Thoughts from Andreas Weber, CEO INKISH D-A-CH, in the run-up to the INKISH Whats-Next information days
Preliminary remark: The findings and facts from the series of 10 articles by Morten B. Reitoft and Andreas Weber for drupa 2021 create important prerequisites for the following ideas paper. Highly Recommended: Epilogue - Are We All Discredited?
No question about it: the COVID-19 pandemic has radically changed our lives from one day to the next. In a brutal and disruptive way. For better or for worse. The bad thing is that many industries (including gastronomy, hotel, travel) and especially the self-employed or low-income earners are virtually left with nothing. The printing industry is also experiencing massive falls in sales in parts. – But what is the good thing about it? Well, as some experts and top decision-makers argue, the pandemic has relentlessly highlighted weaknesses: What was not going well so far is now definitely coming to an end. Paving yourself through is no longer possible.In addition, changes are accelerated in a catapult-like manner, especially in the digital transformation. The trade fair and event sector was hit particularly hard. From a German point of view – Germany is the home country and “market leader†at trade fairs, especially in B2B – it takes revenge for not adapting a marketplace, trade fair and expo attitude that dates back to the Middle Ages and was perfected in the industrial age.
The 404 momentum
Interestingly, organizations and companies that were already closely networked with their “stakeholders†got this under control the quickest. Above all the so-called platform economy, led by GAFAM. (Google / Alphabet, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft), but also Alibaba, Baidu, Booking Holdings, Dropbox, Etsy, Naspers, Netflix, PayPal, Tencent, Twilio and Weibo. (See platform index https://www.platform-fund.com). The growth in value of these companies since the beginning of 2020 has been enormous and in some cases has even been in the three-digit percentage range. And SAP has pushed ahead with the establishment of broadcast studios and has launched its own TV channel.
But what does that have to do with trade fairs and events? Quite a lot: Because platforms are, above all, marketplaces. This is where supply and demand come together digitally. With a click of the mouse or a tap of your finger, so to speak. Without intermediaries or agents, communication takes place directly with customers / interested parties. At the same time, masses of data are generated that record and evaluate purchasing behavior, needs, customer satisfaction, product experiences and much more in real time and help to optimize everything.
Print as a marketplace?
Just as the speed of innovation in print & paper increases, so does the nutrition of the go-to-market paralyze. State-of-the-art inkjet digital printing systems are brought onto the market just like the high-speed printing cylinder from the book printing era: you design the novelty, create prototypes, invite interested parties to machine demonstrations, distribute print samples and then hope that people will buy enthusiastically. But that doesn't work anymore! And certainly not during a pandemic.
Loss of control as a cure?
The aforementioned, extremely successful platforms impressively prove how it works: Openness and, above all, diversity based on mature system worlds count. Not lulling or shielding customers brings success, but the benefit of focusing on the customer's experience as well as their needs and fears.
In my opinion, we therefore no longer need single-topic trade fairs for print. As print, IPEX and now also drupa show, they did it by themselves. This is not a print industry phenomenon. The same happened to Internet World, CeBIT, and Photokina.
What do we need for a new beginning?
In view of the uninterrupted high level of innovation on the part of the manufacturers, the need for and transfer of information is increasing exponentially – both among the manufacturers themselves and with potential customers for innovations. You can no longer win with classic push marketing.
Just as print service companies have to adapt to mass customization and omnichannel scenarios as part of their portfolios, interactive ways have to be found to make use of technology innovations not just peer-to-peer, but platform and network to bring them into conversation in an oriented manner.
I am therefore very excited about the two INKISH # WhatsNext days on December 15 and 16, 2020. Morten B. Reinhilft and I will be happy to answer questions during the moderation that you can forward to us beforehand.
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