A lesson from Amazon & Uber: how to transform data into your most valuable asset
by: Austin Wentzlaff
In recent years we’ve experienced a phenomena in business – the transformation from physical, brick-and-mortar retailers to online/mobile retailers. This transformation has shaken up the way people interact with businesses and consequently how businesses operations have changed to accommodate. Online/mobile has created a whole new definition of the word convenient by making payments more simplistic and by giving users unique experiences by recommending products and services they unknowingly love. Online/mobile retailers are becoming integral parts of many consumers’ day-to-day lives by creating a new type of relationship, unrivaled by their brick-and-mortar counterparts. But how have companies such as Amazon and Uber taken so much market share with so little in physical assets? The short answer, data.
Amazon’s Data Management Paying Dividends
Amazon, started in 1994, has gone from an online bookstore ran out of Jeff Bezos’ garage in Washington to international retail behemoth in less than two decades. The company’s publically traded stock (NASDAQ: AMZN) has appreciated over 17,000% since its IPO. One of the primary drivers of Amazon’s astronomical growth is its sophisticated Information Management (IM) technology. Amazon’s business strategy is based primarily off information delivered from their data warehouse, one of the largest in the world.
The data collected, stored, and analyzed in the data warehouse enables Amazon to build deep relationships with the customers without ever physically interacting with them. In a matter of seconds Amazon’s data allows customers to find exactly what they want with a few key words, compare prices, see product features and reviews, and even see other similar products that compliment what is being purchased. Amazon recognized the value of their own data and used data management techniques (now being referred to as Big Data/Analytics) to dominate their competition at a fraction of the cost.
Uber Revolutionizes the Taxi Industry with Data
Uber is another great example of a company that is leveraging data to conquer market share. If you haven’t seen or heard of Uber in your city, just wait, you will. Uber entered the market 2009 and turned the taxi industry on its head. As of September 2014, the company offered services in 45 countries and was valued at more than $15 billion without owning any of its own vehicles. Like Amazon, Uber can attribute their success to innovative data management. The company utilizes:
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