How to stay on trend in 2019

January is often a time of reflection on the year gone by and planning for the one ahead. Did you achieve everything you aimed for last year? If so, how do you better than in 2019? If not, how do you make sure you don’t fall short once again?

One particular habit that can go a long way to helping you hit your goals in 2019, and beyond, is trend spotting. This doesn’t necessarily mean picking out industry trends that no one else has noticed but rather ensuring that you are keeping up with the most pressing changes in your field. Markets are ever changing (usually driven by new technologies) and it is the companies who move with these trends that tend to see the most success.

A look back through history confirms this: Just 11% of the businesses listed in the Fortune 500 in 1955 remain there today. That leaves 89% that have either been bought up by rivals, or failed to keep up with market trends, fallen outside the top 500 or ceased trading altogether.

In fact, we don’t even need to look that far back to see the importance of adapting to changing markets – particularly when it comes to keeping pace with the latest technologies.

Many of the world’s biggest companies and services did not exist 10 to 15 years ago – Spotify, Netflix’s streaming service and Instagram to name a few. Many rivals of which, such as traditional video rental and record stores, and other social networks like Myspace and Bebo, failed to keep pace with changing audience demands and either lost ground or ceased to exist. 

The factors that led to the demise of more traditional business models in other industries are becoming increasingly present in the fleet industry too. As consumers get used to a highly personalised service, on demand in an instant, they come to expect that same type of experience from every service provider. And that includes businesses like yours.

Many businesses in the fleet industry have turned to telematics to keep up with this increasingly demanding consumer base. Those that have successfully spotted this trend are already using telematics technology to help reduce costs, get an edge over competitors, and boost revenues.

The businesses that have not yet installed such a technology risk getting left behind. Don’t lose ground in 2019 – work smarter with telematics. Find out how.