The new Demand
REQUIRES A FRIENDLY CONSUMER EXPERIENCE
that has not yet been developed.
The new generation of products will actually be user-friendly in the sense that they can be easily used – with maximum profit – even by absolutely “techno-illiterate” people.
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This new level of friendliness of the interaction of the new generation of Smart products is favored by:
Today, “friendly” products are actually
products that can only be used by people
who are able to learn “technical” concepts.
To develop real disruptive innovation (which brings real advantages over current product generation) the User interface must be redesigned according to the principles of Human oriented innovation (see Rule “Holistic Innovation”).
The interface available to the Users must be self-explanatory -” grandma “proof (this applies to any product: App, Hardware, Service, etc …).
In this way the product not only becomes accessible to most, but also allows techno-illiterate users to draw high value from it. For points that cannot be simplified, it is necessary to have interactive guides and online help (which should be crowd-sourced, managed by User communities).
FAST ACCESSIBILITY OF FEATURES (Device as an Assistant)
A really friendly product must also
ALLOW THE USER TO OBTAIN HIGH-VALUE RESULTS.
A new generation product must be
CONCEIVED AS AN ASSISTANT
That is, as an Agent working for the User solving problems.
A reference is Google Assistant (although it is a precursor product of the new generation, still developed in a “naive” way).
What is missing in a product like Google Assistent is what is “below” it. That is an Eco-system that allows to develop New Values required by the New Demand. It is an Ecosystem both for the Hardware and for the Software.
One of the problems with Google Assistent is that it relies heavily on AI, which leads to at least a couple of problems:
– The AI we are talking about today – used as a sales argument – in reality is not able to produce such useful results for the Customer (remember: the disruptivity of the innovation does not depend on technologies, but on the ability to develop new useful values for the Customer). So the concept of AI must be reviewed at the base <see My articles on Futuristic Vision (and Artificial Intelligence)>
– in the case of Google, of course, the “Intelligence” is used not to bring benefits to the user, but to favor the Company’s customers.
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DISTRIBUTED SYSTEM (and OPEN SYSTEM)
One of the problems with Google Assistant is that it should be integrated into an Open System. That is a system that can integrate standard devices (the Eco-system must take into account, for example, the Tablet that the user already has at home – has Google forgotten having created Android?). [see Rule: “integration in an Eco-system”]
Google does not seem to take into account that the failure of vocal systems – as the one now is Google Home – derives from the fact in the office you can not to hear the colleges reasoning out loud: imagine family life if someone speaks continuously with the device from Google, or with the TV remote control.
Obviously, like many Incumbents, Google enjoys a monopoly condition, and therefore for the moment it has no real need to develop real innovation.
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RAPIDITY/UBIQUITY OF ACCESS TO THE SYSTEM.
The interaction that makes the product really useful to the User is based on a quick accessibility of its features
An example: today we often do not resort to the App for the grocery list because to add a single item it is necessary to make several steps.
The Smart Watch can be an excellent Device that guarantees the ubiquity of access to the system.
INTEGRATION WITH SOCIAL NETWORK
To bring real advantages to the User,
a new generation product
MUST RELY ON INTEGRATION WITH DEDICATED DOCIAL NETWORKS.
The integration of Social Networks allows the product to develop the new Crowd Trends: basically to create new Practices to improve the quality of life.
It is a Trend like creating a Support Community for the purchasing phase to the management phase; product sharing, etc …
Such integration today, among other things, makes the AI take a step forward (disruptive): from Artificial Intelligences to crowd-intelligence°.
