Channel Creep (or in this case Channel Flight)

It's been a year now since Jeff Bezos introduced his first cargo jet for a fleet that will one-day grow to 40 planes. The Boeing 767-300 dubbed "Amazon One," is the ultimate delivery vehicle that is intended to serve Amazon's customers with one and two-day package deliveries.

Of course this wasn't the first Amazon delivery vehicle which you know if you've ever seen one of the fleet trucks like the one in this photograph.

I've written a lot about "channel creep." Channel creep is when manufacturers begin introducing services traditionally provided by the distribution channel (warehouses, delivery, and sales fulfillment) or, when the members of the distribution channel begin taking on services traditionally provided by the manufacturer (a.k.a. making the products).

The need for the middleman is changing, and some would argue shrinking in terms of relevance to the buyer (see "Don't Go to Camp Irrelevance This Summer")

And here in Amazon's case you see another great display of creativity and execution in assuring themselves of the ability to control their destiny. They are arguable the greatest middleman model ever created on Earth.

And innovation is at the center of their game.

Look at Amazon's own list of innovations. And then compare them against what you are doing in your business to reinvent, differentiate, adjust, cast away, revise, and create.

Now we're all not Amazon and likely don't have a list of ideas and/or innovations like the above.

But what IS on your list? And when are you going to do it?

There's a jet plane flying overhead...