Time for straight talk on technology by Patrick Moorhead of AMD asks some fundamental questions: “What if the rate of home and business technology innovation is outpacing its relevance to many consumers, leaving them to wonder if they even need the latest in technology? At that point, are the ‘evident’ benefits of computing really so evident?”
He looks at the disconnect between technology innovation and adoption and concludes that a “technology gap” indeed exists on a global level. His reasoning:
The average person using technology often faces an unfamiliar vocabulary of acronyms and abstract high-tech terms that he or she doesn’t understand. When purchasing, setting up and even using technology devices, this lack of understanding only serves to confuse, paralyze and frustrate. Even worse, as technology continues to innovate, the technology vocabulary constantly increases.
Patrick argues that “the industry must realize that the values and relevancies of technologies are different for different people. Educational, cultural and geographic differences among consumers obviously exist. Yet when designing, marketing and supporting a product, the industry seems to take a one-size-fits-all approach.”
He concludes by saying:
How can we put the technology consumer back at the center of the technology discussion? How about starting by communicating in terms that explain the real benefits that people will receive from their technology investment. Let’s motivate people with a reason to buy targeted to solve their unique needs rather than with some cool technology feature.
Very much the questions we’ve been asking in Emergic. The world looks a lot different from the emerging markets. Consumers and businesses cannot afford dollar-based technology. At the same time, tech is their only hope to catch up with the rest of the world. What is needed is to use the newest ideas, combined with innovative “value-added aggregation” to create solutions for these markets.
That is where the next hundreds of millions of buyers are going to come from. They don’t need technology for technology’s sake, they need solutions which can make a difference to their lives. Technology must become (and be priced like) a utility for them.
