The current COVID-19 crisis is bringing on a wave of frugal innovation: innovation that is, in essence, in response to lowering costs. It takes a bad situation and turns it into a positive one, by recognising what exactly is essential and what isn’t, and it could be transforming global businesses for the better.
What is frugal innovation and why should it matter to me?
Frugal innovation is done by ‘minimising the use of resources in development, production and delivery, or by leveraging them in new ways’ to dramatically lower costs. This gives way to new ways of doing business and innovative new technologies to implement, to try to reduce business costs.
This has been particularly relevant in recent times with the COVID-19 crisis. Many companies, in all industries, are being forced to reduce operating costs and move to different ways of doing business to stay alive.
How it could benefit you (and your customers)
Frugal innovation helps both you and your customers by reducing the necessary costs on both ends. As a result, you can provide a more accessible service while also maintaining stability and profit.
There are many different ways you can frugally innovate. It could mean:
- Using a new app for your business.
- Finding improved ways and new technologies to support your staff.
- Cutting unnecessary parts of business to make way for more profitable ones.
Any business can implement frugal innovation – it merely takes some creativity.
The power of technology in frugal innovation
Basic technology is hugely accessible in the western world. Because of this, businesses can access a myriad of free or budget platforms to better the way they work.
This can apply to anything: from restaurant companies using delivery such as Menulog, UberEats or independent booking services, to companies moving to online calls and meetings.
It’s the peak time to go digital right now. The resources out there are seemingly endless. They can provide massive insights into business with limited costs. Companies can access platforms that implement artificial intelligence, blockchain and automation online for incredibly affordable prices.
Implementing frugal innovation could be the thing that keeps your company alive during the pandemic.
Blockhead Technologies has created easy-to-use and cost-effective platforms, backed by blockchain, to track data and ensure transparency for global businesses. You can find out more about our STAMP Suite here.