I’d like to make a reservation; I’d like to make an appointment; I’d like to place an order… I used to say these phrases a lot! Have you ever given any thought to how our lives, businesses and the way we do business have changed in the last 20 years?
Cars from over 20 years ago were considered ‘gas hogs’, while today we look for fuel efficiency in hybrid/electric cars even though gasoline cars are considerably more fuel efficient than the cars in the 1970s during the gasoline ‘crisis’.
We used to use Travel Agents to help us plan a trip or get maps so we knew where we were going. Today we open our favorite app on our phones for maps, airline information, hotels etc. Finding locations and phone numbers is easily available and there is a lot of information at our fingertips in preparation for travel.
Taxis were the way we had someone take us from one place to another if we didn’t have a car. That morphed to Super Shuttle buses, then Uber/Lift and now Waymo driverless cars!
We heard the news at 6pm or 10pm on the television, or read a morning newspaper. Today I learn news through YouTube.
Meals were home-cooked, or we went to a restaurant or had an occasional pizza delivery. Today all meals can be delivered ready-to-eat, or purchased prepared ready-to-cook. The microwave came out when I was 12 years old (I’ll date myself). Today I expect air fryers are just as dominant in households.
We talk to each other in different ways now. Face-to-face is limited. We text, email, chat, Zoom and make occasional phone calls. We have ‘group meetings’ where we never actually see the other people in the meeting.
Desktop computers are increasingly replaced by portable computer pads and smart phones. We use them to solve problems instead of using our brains.
Computers with AI were just a dream, and while still in its infancy it is becoming more pervasive. You can get bad customer support with AI as well as by talking to a person. I recently received this AI translation from a phone message:
“Hello Vincent from over, and try to read you follow up promotion that you have a new team, but since I can get a hold of you, just give us a call 267 for us to further assist you. Once again, my name is Vincent. Have a blessing. Thank you.”
WHAT?
Or a messaging app to insurance: Member comment: “Please show payment summary as paid until December.” AI response: “Your payment was received in August. No further premium due until December. Unfortunately, the payment section does not reflect paid to date. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.”
I knew this! I wanted it fixed…
Customer support used to be for help. Now it is an opportunity to help increase revenue by talking customers with an existing problem into purchasing additional goods or services.
I used to schedule my familiar servicemen to come to the house on my available schedule. Now I get emails with an employee photo confirming that a serviceman is coming to the house. Sometimes the serviceman is even the same person as the photo.
Terabyte storage used to be phenomenal! Now it is pocket flash drive.
Photographers used to need a big, expensive camera. Now an iPhone almost shoots cinema quality.
Rocket launches to space used to be special. Now they are ongoing, and no one notices or cares. Thousands of earth orbiting satellites were a dream until Starlink.
It’s convenient to order things online, schedule appointments online, email people and skip that primary introduction to a business or service, but I like to get a feel for whom I’m doing business with: Does a restaurant look clean? Are the servers stressed or welcoming? How does the produce look at the grocery store? Can you ask a question that has a chance of getting answered? Even with the initial convenience of ‘putting my name in’, I still have that wariness of a primary meeting: Is the dental hygienist friendly? Do people look happy getting their hair styled at that salon? How many times does my account need to be accessed to make sure it’s clear what I intend to purchase?
Several years ago, it was predicted that in-person conferences in general would be greatly reduced and we would no longer have face-to-face meetings because it would be more convenient to hold them virtually.
Likewise, several years ago ‘the cloud’ was going to replace onsite computer systems. We now know that when there is a problem in the cloud, it can affect everyone in the country regardless of if their businesses are related.
Remember when electric cars were going to be better for the environment? These same cars burn houses down, hold riders hostage with electrical failure, and create hazardous explosions and fires affecting all drivers on the road.
Many innovations have happened over the last 20+ years. Some were beneficial and some were not. One practice the Nonstop Community has held on to is the face-to-face meetings of User Groups. Sometimes the number of attendees and exhibitors is lower than envisioned, but the experience still leads to new or continued relationships and shared information. At The Woodlands, Texas Nonstop TBC, 21 Exhibitors as well as 4 HPE booths had the opportunity to speak with approximately 85 customers representing 40 companies over 2 ½ days. 290 people attended. It’s safe to say that no one person spoke to 289 others, but did the 21 Exhibitors speak to an average of 14 people during the conference? Yes, we did! All the attendees spoke to at least that many people at the event even if it was during a meal, a party or a football game. And some of today’s new technology came out very clear when I heard a translator on a computer pad carry on a conversation between people from different countries. It caught my attention when I heard the electronic voice say ‘It looks like we’re on the same page.’ What a wonderful invention showing how we can still have face-to-face conversations using modern practices!
The way we used to do things is still pertinent and important. It’s up to us to make those practices relevant in today’s business world.
On behalf of the Nonstop Compute Partner Community, I’d like to thank everyone who participated in one of the many in-person meetings we had in 2025! Have a Happy Holiday Season, stay safe and see you somewhere in 2026!
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