Four Rules for Winning in the Convenience Economy
There are several names for the shifts we're seeing in many industries today: some call it the rise of the Sharing Economy. They point to businesses like AirBNB and Uber as pioneers. The Harvard Business Review calls it the rise of the Access Economy and points to Zipcar as a trailblazer. I call it the rise of the "Convenience Economy" and I've included three examples below. Here's my definition of the Convenience Economy: Businesses winning in the convenience economy are adding convenience by eliminating friction in the buying process. Four Rules I see four rules for winning in the convenience economy. The most important one is the last: Convenience is more important than price. Customers have thus far demonstrated they are willing to pay extra for convenience. The cost of convenience hasn't been driven to zero... yet. Unlike many other industries in which costs have been driven to zero (free email providers, free news via websites, free shipping,