(b) Set out the innovation philosophies and approaches of futuristic thinkers
Since we just talked about Jeff Bezos and Amazon in class, I thought it'd make sense to talk about some of his innovative products, services, and philosophies.
Last week, I bought my little sister a birthday present and had it delivered the next day. I rented the textbooks I needed for class on Tuesday and got them delivered on Thursday. This weekend I read a few chapters of a textbook on my Kindle and watched a few episodes of the television show The Sopranos. I was able to do all these things through Amazon and the services it offers. I sound like a promotional advertisement for Amazon but the truth is Amazon has revolutionized the way we do things today. It has made everyday activities, like buying and selling items, easier to manage and faster to receive. We can also watch television shows, listen to music, and read books online at whatever time we'd like. Amazon.com is currently the world's largest internet company and one of the most successful companies today. With a company this successful, you can'y help but be envious of the person behind the idea.
Behind every successful venture, there is a person who's idea kicked it off. In 1994, Jeff Bezos founded Amazon.com when internet use was rapidly growing. Amazon started off as an online bookstore and had a slow growth that didn't see its first profit until 2001. Where some people would be satisfied with Bezos' success with Amazon, Bezos is not. Bezos continues to create and create, for this reason he is a true innovative thinker and entrepreneur.
A few of the more notable items from Amazon include the Amazon Kindle e-book readers and Kindle Fire tablets. However, in order to keep up with the competition, Amazon has recently come out with their own digital media player (Amazon Fire TV) and smartphone (Fire Phone). In a world obsessed with the latest trend, Amazon has to keep being innovative with its designs in order to stay in the game.
Amazon Fire Tv - April 2, 2014
"Amazon Fire TV is a tiny box that connect your HDTV to a world of online entertainment. With a huge selection of TV episodes and movies, voice search that actually works, plus exclusive features like ASAP and Amazon FreeTime, it's the easiest way to enjoy Netflix, Prime Instant Video, Hulu Plus, low-cost movie rentals, live and on demand sports, music, photos, and more."Digital media players are becoming more and more popular and are slowly taking over traditional service providers like Cable TV and Satellite Television. A few consumer-electronic appliances have DMP functionally integrated in them, like DVD players, set-top boxes, video games consoles, and Smart TVs. It is predicted that in 2016, 100 million homes in North America and western Europe will own digital media players and television sets that blend traditional programs with Internet content. With the most popular DMP's including Roku, Google Chromecast, and Apple; Amazon knew they had to follow the trend if they wanted to stay in the competition.
Amazon Fire Phone - July 25, 2014
Following the success of the Kindle Fire tablet, Amazon designed and developed the Fire Phone. The phone includes the Dynamic Perspective feature, which gives the impression of depth and 3D; Mayday, the 24-hour customer service tool; X-ray, helps you identify and find information about media; and Firefly, a tool that automatically recognizes text, sounds, and objects
Unfortunately, so far the Fire Phone is not as successful as other Amazon products. With the Fire Phone being priced as the same as other leading smartphones, there isn't much of an advantage and people prefer to buy other smartphones that offer more than the Fire Phone.
Amazon Prime Air
"The goal of this new delivery system is to get packages into customers' hands in 30 minutes or less using unmanned aerial vehicles. Putting Prime Air into service will take some time, but we will be ready as soon as the FAA grants permission."
An innovative trend that is surely to change the way we conduct business in the future is the use of drones. Currently, the use of UAV technology is not yet legal in the United States but Amazon has started working on and testing the use of drones in indoor facilities or at overseas locations. Amazon is testing a range of capabilities including agility, flight duration and sense-and-avoid sensors. The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), represents the commercial drone industry in the U.S. and is behind Amazon to test drones for the use in the proposed Prime Air package delivery service.
Blue Origin
Besides owning Amazon and continuing to come out with new services for the company, he also founded Blue Origin in 2000. Blue Origin is a human spaceflight startup company that is developing technologies to enable private human access to space.
"We will need to invent, which means we will need to experiment. Our touchstone will be readers, understanding what they care about and working backwards from there. I'm excited and optimistic about the opportunity for invention."
There are a couple of articles with Bezos giving advice and tips in being successful. One of the main reasons for Amazon's success is that they put the customer above everything else.
"Amazon keeps its customer satisfied. It provides good service in a timely manner. It makes consumers feel that they belong to something."
