The sharing economy - not just Uber anymore

Amit Bathla

June 11, 2018

What do changing customer preferences mean for enterprises?

When you think of the term “sharing economy” you may think of companies like Lyft and Uber, the popular ridesharing services that can be beckoned with the touch of a smartphone or Airbnb, the online marketplace where a person can offer short term rentals of their home.

Until recently, you may have thought of the sharing economy only as it impacts consumers, 但情况正在改变. As consumers have become more accustomed to this model, their expectations of every business and every industry are changing. You may not use a sharing business model, but the odds are good you will have to compete against one.

To better understand how the sharing economy is impacting enterprises, we sponsored an eBook by independent market research firm, Wainhouse研究. 这本名为“使用云来吸引、参与 & Retain Your Customers: From ‘Communications Platform as a Service’ to Digital Engagement,” explores this concept of the sharing economy, today’s customer preferences and how enterprises are leveraging digital engagement.


在共享经济中竞争

If you are competing against a sharing economy business, 不管你卖什么, two things rise in importance: The need to grow your customer base and the need to manage your costs. The sharing economy is set to grow to $335 billion worldwide by 2025, meaning there is a great deal of competition for customer attention. 在共享经济中竞争, 同时也要注意成本, enterprises are exploring digital engagement, 或者“使用新的通信工具”, platforms, and services that are aligned with today’s digital-savvy customer,” as defined by Wainhouse研究 in the eBook.

今天的客户

那么，今天的顾客想要什么呢? 在这个共享经济的世界里, today’s customers have very specific preferences when it comes to accessing and purchasing new products or services. Todays’ customers want the best service at the lowest cost, a safe and secure environment for engagement with your product and two-way communication – all in a personalized and efficient manner.

数字参与策略

Ultimately, today’s customer has big expectations. This requires enterprises to take a hard look at their existing tools and processes and reevaluate where necessary. 

Key to satisfying today’s customer’s expectations will be digital engagement, which Wainhouse研究 defines as “finding, keeping and delighting your customers with new digital tools and apps.” Enterprises will need to employ new ways of thinking, new tools, 培训和可能的新员工. This requires trial and refinement to find which models work best for each enterprise and its customers.

How is the sharing economy impacting your business?

Not sure how to implement digital engagement strategies to attract today’s customers? In our next two blog posts on the Wainhouse研究 eBook, we’ll take a deeper dive into digital engagement and more specifically, Communications Platform as a Service (CPaaS). We’ll then examine what four different verticals are doing to incorporate digital engagement via case study examples. 

你也可以下载电子书 here.

How is the sharing economy impacting your business and what are you doing to attract and maintain today’s customers? 请在下面的评论中告诉我们.