Keep up (don’t give up): How to take a tech trend-based work-ation

Last week, we talked turkey; this week, we get ready for the reindeer games.

'tis the season for reindeer games and...tech trends

But, there is still time to sneak in a couple of work-ations before the year is over—extracurricular explorations that can set us up for success in 2011. Work-ations are creative excursions (either actual trips or virtual dives) designed to inspire us, and help our companies get a jump on some of the trends that could kick-start revenue growth.

Today’s work-ation list focuses on one of the most important (and, sometimes overwhelming) trends that everyone in business absolutely must pay attention to: technology innovations. How do you dig into what’s new and match the tools to your business concerns?

WARNING: TECH TRENDS CAN BE OVERWHELMING AND POSSIBLY LEAD TO PARALYSIS

A friend recently visited a whiz-bang tech shop in Los Angeles and came away saying, “I don’t know if I should keep up or give up.”

We can't afford to give up

The truth is that we can’t afford to give up. We can all jot down a problem that’s keeping our company from moving forward, and design a work-ation refresher course to study someone who’s tackled that issue using technology.

A WORK-ATION IDEA INSPIRED BY TECH INNOVATIONS AN IDEA TO GET YOU STARTED: GEOFENCING

Trend-related work-ation task: Learn about geofencing.

It’s the next wave beyond zip codes and Groupons and Foursquare and SMS text messaging and Google maps.  Geofencing is the power to know where your customers are (physically) and their permission to customize offers to their (almost) every move.

With geofencing, a company like North Face or REI can ask a customer for permission to send out customized SMS text messages with offers that match the customer’s location. If I live in California and fly to Denver, REI or North Face can greet me with a text message that says: “snowboard rental discount available at these Denver locations.”

OK, it sounds 95% creepy (Big Brother is watching) and only 5% cool (Wow, someone knows where I am and is meeting my immediate customer need).

Geofencing is less Big Brother and more "We're Here for You."

But the ability to take customer intimacy and responsiveness to a new level definitely offers any business leader inspiration for amp-ing up his/her definition of “customer responsiveness.”

If we’re still stuck with an old-fashioned approach to coupons based on a static location-based offer (like for a free dessert at a restaurant in zip code X based on the fact that the customer lives in zip code X), we’re missing one of the biggest lessons we can learn from companies like Placecast and others taking advantage of the geofencing trend: our customers move around so our businesses needs to customize our relationships with them so that we’re where our customers are. All the time.

TECHNOLOGY HAS ALLOWED US TO SHIFT BUSINESS FOCUS FROM WHERE OUR CUSTOMERS LIVE TO WHERE THEY ARE (RIGHT NOW)

The shift from direct mail coupons to Groupons to geofencing is sort of like the shift from calling people’s houses (land lines) to calling people’s ears (mobile phones). Our places are no longer static, and zip codes are no longer the sole definition of where our customers need us.

Get a move on tech trends for your business.

Which technology trend will be on the back of your envelope this week and which work-ation will you schedule to catch up on the tech trends and contemplate your next moves in 2011?

Josh Kelley: Follow You

MUSICAL CODA

Follow You
by Josh Kelley

Everybody tells me I am wrong

When I know I’m not

Something in me moves me to be strong

Cuz its all I got

But I don’t know what to say

When you ask me everyday

My mind won’t let me play

The thought of you

The thought of you

So tell me what you need

I’m getting stronger

If you will help me see

It won’t be long now

Its time for you to leave and I will

Follow you follow you