As we've heard over and over before, it's not enough to have a good product. No matter how amazing your product might be, if the customer doesn't like it, you won't be successful. You have to make sure it's what the customer wants and needs (Bezos' Advice). This ties in with his thoughts on innovation (Amazon's Innovation Philosophy).
"Innovation is not something you've done. Innovation definitely can be a goal, while invention can be seen as a component of the pursuit, the attempt to innovate."
Bezos believes one of the most important things for an entrepreneur is innovation and in order to achieve it, we must keep on creating, inventing, and reinventing. There will be times where no one will understand your idea but you have to find patience and be okay with failure in order succeed.
Questions?
Whether you like Amazon or not, it is one of the most successful companies today. Would you have done anything differently?
Do you think Bezos should've stopped with the Amazon Fire Tv since the Amazon Fire Phone isn't doing so well?
Do you agree with Bezos' philosophy on making customers the priority? Or would you put supplies first?
Do you think Amazon has reached its prime with Amazon Prime Air? Or do you believe there can still be a lot of things done with Amazon?
If you were Jeff Bezos, in which direction would you go from here? Would you keep working on Amazon or would you spend more time on Blue Origin?
Kim,
ReplyDeleteWhat a great start to the Social Media Moments part of the Practicum!
The videos you've posted tie in very nicely with the narrative you've set up. Jeff Bezos challenges us to focus on what entrepreneurial innovation is all about--creating value, managing risks and generating rewards.
I'm curious to see how your colleagues answer the questions you've posed and/or come up with their own questions.
Prof. Alvarado
I totally agree with Bezos' philosophy on making customers the priority. I feel that the most successful innovations are thought up because of an issue a consumer is having with a specific product or service. To innovate an existing product or create a whole new product or service would be unsuccessful, in the market, if there was no direct target to promote to. Understanding the consumers wants, needs and demands could be beneficial to the success of a particular product or service.
ReplyDeleteI think with the technical advances, of today, there are no limits on innovation for any product or service. I feel Bezos has more ideas that we will see unveiled in time. The convenience of all services and products provided by Amazon are changing the way consumers do business and spend their free time. I'm excited to see what's next.
Bezos' ability to revolutionize and innovate the ways to keep customers coming back is something all business owners should recognize. To answer your first question, there is nothing that I personally could have done differently to put Amazon where it is today. Without Bezos, Amazon would have failed like many large internet companies during the Dotcom bubble.
ReplyDeleteSince Amazon has completely changed the way we all shop, I think that Bezos should put significant time and effort into changing the way we travel. That being said, he should also continue to revolutionize Amazon.
Brian Masterson
I probably would not have done anything differently other than maybe buying out another company and collaborating two different services together.
ReplyDeleteYou can really only tell if something is going to be a failure when you make an attempt. It took Bezos quite a while to start making a profit so I am sure he has gained a lot of patience by now. Maybe it did not work out so great but it is worth trying something like the phone or TV
I was always taught that the customer is always right no matter the circumstance. The customer will really respect that and become loyal to your company when they are treated this way. Therefore I would put my customers first.
I believe much more can be done with Amazon Prime Air. Netflix now has its own original series debuting on their website so perhaps Amazon could look into something like that. I am not sure if Amazon Prime Air can be viewed on a smartphone like Netflix can?
I would keep working on Amazon because I still think it is going to be quiet a while before trips to space become less expensive. There is a market but Virgin Galactic seems to be the number one choice of everyone. Personally I would rather choose them. I think the idea with the drones should be concentrated on rather than another company like that. Maybe it is something fun for Bezos to work on though in his “spare time”, which is alright as well.
Derek Davies
As like Alia, I agree with Bezos' philosophy on making customers the priority. I believe that the most successful products/services are the ones that are customer orientated. This means that are the ones that are user friendly, make consumers life easier, and can even save the costumer some money. Bottom-line, the new product or service has to create value for the customer. With products and services like Kindle, Prime, video-streaming Amazon has done an excellent job in innovating and reinventing the way consumers shop and creating a necessity consumers didn’t even know they need it back then but now they can’t live without.
ReplyDeleteAlso with this innovating business model Amazon has been able to cut down their supply chain costs by storage and distributing the products they sell in warehouses rather than in several physical stores. This online selling business model has created a great disadvantage on traditional retailers who are just now starting to implement this business model, and some of them are facing financial trouble.
