Nina Michelle Carazas, COO at AutoBack.
Disruptive technology is nothing new. Think of the car industry; when Carl Benz developed the first gasoline-powered vehicle in 1886people could now use a motorcycle to get around instead of a horse and buggy.
Soon after, Henry Ford introduced the first Model T, an affordable, easy-to-operate, and durable vehicle that could also be mass-produced, pushing the industry even further ahead. Fast forward to today, and according to the S&P Global Mobility report, there is a projection that electric vehicle sales may be responsible 40% of total passenger car sales in the United States by the year 2030.
The catalyst for innovation and disruption in the automotive industry has always been the consumer. People constantly demand a better experience and expect things to be easy and convenient.
As we move further into a world where digitalization is at the forefront, I believe that legacy industries, such as towing services, will need to face similar disruptions to meet current expectations, such as customer engagement, acquisition and general competition. If you’re not the one embracing new technology and disrupting outdated systems, someone else will.
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Find the pain points
To innovate and disrupt an aging industry, you must first identify what needs to be improved. Is it the user experience? Product integrations? Analysis? Identify the point of entry into the market to create a clear path forward and a potential product roadmap.
When you look at the towing industry, a great customer experience is not the first thing that comes to mind. Everyone dreads being towed because it entails long waiting times, costs and mountains of paperwork.
Not only are the outdated, analog systems used in towing management negatively impacting the general public, but also cities, public safety officials, and the towing companies themselves.
These are the pain points, the point of market entry that must be addressed with disruptive technologies.
Other factors that can fuel the need for disruption in the industry include the cost of existing products or services, the number and size of potential competitors, and the actual available market share that can be captured both initially and in the future.
Disruptors understand how to take roadblocks and turn them into strengths and inflection points to change the trajectory of the industry.
Uproot embedded legacy systems
Think of the healthcare sector. Digital transformation has been happening for years without any kind of unified solution due to the inherent challenges of HIPAA compliance, disparate providers and proprietary systems. Practitioners learn one system (or create their own) and the application of a new methodology has operational effects from the patients all the way to the insurance companies.
The need for standardization has led to serious industry disruption. Practitioners are required to learn completely new systems, and some feel this changes the way they learn to become a doctor.
The towing industry is similar. Most cities and towers have their own system that works, but more and more municipalities and city governments are looking to standardize relationships with towers, simplify asset management, and develop solutions for a more connected city (i.e. a smart city). I see the industry going through a similarly painful adoption process.
The value proposition for disruption
One of the biggest challenges in disruption is that it takes more than just new technology or a new solution to change an industry. To actually enforce disruption, the technology must be easy to implement and companies must free up resources to educate the market and train new users.
If your product solves a problem but is complicated and difficult to implement, you will soon find that the appetite for change is limited.
Essentially, the value proposition for disruption should be a win-win situation. It needs to take into account the industry ecosystem, address the pain points and emerge as something that makes life easier for everyone – from the performer to the end user.
As you think about what it takes to educate the market about the why behind the what, developing that compelling brand story should include a clear problem-solution dichotomy that demonstrates how your experience will make users think, “That was the easiest experience I’ve had.” ever had.”
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