Could your enterprise change the way it monetises its offering quickly and cost-effectively, without disrupting its operations?
For many organisations, here in Australia and around the world, the answer remains a resounding ‘no’, despite the tsunami of digitisation that’s washed over the commercial landscape in response to the Covid crisis.
As a result, those businesses are at heightened risk of having their business models upended by start-up companies with innovative ways of delivering equivalent or superior products and services.
Not sure what I’m talking about? Think of the beleaguered hotel and motel sector whose primary offering, since time immemorial, has been the provision of paid places to stay. It’s been under siege, right around the globe, since the launch of apps that allow individuals with spare properties and rooms to monetise those spaces by connecting digitally with travellers looking for short-term accommodation.
Or the once mighty taxi industry, which has been bruised and battered by an app that allows its one-time customers to hook up with individuals who can take them wherever they want to go, very often for a cheaper price.
Both these industries are extant, at least, unlike the video rental market. It’s now deader than the dodo, courtesy of Netflix, Amazon Prime and a slew of other cheap, convenient home entertainment options that don’t require customers to drive to a store to collect a disc and then return it 24 hours later.
Becoming change ready
Traditional operators in these three very different markets have a couple of things in common: they weren’t prepared for disruption; and they didn’t have the resolve or the resources to respond to it rapidly once it struck.
But would your organisation fare any better, in similar circumstances? Say, for example, the bulk of your customers decided they’d rather rent than buy the equipment you sell them? Or indicated they’d prefer to consume your services digitally on subscription, instead of paying for them on an ad hoc basis?
Monetising your goods and services differently means pricing and billing for them in a different way.
And if you’re adapting your revenue model in response to competitive pressures, or trying to get a jump on the opposition, you may not have the luxury of time. The changes you require might need to be implemented at speed – in weeks and months, not years.
Tools that support innovation and growth
Having spent several years helping enterprise customers to optimise their revenue management processes, I believe this is an extremely challenging, if not impossible, ask, in the absence of the right tools. We’re talking revenue management technology that can deliver full quote-to-cash support for whatever monetisation model, or models, your enterprise chooses to put in place.
Ideally, your chosen platform should link with your customer management system, so you can monitor and manage your customer base, and incorporate data analytics technology that can be harnessed to extract business intelligence about their purchasing and usage patterns.
Because fortune favours the fast mover, you’re best served implementing a solution that provides a ‘low code’ environment; one that can be adapted and augmented without the attendance of a team of specialist programmers. This makes it possible for non-technical users to test and adopt new monetisation strategies quickly and easily, with minimal support from the IT department or external service providers.
Obviously, embracing cloud architecture is a no-brainer, because of its unparalleled ability to scale and grow, as your organisation expands.
And so is selecting a revenue management platform that can be integrated seamlessly into the eco-system of other financial systems that are likely in use across your enterprise. Being able to take advantage of pre-configured connectors and fully published APIs allows you to pick and choose best of breed applications and avoid the expense of re-inventing the wheel when additional functionality needs to be added to your stack.
Becoming future fit
It’s often said that the only constant in life is change. In today’s times, the pace at which it occurs is only likely to increase and businesses which hope to remain relevant long term have no choice but to evolve their product and service offerings apace. Having the right revenue management platform in place makes it easier to do so, quickly and cost effectively. If keeping up and competing is a priority for your enterprise in FY2024, it’s foundation technology you’d be well advised to invest in.
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