TAKE A MINUTE AND REMEMBER WHEN THERE WERE NO MOBILE PHONES, NO INTERNET, NO SOCIAL MEDIA AND SEE HOW YOU LIFE HAS CHANGED, NOW LOOK AT YOUR BUSINESS. WHAT'S NEXT?

One of the problems with the above heading is if you live in the Western world you probably need to be at least 50 years old to be able to remember this clearly. The digital world is touching all of our lives and it's not going away. One of the major effects of the digital world is that the lines between customers and businesses are blurring. As an example a manufacturer used to produce goods, sell them to a wholesaler who then sold them to a retailer. The retailer had a relationship with the consumer. These models still exist (but are under threat), but more and more the consumer is buying directly from the manufacturer, or is in live chat with the producer, or commenting about that product directly on Facebook for the whole world to see. The consumer is far more connected, educated, can look at reviews, can do a price comparison (even from one country to the next), and can source, discard or comment 24/7. The rise of mobile technology has also had profound effects on businesses. Consumers are even more connected. The costs of new apps and their role out is faster than ever. Disruptive technologies are everywhere and traditional businesses are caught with their knickers around their ankles. One of the fastest-growing and most valuable companies today is Uber. Offering access to a taxi immediately, knowing when you are going to get it, seeing where it is, having a driver following the latest sat-nav, and getting a cheaper price - why wouldn't you use it? 

In financial services, the digital world has become a massive opportunity and a curse. 

One of the Preen Partners’ digital strategy engagements was to define a blueprint for a new digital bank in Africa. One of the continents which have been affected the most by mobile technology is indeed Africa. Previously the investment in landlines was not there, so cheap cellular technology networks have leapfrogged the landline technology. The growth of handsets has been enormous and the rise of the likes of Mpesa has meant that the people have no need to enter a banking branch to make payments. In this part of the world, the payment charges are the bank’s bread and butter - this getting taken away means that banks are left with expensive branches, dwindling margins, and increased competition as they focus on the much smaller higher-margin transaction business.

See Video compilation on African Digital landscape
 

Cash is King, Data is GOD

We have never known so much about our customers without actually knowing them. The tools that provide us insights on where the customers are, what they are interested in, their age, and their attention span are there for us all to use. We need to first get this data but secondly and most importantly act upon it. If your audience is primarily male, what is the point of running a marketing campaign in channels which are primarily interacted with by females? If your market is zeroed in on 5 main US states, why not conquer them first rather than spreading too thinly?