Big Data: Change the power of the world

Becoming the largest IPO case in 2013, also known as Square, will change consumer behavior and industry rules of the game, the crucial next step is Big Data.

Just ended the lunch meeting, rush to see the next customer, then you need a cup of coffee, so boost the spirit of the afternoon. Swipe open the phone screen, came near the cafe's location, gave you a discount voucher, mobile phone map marked, the cafe is located in front of 50 meters not far away. You enter the aroma cafe, ordered a cup of favorite black coffee with a little milk, the clerk to help you checkout at the same time, the pocket phone automatically senses, according to the price after the discount.

From the moment you enter to leave the cafe a few minutes, checkout desk, no cash, credit cards, and even cell phones do not have to show up, this automatic transaction scene has been staged in the United States, Canada every day, behind the service providers Is to pay for technology companies Square.

Square, is the hottest star in the Silicon Valley of the United States. It was named as the most anticipated IPO case (Editor's note: Initial Public Offerings, Initial Public Offerings) after the book FaceBook was published by the United States of America magazine, and "Fast Company" magazine selected Square as the " Startups, "founder Jack Dorsey is hailed as the world's next" Hobbes. "

From its founding in 2009, Square has accumulated 75,000 merchants in just three years, employing 80 employees in 2011 and more than 300 nowadays. According to PrivCo.com, Square earned just two million dollars in 2010; a year later it quickly grew to 42.5 million dollars. According to statistics, Square annual turnover in 2012 has reached 10 billion US dollars.

Create a checkout counter without "cash."

"As Paypal was changing online shopping at the time, Square is changing the way it does shopping!" The magazine said that the emergence of Square has a revolutionary impact on credit card companies and the payment industry.

In the past, if shoppers needed to accept credit card spending, they had to apply to the card issuer first and then fill in the application sheets one after another. A few days later, the card issuer sent an on-site review by a card issuer to install a credit card machine. On the other hand, 90% of the swipe contacts sent by Square sent a reply on the same day and received the connection within two days.

With the iPhone, stores can start accepting credit cards, paying a 2.75% fee per transaction, or paying $ 275 a month to enjoy Square services.

"We just want to make the transaction more convenient, even if it is a family-owned café opened by mom and daddy!" Dorsey pointed out that large-scale chain stores can be built through the comparison of operational figures and commercial software analysis Out of competitive advantage, and Square's role is to serve small and medium-sized businesses in every aspect of payment, to reduce barriers to entry of businesses.

The "swipe connector" is just the first step in Square's rewrite action payment market. Next, it uses Big Data to completely change consumer habits, which is where the real value of Square is.

Square Register is like a complete set of commercial software, the use of transaction statistics, from the checkout process to the back-end customer relationship management, business strategy planning, have put forward innovative practices, and businesses in addition to membership fees, but also what to prepare?

The answer is an iPad or iPhone.

Square began to innovate from the store's checkout, creating a checkout counter without "cash" transactions.

"The Death of Cash!" Fortune magazine uses this title to introduce the latest Square initiative.

Take a coffee shop as an example. After downloading a Square App, consumers upload photos and register relevant information. When they next spend, they just need to approach the counter and the phone can automatically connect to the store system through GPS. When you point End of coffee, the clerk to see the screen, is through the sensor and jump out of the name, photo, correct, you can directly from your pocket phone charge, in the process, not only do not need cash transactions, even the phone Do not take it out.

Do not think Square's ability to these, in fact, the largest business opportunities in their background service. "Like a web traffic analytics system, even a small independent cafe can be like Starbucks and know what the weather should sell," said Doherty.

For small and medium-sized businesses, in the past, they must rely on the accumulated learning costs of experience. Now, through data matching, they can also rapidly anticipate and respond to the needs of consumers like big chain brands.