In a recent article in TechCrunch by Jeff Dachis (@jeffdachis), he highlighted that sharing or what we call, peer-to-peer, is the future.

“The companies that understand that consumers live in a technology-enabled, auto-sharing universe and focus their entire organizations on this reality will evolve, prosper and leave their competitors behind in the dust...The truth is, sharing will reach an unprecedented volume — whether you like it or not.”-TechCrunch

At Near Me, we agree that peer-to-peer is the future as we power more and more marketplaces all over the world.

Here’s why:

• Control. People like the option to be the supplier or the customer. Companies like Elance-oDesk and Lyft have made it clear that people want the opportunity to earn money with their skills or resources. Marketplaces also allow people to choose what they’re willing to pay for; more experience or a cheaper rate? Decide in a marketplace.

• Options. The success of Craigslist and eBay has proved that people like secondhand items. People like to choose whether they buy new or used and brands that know this and give their customers this freedom in a branded marketplace will build brand loyalty.

• Access. Marketplaces give people the opportunity to rent a boat on BoatBound or a mansion on Airbnb without having to own a mansion or boat. People are buying less cars in crowded cities and using rideshare options instead. Gone are the days of multi-car families. Access over ownership is the future.

• On-demand. From on-demand groceries via Instacart to movies on Netflix, our culture wants everything, now. Marketplaces are making services and goods more readily available and more efficiently than ever before. What once took a long time to arrange, now takes seconds via an online marketplace.

Companies like H&M now provide a jeans buy back program and other businesses have also experimented with reselling options between customers. We’re excited to see which businesses will enter the marketplace arena and which will be left behind.