3 Reasons Not Being an Early Tech Adopter Is Just Smart
Early adopters of technology can often be made fun of for all sorts of various reasons. However, some businesses have directly felt how impactful having the right technology can be. And if you can get your hands on that before your competition, you could be looking at a serious competitive advantage.
But that doesn't mean you should blindly go about being an early adopter of every new piece of tech you find interesting, or think might be helpful. There are definite risks to implementing new tech into any business, and for lawyers, one of those risks could be your entire license and livelihood. To that end, below, you'll find three reasons why you might consider not being an early tech adopter.
1. Compatibility
New tech often brings many promises along with sleek, cutting edge design. But, for new products, there will almost always be compatibility issues, as well as bugs and issues with support. The first purchasers and users will be the ones that have to suffer through a new product's growing pains. And although beta releases can help iron out these kinks, even major corporations that run massive beta tests, like Apple, can still run into unforeseen release glitches.
2. Cost
One of simplest reasons to not be an early tech adopter is the cost. Unless you're talking about a video game console, or some other piece of tech, (that you don't need for work) that's going to be sold out on release day, and stay sold out for months, there's usually no reason to pay full retail price for anything. If you can wait a month or two, or six, you'll surely be greeted by lower prices and discounts.
3. Security
As attorneys, security matters big time. If you are planning on implementing the next big tech thing at your law firm, you better know for sure that there aren't any glaring security holes. That means even if you got the latest greatest tech on release day, you probably want to wait at least a week (if not more) before you start using it at your firm. Let someone else discover the glaring security hole.
Related Resources:
- 5 Tech Trends for the Law Firm of the Future (FindLaw's Technologist)
- Online Video: Should Your Firm Jump on the Next Big Ad Trend? (FindLaw's Technologist)
- 3 Exciting, Promising Trends in Law and Technology (FindLaw's Technologist)