No more buying but renting: greater flexibility in the business model of the future.

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Less purchasing and more renting for greater flexibility, cost control and less worry. Renting and pay-per-use are increasingly sought after and developed business concepts these days.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Less purchasing and more renting for greater flexibility, cost control and less worries.
Business shifts its references.
Websites and mobile applications: what are the guidelines.
The ideas.
Conclusions.
Less purchasing and more renting for greater flexibility, cost control and less worries.
In many things we Italians are at the forefront, but sometimes, we remain anchored to traditions that tend to never die.

Specifically, I am referring to the idea of ​​ownership, possession and exclusive use that has always distinguished us and differentiated us, for example, from Anglo-Saxon countries, which have always been devoted to flexibility and less restrictive management of their lives.

For example, we talk about houses, cars, objects, we often prefer whatsapp number list to buy them rather than rent and lease them. Each time with pros and cons.

Among the advantages we can mention, for example, the security of having something of your own, of not having to pay a quantum per month and of being fairly certain of not having to face further expenses (at least in the short-medium term).

The disadvantages include, for example, less flexibility in the event of a change in the initial conditions, the total outlay that must be paid in full at the time of purchase (except for loans, leasing or mortgages that technically do not give us ownership of the object until the final instalment is paid) and the possible difficulty in reselling the product.

While for real estate (houses, land and some luxury goods that are not subject to deterioration), the difference between purchase and rental/lease is clearly marked, for all other “movable” products that are subject to deterioration it is in reality only masked.

Business shifts its references.
Today, therefore, the difference between purchase/possession and rental/use is much less pronounced than in the past and tends more than ever towards the latter because it guarantees more flexibility ( if I need it, I use it; when I don't, I stop having it and therefore paying for it ).

Let's take the example of a car. If I buy it today and pay €20,000, I am sure that it will lose value over time. Normally, after 10 years, a car no longer has a market value (or in the case of a trade-in, the standard €1,000 is considered). For example, if we decide to change it after 8 years and it is valued at €4,000, in reality it is as if we had paid €16,000 (20,000-4000) and could use it for 8 years.

In essence, it is as if we had rented it for €2,000/year. After the resale, the ownership cost was directly proportional to the use we made of it and can be traced back to a rental. This is one of the reasons why the type of product such as rental is now rapidly expanding in Italy too.

Moving on to a consumer product such as a €600 smartphone, if after 3 years we replace it with a more recent model, it is as if we had rented it for €200/year (considering that old smartphones generally become collector's items on our shelves).

This is the main reason why mobile operators have moved towards the use of monthly fees that include traffic and smartphone with the possibility of replacing the latter with a more recent model every 24/30 months.

Flexible Business New Scenarios

Websites and mobile applications: what are the guidelines.
Let's start from the concept that the sales process today has changed profoundly compared to even just 7-8 years ago and that marketing and personal promotion have become - even in Italy - a fundamental element for one's business. The first thing that can be noticed is the clear change of direction of the business model that is increasingly being applied by companies, traders and professionals.

For websites, owning and purchasing “development” is increasingly losing value because, in order to keep up with the times and compete with your competitors, it is now necessary to make your site “live” with substantial updates in graphics and main content at least every 18 months. Having a site today with graphics, content, layout and technologies developed only 2-3 years ago is highly counterproductive for your business.

For mobile applications the process is similar although the “engine” updates are much faster because smartphone operating systems have annual update processes and the applications also have to adapt to work at their best.

Purchasing an application by paying a significant initial outlay does not exclude the cost of maintenance and technical management with a periodic contract.

The ideas.
There are various options and opportunities. After evaluating them, I believe that websites and mobile applications must always work updated so as to best achieve the objectives and be valid tools in the marketing strategy of each business.

Having well-updated websites and apps increases their potential and therefore the possibility of making them fundamental resources for procuring customers and revenue.

For websites, in my opinion, the most effective business model today is a mix between "ownership" and "use". First of all, you need to budget for the initial creation of the site (ownership), while you should consider a monthly budget (economic and/or time that is flexible and modifiable based on needs) for the appropriate content updates, to purchase paid advertising, to create landing pages and for the constant insertion of new updated tools so as to enhance your work.

For mobile applications I believe that today the winning model is definitely that of use, avoiding expensive expenses for the initial realization. No more possession but valorization by focusing only on the strategic and content elements to ensure that the app monetizes the investment as much as possible. This is at least applicable to SMB (Small Medium Business).

In this case, there is no substantial initial investment but only a periodic expense for management, maintenance and updates with maximum flexibility and without the risk of regretting it if you decide to change.

Conclusions .
With the advent of the internet, globalization and the opening of markets, today the approach to things has changed profoundly compared to even just 10 years ago. What worked before, today often no longer exists, what was previously a cost must now become an opportunity, what was previously fixed, today must be flexible.

Flexibility is the ability to adapt to a rapidly changing world and is essential to protect yourself and always be on top of things. Today, maintaining the inertia of the old can no longer be an option because everything is changing with the force of a hurricane and at the speed of light, so even if it is difficult, it is essential to try because others are already doing it.

No longer thinking about ownership and advance payment but moving towards the flexible use of things with small and constant payments is the basis of business today and I believe there will be no turning back for a while.

And what do you think? Let me know with your comments below.