Entrepreneurs are always looking for new ideas for businesses that will be the next big thing, the business that disrupts an entire industry and changes lives. Every founder wants to know they're having an impact, and the best way to do that is to bring new innovation to industries that desperately need it. But what industries are left?
Banking, human relations, transportation, marketing and even equipment financing have already been massively disrupted by technology - but there are still a few industries that are left virtually untouched by the internet, automation and artificial intelligence. However, my bet is that there are X industries that are the most likely to be disrupted in 2017:
Real Estate
With Zillow, Trulia and Realtor.com becoming giants in their own right, it's easy to mistake the real estate market as one that is already disrupted. However, they're simply a listing service - it's still likely that buyers and sellers will need to deal through realtors, which means forfeiting percentages of profits for those services. What if it could be automated?
Why should buying a home be different than buying any other investment? You don't need a broker to buy a car, or stocks in a company - there's no real reason why you should need a realtor. As home rental services like Airbnb grow in popularity, I expect that at a certain point, they will include overnight stays at homes that are up for sale. I know I'd certainly be more comfortable buying a home I had spent a day in, rather than the customer hour or less that most buyers need to come to terms with.
Healthcare
If you haven't seen Vox's mini documentary on how much it costs to give birth in the U.S., take an 8 minute break from this article and watch it, especially if you want an idea of how desperately the healthcare industry needs to be disrupted to meet modern needs.
With the incoming Trump administration, and its plan to challenge Obamacare, along with the bad press that healthcare and insurance has attracted over the past few years means that everyone involved is itching for a technology upgrade and solution. It shouldn't be a secret how much standard procedures - like birth - should cost, or how health insurance works.
Additionally, technology within hospitals is ripe for an upgrade - from more user friendly software for medical staff to a more organized system of note taking and patient interaction.
Who would have thought that software developers could help make your next surgery a little less traumatic?
Accounting
Who doesn't look forward to tax season, especially when they own a business? If you didn't know that was a joke, you must hire someone to do your taxes - and likely the majority of your accounting - for you. Accounting is ripe for disruption, and I'd wager that it's only a matter of time before an automation solution that manages data entry, and provides a much greater amount of connectivity and visibility, sweeps the entire industry.
Accounting has become complacent, stuck in its ways and cumbersome - all of which are indicators of an impending change in protocols and technology. Watch this industry for the future of finance (or change it yourself).
Disrupting an industry can mean a spot in the history books and the title of Unicorn among investors. In addition, it means that founders can know that they've made a positive impact on the world that they live in, improved lives and helped others succeed. Whether your goals are monetary or altruistic, discovering a solution for what ails an industry can be the most rewarding of accomplishments.
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