Ahmad Fuad
Smartphone is new personal computer. It is bringing exactly the same revolution that personal computer once brought to the business. The digital revolution has already set in; it is facilitating smartphones in becoming supercomputers for small and large scale businesses.
Computers eliminated traditional books from the business and digitally-revolutionised smart phones will eliminate computers and laptops. Telecom and broadband companies are leading the revolution.
However, telecom is in a better position to lead this revolution as they are providing all of the on-the-go services to their customers that none of other sectors can. They have a massive support from smartphones industry to go with their plans.
It is expected that more than 70 percent of the telecom subscribers will be using 3G/4G services by the end of 2020. The penetration of the data services will be as deeper as the GSM once was and it will facilitate as many customers as well. Telcos are more interested in bringing this revolution as their traditional products were not offering much of profits.
Business organizations, including FMCG, banking sector, education, IT, real estate, and many others, have welcomed the revolution. They are taking data and smartphones seriously. They are developing their business strategies that revolve around facilitating and reaching customers through smartphones.
Organisations want their customers to reach them and purchase the product as soon as the customers think of a product. They are trying to ease out their customers by providing all the solutions online. Even if they deal in physical products and not the virtual ones, they will be taking orders from their websites/apps and will be delivering the products at customers’ doorstep.
Telcos are facilitating OTT (Over the top) businesses instead of competing with them. OTT platforms (that include WhatsApp, Facebook, and Viber etc) are offering similar kind of services in a far more user-friendly way than the traditional GSM calling and texting business.
And so is about other businesses i.e. online purchase of things are getting viral. Customers are accepting and appreciating products that can be purchased online and delivered at home without any physical damages. They are becoming loyal customers of the companies that offer facilities of online sales and purchase. Traditional concepts of sales, purchase and marketing are getting changed. Customers are focusing more on products that are visible at social media than the ones that are being advertised on huge billboards. They take their smartphones out of their pockets even when they are waiting on a red signal to be turned into green and use social media or apps of different companies that offer online services. They do not respond to what smart models on big billboards are asking them to purchase but they do respond to what apps of smartphones are suggesting them to get.
Customers do not have to stand for long under hot sun or in freezing weather outside the banks to pay their utility bills. Banks have introduced online solutions and customers can not only pay the bills by using websites and applications of the banks but can also transfer money from one account to another. They can also purchase products from other companies’ websites/apps by using same bank accounts. Mobile accounts can also be recharged from different website including the banks. ATM machines offer almost same facilities to the customers.
Branchless banking has facilitated even more customers than the traditional banks could ever imagine. The best part of this business is that it has targeted small account holders who were left untapped by the modern business of traditional banking. Small account holders are not only transferring their funds to their dear-ones but they are also paying their bills and recharging their mobile accounts from their mobile bank accounts.
Progressive organizations have radically improved their internal systems through digitalization. Employees are using paperless environment because the very reason. They are using internal apps and websites to raise and approve leaves and budgets. They learn and do in-house communications through different digitalized methods i.e. eLearning courses to ensure knowledge impart, webinars to conduct sessions on any essential skills and communicating through with each other through a relatively casual platform that is known as “Facebook at Work” where entire employee base can connect with each other in a friendly manner that is not possible through typical emails.
The digital revolution has set in and the organizations that are not willing to respond to it or are slow in response will either leave far behind others or will be eliminated. Responding to the digital revolution is the only way to survive in modern business.