Fighting The Right Battle

Over the past several weeks, we have heard news of this retailer or that, trying to reduce Amazon.com’s forthcoming onslaught or possible evisceration of their business model and profits, by trying, in 2013, no less, to create strategies whereby deliveries for online sales are consummated quicker than normal. Several retailers have entered into compacts with office supply stores and mail receiving locations in order to speed up those same deliveries.

The most nervous nellies have been the big-chain greengrocers.

From the smallest of them to even mighty Walmart, the race has been on to secure the hearts and minds of their constituents before Amazon food delivery comes to town.

Well, it turns out that maybe; just maybe, these folks have been fighting yesterday’s battle.

Yesterday, Amazon.com announced that it was partnering with the United States Post Office in order to bring no-cost Sunday delivery to customers.

Think about this for a minute.

While its competitors are frantically trying to get to delivering products as speedily as it, Amazon.com has raised the bar higher, ensuring that that even on the weekends, customers get satisfaction.

I am sure that hit the execs in Bentonville with the force of a full spread of photon torpedoes!

So, what does that have to do with this blog?

In a conversation just last week with a couple of Twitter friends, Markham Lee and DaMarico Fowler, Markham remarked that he wasn’t quite sure about Microsoft’s purchase of the mobile telephony assets of Nokia, and that it was his belief that it could either work very well, or go south real fast. Moreover, he said, it seemed like Microsoft was re-fighting the last battle, and blinded to the looming ones.

While I think Microsoft is not doing that, it made me pause for thought.

When I saw the Amazon.com deal with the USPS, the severity of Markham’s words truly became clear.

So I ask, is Microsoft fighting the right battle?

© 2002 – 2013, John Obeto for Blackground Media Unlimited