I do not believe that Amazon has reached its prime with Amazon Prime Air. This company has the perfect combination of variables (Capital, innovating thinking environment, and good acquisitions) to keep innovating and creating products and services we consumers don’t even know we need yet. To me, innovation is creating value for consumers, and Amazon has done a great job at it.
David Grijalva
Awesome start to the social media moments. Jeff Bezos is a really good case study. I think that like any entrepreneur, Jeff is no stranger to failure. As far as the new phone goes, I think he should keep it up. Right now it seems as though he is behind on the trends -- playing catch up so to speak. This could explain why the phone is not popular. However, just like he revolutionized online shopping or reading books (with the kindle) he has potential to change the smart phone market. It will be a challenge to do what apple and android does better than them. But if Jeff can offer something unique and maybe even something connected to other amazon services that the others can't then perhaps the customers will see value in it. If I were Jeff I would have left the OS design to some form of android to do what he does best: push the boundaries of what is possible with how we use the technology in our lives. Many people are familiar with android or the apple os and would prefer to use that, but with it, get many of the added benefits that a company like amazon can provide. I can see it now.... you show up at a friends party, forget their gift, order it on amazon with your phone and have a drone drop it inconspicuously in the back yard for you to grab. That is kind of a joke, but you see what I mean.
ReplyDeleteTrent Walker
Jeff Bezos is most definitely a great example of what a true entrepreneur is. He is an excellent innovator, who never stops and has a passion for using new technologies to enhance his product whenever he can. Looking over the history of Amazon and how Jeff Bezos evolved his company into what it is today, I can't say there is much I would have done differently. They have branched out into so many different areas of technology, and to be honest, I was a little bit skeptical when Amazon released things like the Kindle or streaming movies and TV shows from their website. I wasn't sure what business Amazon, a online store essentially, had to do with a reading tablet, or streaming television. However, now I realize it all works together in the sense that Amazon is working towards being everything you need. Putting the customer first has definitely created success for Amazon, but one thing I have learned over my years at various jobs, is that another very important group of people is your employees. There wasn't anything mentioned about Bezos' management style or philosophies in the work place, but I would be interested to know more about that. Making your employees happy can do wonders for your company, and I feel that it is just as important as making the customer priority.
ReplyDeleteI definitely don't think that Amazon has reached it's prime. Jeff Bezos may want to spend a little more time with Blue Origins, since space travel is not too far off in the distance as a possibility, but moment he stops innovating and evolving Amazon is the moment they lose momentum and the leading position online. Technology is ever changing, and Jeff Bezos has been sure to capture new technologies and utilize them to enhance your online experience with Amazon. Technology is not going to stop any time soon, so Jeff Bezos and Amazon should be able to continue to find new ways to utilize new inventions to better their product.
-Catherine Hennessy
Jeff Bezos is an individual who encompasses many traits a successful entrepreneur requires in order to be successful. His constant willingness to experiment, invent, and keep the long term in mind is what has kept amazon innovating since the beginning of its founding. Bezos' obsession with his customers is what keeps customer service at a very high level and keeps customers loyal to amazon products. Although the Fire TV and Fire Phone aren't doing so well it is important for Amazon to continue to experiment and innovate with products in order to prevent stagnation. If some products aren't picking up steam as quick as others then double down on the winners and toss the losers. Amazon Prime Air is definitely a new winning feature that Amazon will develop and capitalize on. People always want their things as quickly as possible whether its a physical product or a the new episode to their favorite TV show. As long as Amazon continues to decrease the time people have to wait for their products, they will continue to grow and reach customers on a new level.
ReplyDelete-Louis Mendoza
Jeff bezos is the perfect case of an entrepreneur who knows how to do things better. I believe that almost any company can be turned around with the right thinking. Innovative thinking is what we entrepreneurs need. Look at Mr. Bezos, I don't think he is successful because he got lucky with amazon and it just happened to be a very good idea. I believe Mr. Bezos would've been successful no matter what company he came up with. Its because he does things the right way.
ReplyDeleteIts never about luck when it comes to opening a business. Im sure there are plenty of cases where luck had a lot to do with success; But what I am trying to express is that when you operate your business with the type of entrepreneurial philosophy that people like Mr. Bezos has, you don't need luck.
Things like Amazon's outstanding customer service is what I am talking about. We as customers like to be treated special. And at the end of the day, its the customer who your business revolves around. Knowing that is one thing, but implementing it is a lot more difficult to do.
