7 Revolutionary Trends That Will Change Business Forever

In today’s world, the rise of digital, increasing automation, advancing technologies, and new business models are revolutionizing all industries, and businesses will undergo one of the most dramatic transformations of all. Similar to how past disruptions have fundamentally transformed the industry to make it what it is today — television in the 1950s, internet in the 1990s and social media in the 2000s — we are embarking on a new era where not one, but several, disruptive trends are converging at once to undoubtedly change the face of business forever. Here are 7 disruptive trends that will drive a new business revolution.

1. BIG DATA EXPLOSION

In today’s connected world, customers are interacting with brands in more ways than ever before. With the proliferation of smart devices, machine sensors and the digitization of physical products, the volume and velocity of customer data is becoming infinitely more available to track, measure and analyze. According to a Digital Universe IDC study, the amount of digital data produced will exceed 40 zettabytes by 2020, which is the equivalent of 5,200 GB of data for every man, woman and child on Earth. To put that into context, it is more than all the grains of sand on Earth — 57 times over. With data becoming so big at such an incredible pace it is becoming overwhelming for businesses to manage it, let alone harness it for actionable insights. The key to success lies in the second trend.

2. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Big data has reached a tipping a point that makes it more possible than ever to apply machine learning to not only predict customer behaviors with more accuracy and consistency, but to enhance the customer experience that is personalized to the individual. Moreover, Artificial Intelligence (AI) — the ultimate realization of predictive analytics and machine learning — is increasingly being applied to the customer experience itself. Examples of this range from chatbots conversing with customers, enhanced product experiences through recommendation engines such as the ones that power Netflix and Amazon, and even products that make the relationship between the brand and customer interactive (think Nike+). The key for marketers will be understanding how to leverage these powerful insights to enhance the customer experience, and finding the right balance between providing real value to the customer versus being invasive.

3. INTERNET OF THINGS

The ability of physical products to communicate with customers and other physical objects will not only change the type and volume of personalized behavioral data generated, but will fundamentally change the way customers interact with products and brands. For example, a smart fridge will know when you’re about to run out of milk and eggs and automatically generate a grocery list that will be sent to your online grocer to be delivered to your front door. Autonomous connected cars will know what parts need servicing so when it is time to change your brakes, the car will automatically schedule a service appointment and even drive itself to the dealership for the service while you are at work or shopping. The challenge for businesses will be to understand how their connected products will fit into the broader ecosystem, and ultimately enhance the overarching human experience.

4. EXPERIENCE AUTOMATION

Rapid advancements are allowing data/analytics platforms to automate the processing of massive amounts of data, and continually mine that data for key insights using machine learning. These technologies also automate communication delivery so that each customer receives the experience that is most engaging at the right time, and to the right device. The marketing technology software industry, for example, is a roughly $25B a year market today and Gartner projects that it will be the fastest growing enterprise software segment over the next few years, reaching over $40B in annual spend by 2019. The challenge for businesses will be to have the right strategies and underlying architecture in place to maximize the use of these investments to deliver truly unique experiences at scale and in real-time.

5. MICRO-PERSONALIZATION

Today many brands still talk to their customers as generalized personas and do not have a deep understanding of their customers as individuals. According to Gartner, brands that excel at personalization will outsell the ones that don’t by 20%. Furthermore, Forrester predicts that by 2020, the customer experience will be more important than price when it comes to purchasing and retention habits. Brands will need to anticipate their customer’s needs using machine learning algorithms and leverage automated marketing technologies to deliver micro-moments that will ultimately lead to loyalty and engagement.

6. SHIFT FROM OWNERSHIP TO EXPERIENCE

We are shifting to an experience economy, where customers are prioritizing experiences over ownership. People are no longer shopping to own things but rather seek the experience that a product can provide — what can be done with it, what it says about them, and what they can say about it. As the Harvard Business Review explains, in the Experience Economy “a company intentionally uses services as the stage, and goods as props, to engage individual customers in a way that creates a memorable event.” Today products are viewed as a gateway to an experience. It is the business’s role to understand the experience that their product or service provides, and to promote and enhance that experience through a multitude of brand touches or moments. Businesses that understand this and are able to leverage it to their advantage will reap the rewards.

7. RISE OF A NEW BUSINESS MODEL

The traditional business model is obsolete. With the explosion of data and advancements in technology, analytics has become the competitive advantage with the customer experience becoming the new product. Customers are looking for brands to deliver seamless and personalized experiences that show they truly understand them, can anticipate their needs, and be at the right place at the right time to create a meaningful moment. Analytically-driven businesses are winning at this game, building lifetime loyalty among their customer base and creating significant barriers for their competition in the process. According to a recent Forrester report, businesses that are analytically-driven i.e. who use data and analytics as a fundamental strategy for their business, are forecasted to steal $1.2 trillion a year by 2020 from businesses that are not analytically-driven.

CHANGE IS COMING

In summary, these disruptions are not only imminent, they have arrived. It is now more critical than ever for brands to operate in a connected ecosystem that works harmoniously to deliver a seamless customer experience. The brands who win will be the ones that leverage these disruptive trends to deliver an outstanding customer experience because customer experience is the new competitive advantage, and it will be imperative to survive. If recent history is any indication, the consequences for those that are not prepared to adapt to the coming change will be unforgiving. Consider this: 52% of Fortune 500 companies have disappeared since 2000 citing the failure to change their business models to the digital disruption, according to Fortune. Cisco’s CEO, John Chambers, predicted that up to 40% of brands will not exist in the next 10 years because they will be disrupted by digital. The business revolution is coming and there will be clear winners and losers. Which side of history will you be on?