Technology. It’s changed every part of our lives: the way we communicate, the way we shop, the way we buy. And for certain, it has changed the way we sell.
Technology has, without question, changed the way we do business today. Even more important, technology itself changes at the veritable speed of light.
The paradigm has shifted and technology has ultimately put consumers, not marketers, in the driver’s seat. But if you’re not yet considering how to use the Internet and technology to not only grow, but to sustain your business, don’t worry, you’ve got plenty of time. Only 97 percent of consumers search online for products or services they need.
That’s right: 97 percent of consumers head to the Web for the things they want to buy, do, explore, etc. And they’re an impatient bunch. They don’t wait for marketers to push out their marketing messages in the traditional media of TV, radio, print or advertising venues. And when they can, they skip advertising altogether (think of your DVR and the commercials you routinely fast-forward through). Instead, they take control and proactively use technology to seek out and find what they need.
The Internet has delivered the world to consumers’ doorsteps. And technology has changed every aspect of how we do business. The Internet is technology. Social media is technology. Mobile phones are technology. Location-based marketing hinges on technology. QR Codes are technology and Augmented Reality is helping make online experiences more real. And data – well, that’s a product of sophisticated technology. Which of these are you using today in your business?
The above is an excerpt of an article I wrote for this month’s edition of Ingram’s, Kansas City’s Business Magazine. If you’d like to read more, here’s how you get there. Also included in this issue are the Annual Report: Social Media and Mobile Technologies, one of the regular industry-specific business features that Ingram’s is known for (stay tuned for a separate blog post on that), as well as the popular 40 Under 40 members of the Kansas City business community, so if you’re browsing, be sure you catch those, too.
Shelly Kramer is a Principal Analyst and Founding Partner at Futurum Research. A serial entrepreneur with a technology centric focus, she has worked alongside some of the world’s largest brands to embrace disruption and spur innovation, understand and address the realities of the connected customer, and help navigate the process of digital transformation. She brings 20 years’ experience as a brand strategist to her work at Futurum, and has deep experience helping global companies with marketing challenges, GTM strategies, messaging develoment, and driving strategy and digital transformation for B2B brands across multiple verticals. Shelly’s coverage areas include Collaboration/CX/SaaS, platforms, ESG, and Cybersecurity, as well as topics and trends related to the Future of Work, the transformation of the workplace and how people and technology are driving that transformation. A transplanted New Yorker, she has learned to love life in the Midwest, and has firsthand experience that some of the most innovative minds and most successful companies in the world also happen to live in “flyover country.”