of the best outdoor tech pieces we love:

• Digitally printed bike saddles, shoe midsoles, and backpack details from Carbon
• Off-roading electric bikes from Rad Power Bikes
• Functional solar lanterns from MPOWERD
• Garmin watch designed for water activities

Such outdoor technology breakthroughs facilitate safer and more convenient experiences in nature. Besides, they create solutions that can be used for nature observation and scientific research.

For instance, Conservation Drones is an outdoor tech company that designs flying machines specifically for conservationists and scientists, facilitating such important activities as monitoring the expansion of invasive aquatic plants or identifying and tracking the range of animals’ populations.

4. More Than Just Navigation

In the old days, travelers had to rely on a compass and stars to navigate in the great outdoors, and digital maps were considered a technological breakthrough. However, these days, companies have created online maps that serve purposes far beyond the ones of the camping and hiking industry and can be used to help society and the environment.

Here are the best examples:

• onX - what started out as a mapping app for hunters to see whose land they were on has become a useful tool for identifying inaccessible public land surrounded by private properties. Thanks to more than a decade of data collection, it has highlighted over 16.4 million acres in 22 states. These findings are used to create improved access to public lands for all.
• ParkServe - The Trust For Public Lands (TPL) utilized 20 years’ worth of data to design an interactive map that helps identify which US cities are lacking green space the most, addressing the critical green-space equity issue. The organization also helps cities with fundraising for park construction purposes.
• Gaia GPS - The software offers free map layers that enable people to deal with wildfire risk more efficiently. They provide accurate real-time information about the spread of fires based on NASA satellite heat detection data and observations from firefighters on the ground.

Advancing data aggregation and real-time technology are sure to open many doors for companies in the outdoor industry and help address global issues like climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution.

5. Enabling Sustainable Manufacturing

Technological progress also has a positive impact on the outdoor gear manufacturing process. Some excellent manifestations of it are:

• Recycled materials. Nowadays, it’s possible to use recycled fabrics like REPREVE to manufacture outdoor gear. It’s being adopted by various outdoor brands, including Bermuda Sands, ECOgear, IGLOO, and many more.
• No harmful substances. Using non-toxic materials is yet another amazing trend among outdoor companies. For instance, NEMO tents that use silicone PFOA-free and chemical-free finishes compared to polyurethane-based ones are not only safer for consumers but also have an extended product life.
• Minimum waste. Cotopaxi gear brand, among others, offers lifetime repairs and replacement, while its factories publish yearly impact reports.
• Reduced carbon footprint. Patagonia is one great example of how a brand managed to build a digital platform dedicated to reducing its carbon footprint and addressing other environmental issues.
• Ethical sourcing. Technological progress has enabled outdoor companies to look into the issues related to the ethical sourcing of raw materials and fair use of human labor. For instance, Rumpl has some great initiatives in these spheres.

Sustainability is gradually becoming one of the core consumer expectations when it comes to selecting outdoor items. Thus, it’s inevitable that an increasing number of brands will be adopting these eco-friendly manufacturing practices.

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The Bright Future of Tech + Outdoors

Technology keeps advancing and influencing all spheres of life. When it comes to the outdoor industry, it’s sure to continue moving forward hand-in-hand with emerging tech solutions. 

The most recent tendencies show that more and more companies in the outdoor niche are looking into sustainable development, smart gear, and building online communities, meaning that there are a lot of exciting updates to come. 

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