Marketplaces – An Inevitability?

Toth cautioned members of the channel that the people building marketplaces might be following the trends correctly.

“We’re using our 40-60-year-old thinking hats. The new generation of decision makers will be different,” he said. “When you have an entire generation that is used to buying everything online, why would it stop here? Are we that special?”

He pointed to Carvana, which customers are using to buy cars out of a vending machine. In the case of Carvana customers, Toth said a streamlined purchasing process trumps the need for a test ride.

“They want convenience and immediacy. And they hate salespeople. If it’s commoditizeable, it’ll be bought in a marketplace at some point. No question. The stuff that we think is even mildly strategic could go that way too. It’s not all doom and gloom, but we all need to focus on what truly makes us different, because the rest of the stuff is going to be sold by ‘Micro-AppSmart-azon.’”