Not long before Blackberry went bust it was named by Fortune as the fastest growing company globally and valued at more than USD 55 billion. Similarly, Yahoo during its heydays touched a peak valuation of USD 140 billion before its market share and subsequently the estimation hit rock bottom. Now, what is common between the two enterprises apart from its dramatic slump? Both were market disrupters of their era and used tech innovation to introduce platforms, which were unique and revolutionary in nature. In fact, whats app is often considered to be an evolved version of blackberry messenger and Google search engine as-well-as mail is akin to what Yahoo was in the 90’s and early 2000’s.  However, the inability of the two tech giants to transform with the curve ultimately spelt doom for them.
Nonetheless, it seems that the startup businesses in the present scenario have learned their lessons from the past and are embracing new technological tools to serve the unique needs of their esteemed customers. Startup ventures, often strapped for finances are leveraging the benefits technology has to offer to keep their costs down and acquire as well as retain customers, which in turn is fueling their growth. While the nature of technological adaption for these ventures is determined by numerous factors such as the ecosystem it functions within, and the amount of investment needed to integrate it with the company’s operations, some prominent innovations to gain universal appeal are:
Chatbots
Start-ups with their customer-centric approach have redefined the levels of customer experience in India and globally. One of the prominent innovations being embraced by these ventures are AI-Chatbots because of the inherent benefits this tech innovation offers in augmenting customer centric capability of business ventures by facilitating quick redressal of queries. One of the core benefits of this technology, which has contributed to its surge and makes it the queen bee of innovations with global appeal, is their unique ability to create a seamless customer experience by understanding their query in detail and navigating the conversation to provide a quick and relevant response. Therefore, combining the advantages of virtual and human assistance has assisted to deliver a differentiated customer experience.
Blockchain
Data protection and privacy are the buzzwords for consumers and businesses today.  Before the arrival of this technology consumer data or historical footprint could easily be tampered with. However, Blockchain technology has a complex network of interwoven e-records, having multiple replications making it extremely secure and hack-proof, therefore emerging as a safe custodian of records. Many startups are embracing this tech to position themselves as a differentiated entity and increasing levels of data transparency will only further popularize this tech. Thus, Blockchain has the potential to enhance the quality of service delivery while improving confidentiality. In fact, 2018 has been touted as the year of blockchain technology.
Big Data
Big data has emerged as an integral technological tool to offer personalized services to the consumers and are being extensively adopted by startups. Through insights collected due to the application of big data, startups are able to segment customers on the basis of demography, preferences, behaviour etc. thereby facilitating a seamless customer experience, which augments their operations and build a loyal client base. As businesses understand the value of learning from the insights provided by data, the application of this tech is set to grow phenomenally.
To conclude, while there are other emerging technologies in the industry landscape, which facilitate business and are being increasingly deployed, the focus of any business entity, start-up or otherwise is to achieve growth by acquiring a customer base and retaining it through a customer-centric approach in a cost-effective manner. It is here that AI-chatbots, blockchain and big data is clearly gaining ground.
About the Author
Ashish Gupta is the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and Chief Product Officer (CPO) at Policy Bazaar, India’s largest online insurance aggregator and is committed to building awareness among every individual before buying an insurance cover for their loved ones. He has been instrumental in driving the revenue through market research, product marketing, and content marketing. Prior to joining PolicyBazaar, Ashish served as Vice-President and CTO at HealthKart and was the CEO of online coupon-search portal CouponVoodoo.com.
Technologies That Are Embraced By Startup Companies
