Adapting To A Changing Tech Economy

In the past month we have seen Apple’s stock sink to its lowest level in years, Microsoft announce a 5,000 person job cut, and Sony report their biggest ever loss in a single year.  The last quarter of 2008 was a let-down for both brick-and-mortar and online retailers. What does this mean for you as a consumer in 2009?

The average consumer makes a major tech purchase every six to twelve months. The current economic crisis has everyone seriously looking at cost vs. benefit on their next round of purchases.  They will be asking themselves if a new computer is absolutely necessary or should they be simply updating components, such as memory. Do they really need a full blown laptop or will a netbook meet their needs?  Do they purchase now or adopt a “wait and see” attitude?

This apprehension could actually end up benefiting the consumer in the long run as companies now have to work harder to get your hard earned money.

If consumers are taking a more cautious approach to their purchases, what will the tech companies do to lure those customers in?

I think we will see an interesting shift in the tech market over the next few quarters. Companies need to take a hard look at their product lines to figure out what maximizes profit without losing brand recognition. We will see some companies take on the low-end market and sell $300 netbooks.

Will we see an Apple entry into the netbook market in 2009?

Another approach is to target the higher price range with an incredibly spec’ed out machine that still maintains aura of brand recognition. This approach could bring higher level components, such as SSD’s,  to the masses. We might even see some interesting joint ventures as companies try to look to maximize their R&D and production budgets.

Regardless of which approach tech companies take in the next few quarters, it will be an exciting 2009.  Companies that learn to adopt to the changing economy will survive and possibly pull off a profitable year.  Companies that fail to adopt, will die.

Will your favorite tech company survive?