With the risk of sounding like a grandpa recalling the days of yesteryear with awe and wonder: I remember the early days of the internet as a prime place to find bulletin boards to post on and email was a burgeoning wonder that brought everyone from families to co-workers together with what we thought was blinding speed and convenience. We all thought we were living in the days of science fiction!
I remember hearing stories from my brother about my nephew writing a school report and being able to email someone over in France that had worked as a curator at the Louvre and getting questions answered for research data. We marveled at how small our world had become, we discussed in hushed tones of incredulity about how no longer did kids have to go to the library and make photocopies of dusty reference tomes to get information to write term papers! The information at their teenage fingertips was now live, up to the minute and, we assumed, entirely accurate, and it only took a day or two to get answers through this wonderful "electronic mail" system.
Now jump forward to today and we look at this little story and say, Sheesh, it took a whole day or two to get an answer?!? If I want to get a up to the minute response now, I can get it in mere minutes, sometimes seconds, through texting! I mean, at this point I don't have time to always check out people's websites so I just have apps that give me the ability to interact with their company in an abbreviated fashion with one tap of my iPhone. (Not to mention, my phone knows where I am through global positioning and tells me what companies around me particpate in what offers, what coupons they are offering, the sales they may have going and will drive me conveniently to their websites for additional information.)
Clipping coupons? Waiting for those nifty little value pack mailers in the mail? That's snails pace stuff at this point! The future is m-commerce where I will be able to get all of my coupons right on my mobile device that will either help me decide where I want to go spend my money in mere seconds, or tell me if I can save money at the vanues I am at right at the moment!
Where will it go from here, who knows? How much faster can we get information, branding, marketing messages and enticing offers into the hands, the eyes and the ears of target market segments? It's hard to say at this point, but the ride getting there should be interesting.
If your company hasn't started thinking in these terms, and with the philosophy of how can we increase back office efficiencies, while at the same time enhancing the client experience by making it faster, easier and more personal for them to do business with you it's time to pull your head out of the sand and start looking around. If not your potential clients may pass you by with the speed of a text message!
From where you are to where you want to be,
Doug
