Business and technology

Entrepreneurs and Technological Advances in Business

Entrepreneurs have constantly looked for new opportunities to expand their markets and improve their everyday operations. Historically, most businesses were relatively small and relied heavily on print and word-of-mouth marketing (Hakansson & Hartung, 2013). Workers initially collaborated with business owners, mostly because it allowed for faster connectivity than in the past. Companies could gain more customers over time by selling to thousands, and eventually millions, of people via television and radio. As a result, more jobs were developed, and most employees could be reached from afar. These constituted remarkable transformations indeed. However, things have changed more rapidly in the world of business during the recent past thanks to various technological advances. The world of business appears a lot more different than it looked just in the near past. Several technologies have affected and advanced the world of business.

The Internet

Hakansson and Hartung (2013) believe that no technology has transformed the world of business better than the internet. This global network of a computer has become so familiar in the everyday lives of individuals all over and today, it is a practical alternative to radio and television as a way of advertising, entertainment, and communication. The Internet enables individuals to make long-distance contact in methods that were impossible before, allowing organizations to conduct business with customers across the world. People can today hold meetings, work, and perform all variety of industries from any setting.

Social Networking

Social networks such as Twitter and Facebook may not be essential agents of transformation in the world of business like the Internet. However, they have shown to be much more significant than small openings for social interaction and images of animals. Social networks allow organizations to advertise their products and services as they facilitate improved communication with prospective customers (Salpeter & Morgan, 2013). Social media enables organizations to communicate directly with their clients and user base through means that did not exist before.

E-Sourcing

Communication technology has flourished during the 21st century. Mostly, the Internet is all about communication. E-sourcing has allowed firms to do business and make purchases. E-sourcing is a smooth, transparent and fair technique of doing online negotiations (Laudon & Traver, 2017). It is among the easiest and fastest ways of communication between organizations, and several businesses have embraced avenues that are made only for e-sourcing.

Smartphones

In the past, people were required to use the computer to access the Internet. However, today Smartphones enable users to access the Internet using devices that can be carried around, making these mobile phones suitable for marketers who wish to contact as many clients as possible. Furthermore, they are convenient for advertisers who frequently travel as part of their responsibilities, because smartphones can perform many functions besides making and receiving calls. Since today they are filled with technology that can enable individuals to capture video, update spreadsheets and communicate through email, smartphones work more like multi-purpose portable communication centers than cell phones (Mobile media making in an age of smartphones., 2016).

Short-Lived Technological Innovations

In spite of the introduction of many technological ideas that became very successful over time, there were also some that were short-lived or failed miserably. An example of a technology that was short lived is the WOW by CompuServe which was a short trial to develop an AOL killer, and its service was aimed to be consumer and family-friendly. It was focused more on business and geeks types. It was meant to provide online services to give the power to the user at home to make kids learning fun as well as serve the Internet for a predictable price. The innovation which was announced in 1990 died in 1997 (Hakansson & Hartung, 2013).The technology failed because CompuServe lacked the will to adopt AOL after all. Additionally, the WOW technology did not appeal to many customers. Other technological innovations that were short-lived include the Apple Power Mac G4 Cube, Kerbango Internet Radio, Sony eVilla and 3Com Audrey which were all developed and died between 2000-2001 (Hakansson & Hartung, 2013).

The Future of Business and Communication

Today, technology is advancing faster than before, and entrepreneurs across the world are only required to keep up with its pace. Things are ever-changing, and the most significantly successful organizations are those utilizing these changes. It challenging to predict the future, however, it will almost definitely make various types of communication in business more convenient and more comfortable than ever before.

References

Hakansson, A., & Hartung, R. (2013). Agent and Multi-Agent Systems in Distributed Systems - Digital Economy and E-Commerce. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg.

Laudon, K., & Traver, C. (2017). E-Commerce 2016. Harlow: Pearson Education Limited.

Mobile media making in an age of smartphones. (2016). [Place of publication not identified].

Salpeter, M., & Morgan, H. (2013). Social networking for business success. New York: LearningExpress, LLC.