Top 10 Technology Trends for Business in 2020

This year a number of emerging trends in technology have had an impact on how people do business. Cloud service and data management providers have been running the show, due to the increased threat to cybersecurity. Advances in production have been made with the introduction of artificial intelligence, and many fields have benefited from automated transactions. Let’s take a look at what different companies have been investing in, and what is currently in store for the future of business. Here are ten technology trends that have been developing in business so far in 2020. 

Alternative Payment Methods

The shift has been mainly from credit or debit card transactions to other forms of online payments. This improves transaction speed, security, and efficiency. Innovations in technology allow payments and money transfers to be made remotely. Apps such as Square and Paypal have been making business owners’ lives easier for a while now.  

Now that businesses tend to have a variety of accounts set up, Open Banking is another example of financial innovation. Advances in artificial intelligence and security mean that business owners can receive an overview of accounts from different banks at the same time. Here are the main types of alternative payment methods trending in 2020. 

Account-Account Transactions

Account-account transactions are becoming more common. Tide is an example of a new app that enables users to make sales directly from a business account. The main purpose being a time-saving device, business accounts will also save companies money by cutting out the middleman. Of course, as with any new payment service, there are predictable security risks such as identity theft.

Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies

Blockchain allows data to be stored across thousands of servers worldwide. It’s made up of a list of interlinked records. Blockchain has exploded with the arrival of cryptocurrencies.

Cryptocurrencies are popular because they’re quick and easy, not to mention a more secure way to pay online. Another positive is that they don’t need to be converted into any other currency, if you pay in bitcoin, for example, the payment is received in bitcoin. Blockchain could be great for your small business, as it allows you to store data more securely across multiple locations.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is already present in more fields than you might think. In manufacturing AI is used to allow learning robots to assist human workers, learning, and evolving as they go. AI also plays a part in customer service for many companies. The technology can interact with customers in place of a real human customer service rep, this way it can save you time finding solutions to problems and addressing complaints. Five9, in partnership with Google Cloud, is an example of how AI technology is integrated with customer service. 

Autonomous Driving

Self-driving cars are being developed, so this could be a trend you’ll see being implemented into many businesses. Tesla has released semi-autonomous cars that rely on the Autopilot system. The latest models offer some automated features already and come with the promise that later it will be possible to upgrade them to full self-driving capabilities in the future. The software itself is set up so that it can be programmed to be updated when the technology is released on the market.

Ford is planning a range of driverless cars for 2021. They plan to employ radar technology, 3D mapping, and camera sensors to produce a car with no need for human intervention. The technology at the moment is based on surround cameras, ultrasonic sensors, and an enhanced processing radar, that boasts that it can detect data even through harsher weather conditions. The technology, therefore, is stated to work better than human senses.

Cybersecurity

The COVID-19 crisis has brought about new IT challenges. The main reason for this is that organizations have needed to adapt quickly to operational and functional challenges. Current security protocols have had to be overlooked, and many may not apply to new systems and tools that have hastily been put in place. This level of uncertainty can be exploited by cyberattackers.

There are plenty of other reasons why security might be at risk. It could be due to accessibility settings, or older software. Without adequate software, your PCs will not be compatible with the latest security updates. Hardware also needs to be regularly updated, as any failure could also increase the risk. If you need anything repaired it’s a good idea to sort it out immediately for the sake of security. Search online for computer and printer repair near me.

Many businesses are now using managed service providers and cloud hosting to secure their data. If your server has reached capacity or you don’t have the technology to securely maintain the data, it’s possible to outsource this to another host. This is known as colocation hosting and several companies offer this service. Check out the best colocation providers at the moment. This will keep your data secure at a remote location. 

Data Turnaround

Even though people are suddenly very aware of the importance of data security and privacy, it’s becoming a trend to allow third parties access to your data to help your business. With advances in fintech particularly it’s actually becoming a trend to make your data more disposable and accessible. It’s been predicted that businesses will use secure technology to make their data available to third parties to complete services or transactions. In the financial sector, the pressure is being applied to allow data to be shared with other providers, for example with Open Banking. The increase in data security enables this.

You also have to think about the data security and privacy issues of your consumers. This is why it’s vital to make sure your website is asking for the appropriate consent around cookies, and why you might want to run a cookie checker to check that you are actually doing this. If you can do that right, you might find that you are going to have a much better chance of managing data properly.

Edge Computing

The “edge” refers to the edge of your network where data is collated, rather than in a centralized data-processing warehouse. This means that large amounts of data are processed near the source where it’s generated. This reduces cost with high internet bandwidth usage and allows applications to respond in record time, even remotely. Because of its close proximity edge computing allows sensitive information to be filtered and is a much cheaper option. Read more about how edge computing has entered the mainstream. 

Facial Recognition Technology

According to a 2018 study, 62% of businesses were already using some sort of biometrics as a security measure. Fingerprint and iris scanners along with voice and facial recognition is becoming more common in a variety of fields and devices.

