Digital platforms in Germany

Amazon, Instagram, Facebook, Airbnb, Uber...  who isn’t familiar with these famous online businesses? Unless you’ve lived under a rock for the last couple of years, these platforms are brought up in -almost- every other discussion and they’ve become a hot topic - why? Because digital platforms also form part of businesses, politics, science and everyday life. 

Still not convinced? Let’s dive a little deeper. Digital platforms have become an integral part of information and purchasing processes of (business) customers and they are increasingly becoming the number one access platform.

Whether in B2C or B2B environments, digital platforms are becoming serious competition for established business models. The battle for customer acquisition has long begun and no market player can escape it - whether it’s a retailer, manufacturer or service provider. If you want to shape your own future, you have to take immediate action before the doors to your own target group closes and the ship sails. With this in mind, this year's joint study by ECC Cologne and ECC Club members devoted themselves to the strategically important topic of platform economy. 

For ECC Cologne, platforms are more than just a buzzword. At the end of the day, the focus will be on ensuring that existing business models can continue operating successfully on the market across all branches. The customer will ultimately decide which market players will survive the competition. Of course, everyone wants to succeed! However, there is no secret recipe for successful strategies, only to ask the right questions that are certainly half the battle and we've set out to identify them.

We would like to take up the challenge and together with you, walk the path into the platform age. The linked article is intended to provide the first well-founded initiation so that you can successfully embark on your personal journey towards the platform future. 

Read the entire study here! (Available in German only)