The digital disruption that is impacting businesses around the world is a modern day industrial revolution, many times over. Every business needs to face the reality that the way they are conducting their operations may not be the most efficient method. At least, not in relation to technology.
This provides an opportunity to stop and reflect upon your own distribution model and how you currently get your goods and services to market. For a lot of businesses, the market is now borderless and the opportunities for distribution are mindboggling.
Technology, which is ever-changing, enables communication and networking of businesses in a worldwide economy. As well as many opportunities, this easy access on a world-wide scale also carries new risks.
Controlling and protecting your valuable intellectual property and the cash flow to your business are the top objectives for businesses to review and protect.
We often see distribution models that were set up many years ago, at a time when the current technology was not available or in place. An example of such new technology is 3D printing, which can create exact copies of products, resulting in a multitude of intellectual property issues.
Therefore, starting again and dismantling the distribution model should not be out of the question for any business, subject of course to an assessment of key legal risks that may be inherent in your distribution model.
Putting in place a new and improved distribution model that provides the appropriate checks and balances and which facilitates the growth of your revenue needs to be carefully considered.
Businesses now operate in the large global village and it is up to business owners to think outside the square, rather than just accepting what you have had in place for long periods of time. There is a saying that goes “what got us here, won’t get us there”.
This changing technological landscape provides a wonderful opportunity for business owners to review their distribution channels and ensure they maximise the revenue lines available to them, as well as the markets to which they can then distribute goods and services.
