U-CommerceBroadening the universe of marketing

Richard T. WatsonLeyland F. PittPierre Berthon

George M. Zinkhanrwatson@terry.uga.e

du

Expanding the vision

Expanding the vision

Parallel revolutions

• Physics– Newtonian to special theory of

relativity

• Art– Realism to modern art

Raphael: School of Athens

Picasso: Ma Jolie

Parallel revolutions

• Einstein and the Cubists proposed alternative concepts of space– Space interacts with the volume,

shape, and size of objects– Space and time can be fractured into

visual elements

U-commerce

• An alternative view of time and space for business and marketing

• Commerce has been flattened to two dimensions

• Multiple connections are being reduced to a single point

A foundation in light

• Physics– Speed of light in a vacuum is

constant– E = mc2

• Art– Innovations in recording light

• Commerce– Using light to communicate

Types of Commerce

Type of commerce Foundation

Commerce Transportation network

E-commerce Internet

M-commerce Cell phone network

U-commerce Ubiquitous networks

Types of commerce

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Key forces

• Bounded rationality• Attention deficit society

Bounded rationality

• Consumers are capable of a wide variety of reasoning errors when making decisions

• Managers have difficulty in managing a multitude of customers on a one-to-one basis

Attention deficit society

• Consumers are increasingly bombarded with more and more messages– It is estimated that a single weekday issue of the

New York Times contains more information than the average person in seventeenth-century England came across in a lifetime

• Conscious attention is a scarce resource• Some messages need to be attenuated and

others amplified

U-commerce

• The use of ubiquitous networks to support personalized and uninterrupted communications and transactions between a firm and its various stakeholders to provide a level of value over, above, and beyond traditional commerce

• Über-commerce

Ubiquitous

• Networks everywhere• All consumer durable devices are on a

network• Intelligence and information are widely

dispersed and always accessible• Smart entities

– Appliances– Buildings– Signs

• Street smart communities

Universal

– Devices work everywhere• All networks• All locations• Always connected

– Universal access

Unique

• Information is customized– To person– To device– To context

• Location• Time• Role

Unison

• Synchronization/replication of designated files

• Transparent to owner• Current data are always available

Network driven firm

• A directed collection of electronically interacting stakeholders that coordinates activities through the exchange of messages over electronic networks

• Networks are a means of increasing– efficiency (e.g., lowering transaction costs)– effectiveness (e.g., adding value to customers)

• Applies concepts of object-orientation

The object-oriented firm

• Applies the computer science principles of object orientation to creating a business

• A new firm can be built from existing firms

• Procedures are developed for electronically exchanging messages between firms via the Internet

Network pattern matching

OO strategy

NPM Replacements Ltd

6 employees 700 employees

Minimal warehouse Large warehouse

Evolution of markets

Market Definition Theme

Marketplace

Traditional physical marketplace

Exchange of goods and services via face-to-face human interaction

Marketspace

Informational marketplace

Exchange of goods and services via computer interaction

U-space Transcension and integration of marketplace and marketspace

The global integration of physical and informational to provide value through amplification, attenuation, contextualization, and transcension

U-space

Unique

(time-space specific)

The hyper-real The post-human

The node The network

Ultra-conscious(extends/enhances awareness)

Unconscious(behind or out of conscious awareness)

Ubiquitous

(time-space independent)

Attenuation marketing

Amplification marketing

Contextual marketing Transcension marketing

Matrixmarketing

Transformationmarketing

Immersionmarketing

Nodalmarketing

• Ultra-conscious & unique• Extraordinary experience

– Adventuring– Entertainment– Teleimmersion

• Immersion marketing– Processes that enhance conscious

interaction with the phenomenal world in specific situations

Hyper-real

Post-human

• Ultra-conscious & ubiquitous• The network is always on• Permanent enhancement of human facilities

– Information processing • Cell phone/PDA

– Advanced prosthetics– Genetic enhancement

• Body change– Rhinoplasty

• Transformation marketing– Processes that enhance conscious interaction with the

phenomenal world acontextually – that is transcending specific time-space locations

Network

• Unconscious & ubiquitous• Move tasks from conscious to unconscious• Automated consumption

– Automated toll booths– Smart cards

• Automatic background execution– Price comparison bots

• Attention freeing• Matrix marketing

– Universal, acontextual processes designed to automatically perform tasks

Node

• Unconscious & unique• Subscription services• CRM tries to understand the customer so

well that offers easily capture attention• Ultimate form of permission marketing

– Wine-of-the-month club

• Nodal marketing– Processes that reduce the necessity of an

individual or collective to consciously interact with phenomena in specific contexts

Model dynamics

Unique

(time-space specific)

The hyper-real The post-human

The node The network

Ultra-conscious(extends/enhances awareness)

Unconscious(behind or out of conscious awareness)

Ubiquitous

(time-space independent)

Attenuation marketing

Amplification marketing

Contextual marketing Transcension marketing

Matrixmarketing

Transformationmarketing

Immersionmarketing

Nodalmarketing

Bounded rationality

Competitive rationality

Types of marketing

Type of marketing

Description

Amplification Processes designed to extend or enhance conscious interaction with phenomena

Attenuation Processes designed to reduce the necessity to consciously interact with phenomena

Contextual Processes which are time-space specific and add value through their specificity

Transcension Processes that transcend, or enable transcension, of the traditional constraints of time-space

Implications for marketing

• Revalidate existing theories• Build new theories• New forms of marketing• Amplifying and attenuating

consciousness

Implications for MIS

• Integrated customer database• Electronic communication links• Simple interfaces and high

functionality• Automation of tasks to free

attention

Conclusion

• Innovations in processing information are the bedrock of cultural, social, political, and economic change

• U-commerce is the final step in the evolution of commerce

• It is part of the evolution in thinking about a firm’s relationship with the customer– From products to services– From services to information

• Information is service

U-commerce

• The ultimate killer app• It changes everything

Draft of article

Contactrwatson@terry.uga.e

du