Federal Trade Commission antitrust investigators are going beyond a review of Amazon's retail business to examine the company's cloud computing unit, sources say. Amazon Web Services is much bigger than its closest competitor, Microsoft Azure.
Shipping containers are ideally on the move and full at all times, and technology is making it easier to do this cost-effectively, writes Gary Barraco. "A container management platform facilitates tracking of containers that are ready to return to the port via message updates to trucking companies and logistics teams, providing a single view into their location and status," Barraco writes.
Many distributors are laggards when it comes to tracking competitors' online pricing through scraping software, with many respondents to a recent survey using spot checks instead. Using spot checks "in place of what's a relatively inexpensive and easy to install technology frankly shows a naivety about what it takes to compete online," says Ian Heller.
Ruth Stevens predicts seven trends for business-to-business marketing in 2020, including a shift to focusing on customer relationships instead of the funnel and voice search becoming an increasingly popular tool for buyers. Companies will make better use of employees as social ambassadors and realize the importance of marketing to current customers, not just new ones, she writes.
For small businesses dealing with high shipment volumes or complex products, having to fulfill every new order in-house can quickly become overwhelming. But given their limited resources, how can small businesses grow more efficient without depleting their budget or overwhelming their staff? The answer might just be on-demand warehousing.
As businesses like Amazon and Walmart introduce streamlined services for e-commerce fulfillment and distribution, customer expectations are evolving in-kind. But without equal funding, how can small and mid-sized companies optimize their supply chains to remain competitive? For a growing number of firms, the answer is on-demand warehousing.
Art Petty learned the hard way that leaders need empathy to get the best from their teams. "Individuals want to know the person responsible for them not only understands the situation from their point of view but also cares about their safety and success," he writes.
Unlimited time off is a growing trend, especially among tech companies, writes practice-management consultant Beverly Flaxington. While that may be unrealistic for small advisory firms, she suggests firms allow for reasonable schedule flexibility to attract millennial employees.
Don't miss the NAW 2020 Executive Summit: INNOVATE TO DOMINATE, Jan. 28-30! Our program will provide for you a road map to innovation as you peer into the future of wholesale distribution, explore marketplace platforms, and examine the points of view of today's brightest business experts and next-generation distribution entrepreneurs who are creating new business models to satisfy industry and customer needs, and create new demand. Get ready to network with other best-in-class distributors. Register today.
Wholesaler-distributors save up to 25% off Hertz car rental base rates* on business or leisure travel when reserving with NAW discount code CDP# 55709. To reserve, go online or call 800-654-3131. *Taxes excluded. Terms apply.
In his latest post, Mike Marks, NAW Institute for Distribution Excellence Fellow, tells wholesaler-distributors to be proactive rather than reactive to the threat of Amazon. Read his blog post. Want more recommendations and insights once a week? Subscribe to the NAW Blog Distributing Ideas.
