In today’s world, doing business the conventional way and maintaining the status quo does not promise recurring revenue as it did in the past. Nor does it provide a competitive …
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There are a number of trends fueling business growth and profit strategies for hardware device vendors. Today, more and more hardware device vendors are transforming their business models from one-time sales transactions to ongoing relationship-based models with recurring revenue streams. Increasingly, device vendors are leveraging the software within their hardware devices to innovate and differentiate their devices in order to gain a competitive edge and grow their businesses.
In my role as Strategic Analysis Manager of the Software Monetization division at Gemalto, I lead in-depth strategic market analysis, evaluate worldwide technology trends, and understand the competitive market to support new strategic leads and business opportunities. Recently, I had the pleasure of talking with Kathleen Goolsby, Managing Editor at SandHill.com, about the mind shift that’s taking place in the medical equipment sector.
In 1997, a pair of management consultants – Michael Treacy and Fred Wiersema – published a book entitled The Discipline of Market Leaders: Choose Your Customers, Narrow Your Focus, Dominate Your Market, which suggested that companies could only become dominant players in their industry by achieving a proficiency in one of the following areas:
As the Internet of Things (IoT) continues to grow, the implications for business model innovation are huge. One of the major drivers in this connected landscape is the shift in end-user preferences: there is an increasing demand for flexible pricing models, ease of access to software upgrades, and a superior customer experience. As a result of the rise in connectivity, end users’ perception of value and what they are willing to pay for is changing drastically. Therefore, to take advantage of the IoT, independent software vendors and intelligent device manufacturers alike need to fundamentally rethink their orthodox attitudes towards value.
I recently published a three-part article on SandHill.com, the first of which talks about building and monetizing an IoT-ready business in a new, disrupted world. I point out that while product innovation can drive significant growth in the IoT, more needs to be done to overcome fundamental business challenges such as monetizing distinctive value and maintaining a competitive advantage. In many cases, it is advisable to devote more resources to business model innovation than to pure product innovation, as it may have a greater impact on your profitability.
The age of the Internet of Things (IoT) has dawned and we are heading toward a future filled with software-driven intelligent devices. To give you an idea of the magnitude of this transformation, IDC is predicting that there will be 30 billion units installed worldwide by the year 2020. Because every device in the IoT is connected, a whole new breed of tech company is emerging, forcing many traditional companies to innovate and go to market differently.
In the 1973 movie Magnum Force, maverick cop Dirty Harry famously said that “A man’s got to know his limitations”. In business, knowing how and where to invest your resources can be the difference between success and failure. Indeed, overextending yourself when you should be focusing on your core competencies can have disastrous consequences for your bottom line if left unchecked.
The State of Software Monetization survey is here. With the help of Vanson Bourne, Gemalto set out to understand the software monetization industry and sentiments of ISVs, intelligent device manufacturers and software consumers worldwide and what challenges they are facing. Interestingly enough, results reveal that enterprise software customer demands are evolving and software vendors and intelligent device manufacturers need to adopt flexible and adaptable software licensing and software packaging techniques in order to meet these needs and generate more revenue opportunities.
In all the time I have spent with my father, I have learned a ton of things – most of which I don’t even realize (and some I’m sure I don’t remember). But one thing that’s had a significant influence on my life has been learning the value of selling.