Face scanners are being used to allow admission to the Tokyo Olympics 2021 for example. So far the general public has been very accepting of facial recognition technology. Seen as it has been so well received, it’s likely to keep trending in a number of areas. This once futuristic seeming security measure has brought peace of mind and trust to a lot of people. 

Natural Language Generation (NLG)

Many citizens have happily brought this into their homes with the likes of Alexa and Amazon Echo. The technology is advancing beyond just being a talking radio, and it’s humanizing effect on data means it can now provide insights into everyday life, not to mention business. The NLG devices can be used to display data and information in real-time and by voice activation control. 

There has been a lot of development in the virtual voice experience technology. It’s now being implemented in customer service and online chats. With the combination of AI technology, the software can almost replace human customer service agents. Many consumers still prefer to speak with a real person however, so it might take some time to gain trust and popularity. 

3D Printing

This is just an example of the advances in design and production technology that has really taken off. 3D printing is not just experimental anymore and used only for prototypes. In fact, it has moved on to high volume production. If your business is looking to invest in this groundbreaking technology you can integrate it into your factory line. Your investment will be compensated fully by increased production speed, efficiency, and accuracy.

The Introduction of 5G

This has been a controversial topic already without a lot of polemic and misunderstanding around 5G technology. Currently, 5G is present in a number of mobile phone networks across the globe. It provides increased speed and high-quality video streaming. It’s possibly the future of connectivity in business because this is the way many companies are going. Virtual conferencing has become the norm, with only technological issues such as a poor connection getting in the way. It also gives businesses the opportunity to save on overheads as employees can all work remotely. 

The impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on business has made the world see how much we rely on advances in technology. The way in which businesses have had to adapt quickly to the WFH transition has been pretty much successful due to digital resources. Without cloud backup and remote communication devices, it would have been more challenging for everyone to work from home. Changes have certainly been made on how people do daily tasks and this will only lead to interesting developments for the future of business. 

The Four Bits Of Tech All Businesses Need

Being tech savvy can be a real benefit to any business owner by helping to cut costs, improve business efficiency, and find new ways to make work smoother and more enjoyable for your employees. Here are some must-have tech items all businesses need to get on board with. 

Photo credit: Unsplash.com

Mobile Device Management

Find out what MDM can do for your organisation. Mobile device management is essential if you provide staff with any devices like laptops, mobile phones, or tablets. You can use MDM to remotely manage all devices, whether they are in the office or not to keep them secure and up to date.

Block access to apps that your staff won’t need and ensure the devices can only be used for work purposes. You could even track usage if you felt it was needed. Automatically push software or security updates to the devices to keep them all functioning as they should and properly secure. In the case of a device being lost or stolen, you’ll also be able to wipe them remotely to protect all your information, and even block them from being used. 

Social Media Marketing

Social media is a very important part of any modern marketing mix and you should build a proper social media plan. Save some funds on your marketing by making use of the free options on social media, and speak to your customers in a more informal way. 

Do some research into which social platforms your customers tend to use, such as Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Set up profiles and keep your branding consistent across all the platforms you decide to use. Use the same username to make it easier to find you, and choose a professional looking profile picture and header image, like a logo.

You can use social media to engage with your customers in a relaxed manner. Your customer service team can respond to questions and complaints, and engage with customers who leave reviews. Make sure you post content on a regular basis, and try to keep the tone of the content in line with the rest of your business. You can share a more human side on social media, but remember you are a business. 

Email Campaigns

Make the most of online tools that are designed to manage your email marketing. Many of these tools are free, and you can gather your customer email addresses and divide them into lists by specific interest. You can send hyper-personalised emails to these different lists. 

Regular emails or newsletters can be sent out to targeted customers to share offers, news, or product adverts. Send these emails regularly to keep you in the forefront of your customers minds, but not so often as to make them consider your emails spam. Keep the emails you send relevant and avoid a spammy vibe.

Remote Working

Many offices now have at least part of their team work remotely at least some of the time. With the right technology, you can make remote work a possibility for anyone in your company. With work device and mobile device management, you can easily add other tech options to make remote work easy and simple to arrange. With staff out of the office, you can get away with using a smaller office space which will be cheaper to run and will require less spending on office supplies. 

Make sure that any devices, like laptops, that you provide to staff are reliable, to ensure they can get online with no technical hitches. Make use of communication tools like Slack, WhatsApp, or Skype to keep talking to your team all day, no matter where they are. You can use some of these programs to share screens with your team to allow for remote meetings.  

You can use online file sharing tools like Google Docs, which are ideal for remote working teams. Share files easily between your staff, and keep them safe in the cloud, where they can be accessed any time, anywhere. If there are any problems, you can track changes on the document too, see who made them, and restore to an earlier version. It’s also easier to share documents to other machines, without the potential for incompatible software causing problems. 

Offering the option to work remotely gives your staff a much better work/life balance, which in turn makes them much happier and less stressed. A happier workforce is likely to stay working with you for longer, saving you the cost of recruitment. It’s great for staff with children too, as they can work around the children’s care needs.

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