We hear so much talk about retailers embracing technology, Fortune Magazine may have summed it up best: “If you want to outdistance your competitors… you have to embrace technology as powerfully as you can. Use it as a weapon!” But what type of technology? There are, after all, two kinds: table-stakes for staying in business, and smart-bets for beating competitors. Fortune’s editors are assuming that every company is equipped with enough basic IT (information technology) to keep it in the game. They are encouraging the smart bets that will help you outdistance competitors. As it stands, basic IT is what you need to survive but it won’t help your company thrive! I hope that is not news to you.