Guest article by Phil Sayles, founder of Summate Technologies
Sitting on my couch, I clicked the “submit” button on the Home Depot website, an online order of a 6x9 umbrella for my deck. It was delivered to my house 2 days later. I had bought the same umbrella 13 years ago. Back then I had to visit 3 stores, it was twice the price, I had to special order the color I wanted, and it took 3 weeks for it to be delivered for pick up at the store.
What happened? Why was my experience so much better now than back then? I’ll tell you why, and it is two simple words: digital transformation. When I purchase something online now, the seller learns about me - where I live, what my preferences are. Instead of visiting 3 stores over an afternoon, I visit 5 websites in 10 minutes. All of the data surrounding my purchase is used be benefit me. As a consumer I get better selection, better price, and much more convenience because of better information reduces friction in commerce. Superior information and unfettered flow of data leads to consumer benefit - this is inarguable.
If you would like an example of the complete opposite end of ...
