In the age of artificial intelligence or AI, machine learning, cloud computing and automation, is it time for your business to jump on the new technology bandwagon?   

In this video, I explore why adopting new technology may be good for business and what you should consider before jumping on the technology bandwagon.  

What is the biggest reason for anyone to adopt new technology? The most significant assumption that most people have about new technology is that it will streamline processes and make things run more efficiently. And when you save on time and resources, you save on costs, which translates to a bigger bottom line.

This is true, for the most part. Consider how email, social media, and customer relationship management software has helped us reach and communicate with our customers better. Or think about the automations we have installed that takes care of the tedious, time-consuming tasks of our day-to-day operations. Technology can help us run our businesses more efficiently and effectively when used correctly  

The key here is that it should be used appropriately. Technology is a means to an end—the end being your business goals and objectives. Before you jump into any technology bandwagon, it is important to consider WHY you want to do so in the first place.   

Why are you considering adopting new technology? What do you expect to gain? How does this new technology achieve your business goals and objectives? How does the technology address the gaps in the market? More importantly, how will it help your customers?   

Here are some more specific questions to ponder:  

Will the technology improve my products and services? 

Will the technology improve how I deliver my products and services to my customers? 

What is the incremental benefit to my customers? Is it significant enough that it affects how they use and experience my products?  

How will affect my costs?  

How will it affect my pricing?   

Speaking of costs and pricing, consider also that there are costs to new technology. But there are two types of costs—specifically, the cost of adopting new technology and the cost of NOT adopting the new technology.   

What are the costs of adopting new technology?  

There are monetary costs to adopting technology. You need to fund tech acquisition. This may include buying the software and infrastructure. This may entail hiring someone or a team to help your business integrate the technology into your existing systems.  

There are also costs to your existing resources. You will need to train your team to learn the new technology. You may also need to educate your clients and customers, especially when this new technology impacts how you provide your customer experience.  

Expect to have birthing pains, too. There may be hiccups in the integration. Your team might have difficulty adapting to doing things differently. Your partners and clients may need some time and maybe encouragement to adjust to the change. You need to consider that your transition plans might not go as smoothly as you expected. 

What are the costs of not adopting new technology?  

Perhaps you chose not to adopt new technology. Maybe you want to wait things out. Maybe you cannot afford it just yet. Perhaps you would like to take some time to learn more about it. Choosing to not adopt still carry opportunity costs.  

Your competitors may be using it to their advantage, which means they might be offering better products and services to your customer base. Consider the following questions:  

Will not adopting the technology make my product or services inferior to my competitors? 

Will not adopting the technology make how you deliver your products and services less efficient? 

Compared to alternative products and services, will your customers feel a significant downgrade when buying your product or service? 

Gary Veynerchuk’s has great advice on making the decision about new tech:  

Study consumer attention. You’re trying to decide: Is it here today? Will it be here next year? Will it be here in five years? So many people jump in too early and get burned. 

Whether we should jump now or later is a question of whether it will make sense to our customers for us to adopt new technology. How will this new technology help them? How will it solve their problems? How will it serve them? Once we figure this out, it will become easier to determine whether it’s time for us to jump the tech bandwagon—or find a better solution.