Part of being successful is also being innovative and progressive. We as entrepreneurs must always look for ways to do and make things better. Even when we already have reached success it is important to be progressive and always be looking out for the next big thing. I think this is why Mr. Bezos has blue origin. It may sound a little crazy when you start talking about spaceships, But then again a lot of great things sound crazy at first.
Amazon air is another example of Bezos being innovative and progressive. He gained success when he came out with amazon prime. But that didn't stop him from creating another more innovative way of doing things better.
-Pablo Rangel
Jeff Bezos is one of the most successful and respected entrepreneurs and innovators in the world. As we see in the presentation, Bezos it shows us more of their success and leave us time to think on maybe how many times he failed creating their projects, but obviously he learned from every experience and carefully analyzed how the world was changing and evolving and he always saw an opportunity which he worked really hard to make it happen. I think if someone wants to become a successful entrepreneur one day he/she probably could use his creation process as a great guideline.
ReplyDeleteI don't think he should have stopped with the Amazon Fire Tv because both are new projects with endless possibilities. Sure, there is a really competitive market for the Amazon Fire Phone but this just means that the company needs to innovate with their product and find a competitive advantage over existing smartphones in the market. This would be another challenge that Jeff Bezos will be facing but there is where he is really good at.
Bezos' philosophy on making customers the priority is the key for many companies around the world. This is why Amazon has been really successful and has been able to open to new markets and opportunities. Satisfied customers will always look at Amazon's brand as one that respect them and give them the best service and product, so this customer loyalty and revenue coming from them is why Jeff Bezos has been entering to new markets with high success rates and expectations that let the product almost sell by itself.
Like I said before, Amazon is a successful company opening to new markets. Social Media is becoming part of our daily lives more and more so there could me new markets for new products in the future. Also, when new markets and products are created competitors will start to appear and become great challenges to keep competitive advantage on. Reinventing products and services is the way how companies survive to evolving markets and Amazon has been doing a great job in this area.
If I were Jeff Bezos I would totally continuo doing a lot of work and developing with Blue Origin because world's technology is evolving faster and faster and Blue Origin could be an important factor for future projects. However, I would also continue developing new projects with Amazon because of its customer loyalty to the brand and also because social media is growing fast and Amazon already has a big influence and percentage of the market share in many of the different areas.
-David Arismendy-
-Amazon was not that successful in the beginning so maybe start differently start their business as their doing it today.
ReplyDelete-Their are always going to be inventions which they don’t do well, Bezos did the right thing by not stopping and making the amazon fire tv, because people minds can be change.
-I totally agree that the priority are costumers if you don’t have costumers happy who is going to buy for you or you will make a bad reputation.
-Technology is always changing and advancing and they have to keep up and they have plenty of more thing they can work on.
-In my opinion Amazon its already doing perfectly managed and doing well, If I would be Jeff I would spend more time on Blue Origin to innovate more things and to Amazon to keep succeeding.
-T
I agree with David A. that Bezos should have continued with the Amazon Fire TV. Companies are struggling to keep the television a central figure in the home as it once was, now that computers offer online streaming of television programs. There are a lot of possibilities and ways to grow from the Fire TV.
ReplyDeleteEven though his phone is not successful my constituents brought up an excellent point that it is an absolute necessity to grow and evolve. A stagnant business model will fall behind, and no market is immune to changes that they need to keep pace with (at the very least). Trent brings up a good point in saying that it sounds like the company is playing catch up with the phone, and I would even venture to say with Fire TV. For example, Apple has had Apple TV for a good 6 or 7 years now, and it has for a long time been synchronistic with other devices such as iPads, laptops, and computers.
It is very interesting to me that Amazon decided to venture into electronics. Their Kindle is a very strong offering and priced competitively, and the results show. I believe Jeff Bezos if he continues to have Amazon delve more into electronics needs to establish a place in the market that is affordable.
There are endless possibilities for Amazon, and especially so with Amazon Air. It is uncertain how well the system will work, but in theory it sounds excellent. This will really give Amazon an edge over other online retailers if it gets off the ground. But there are many variables at work, and once the drone gets in the sky there is the possibility of theft (by shooting down the drone), destruction of the drone and subsequently the product whether accidentally or intentionally, and weather conditions. In theory its an excellent idea, but Amazon will have to be prepared for negative reactions and those outside factors.
-Taylor Bencomo