In this fast-paced world, where the barrier between what is physical and what is virtual has been broken down, it is more than necessary to digital transformation for companies.
In fact, it is much more than necessary, it is imperative for organizations of all sizes! Large companies are already embarking on this process, but small and medium-sized companies need to understand that there is no growth without digital transformation.
This change in companies' concept is what will determine whether or not they survive the new and accelerated demands for change and innovation in the market.
What is digital transformation?
Digital transformation is the integration of digital technology into all areas of a company, resulting in changes not only in operations but in improving the customer experience.
In addition to structural changes based on technology, first of all there needs to be a change in the culture of thought and organization, of leaders and managers.
In other words, leaders accustomed to old methods must also transform themselves, precisely because the market will demand it, or rather, is already demanding it.
Digital transformation accelerates commercial activities, reduces costs, improves time to market and generates positive changes in processes, people and business models.
According to research by Forrester Consulting, an American company, the main drivers of digital transformation are precisely profitability, customer satisfaction and increased speed to market.
It is necessary to keep up with the new processes!
But if you need more complete statistics, the MIT Center for Digital Business, in the USA, also found another reason to embark on this change: companies that have adopted digital transformation are 26% more profitable than their competitors.
But how do you get started in your company?
If we already understand that change is a constant factor and it is necessary to adapt to it, it is also necessary to take the first step to adopt digital transformation in your company.
First, companies need to define what they want and need to transform. Here are some suggestions:
- Enhance the digital customer experience
- Increase retention and average ticket
- Optimize infrastructure
- Reduce costs
- increase productivity
- Improve data management
If we think of improve the digital experience of customers, we can imagine that if we provide them with a better experience, at all stages of negotiation and delivery, this will help to build loyalty to your brand.
But beyond that, if we think about improve data management, with the digitalization of processes and employee empowerment, this will allow for safer decision-making guided by numbers, which can result in improved performance and operational transparency.
And finally, we can see that the adoption of new digital products and/or digitalization of existing business models can go further and even generate innovative services that meet commercial needs in this world of constant change.
So, realize that everything is together and interconnected. It is a process of improvement in all sectors.
Websites, blogs, fan pages: you need to go further
If you thought that because your company already has a website, blog and even a fan page on a social network, it was already fully immersed in digital transformation, you should know that this is not quite the case.
It is necessary to delve deeper into the concepts of Digital marketing , that is, carrying out a set of virtual activities to attract new business, create relationships and develop a brand identity. But it is good to know that digital marketing is only one part of the digital transformation, the whole thing is much more than that, it is a transformation of all the company's structures.
Digital Marketing works with the fact that people are constantly connected today. In Brazil alone, this new behavior reaches 72% of people.
Plus, 64% of them prefer to shop online, so how could you not take advantage of this huge market share?
Another of the biggest benefits for companies that use digital channels is the ease of measuring their impact on this immense connected mass.
But remember that digital marketing is not a sprint, but a marathon where planning and constant actions make the difference. It is necessary to choose which actions will be implemented in each company's project because it is almost impossible to do everything at the same time. Therefore, it is necessary to take small and constant actions and analyze the results constantly.
Digital marketing focuses on relationships, which will help build loyalty. It involves ways of expressing yourself online, and is a tactical action plan such as improving relationships on social media and even expanding the website's audience.
Another way to invest in your digital transformation is to understand the possibilities and What is Inbound Marketing. Although digital transformation is much more than that!
First, the explanation: Inbound Marketing is a set of strategies focused on capturing leads (people interested in what you have to offer, but are not yet customers), nurturing and educating these leads until they are ready to make a purchase.
Inbound Marketing is the opposite of Outbound Marketing, which is a more traditional way of encouraging sales, which includes advertising to the largest possible audience through advertisements in a variety of traditional communication vehicles.
Inbound marketing promotes techniques to help your customers reach your brand, with relevant blog posts, social media actions, podcasts, videos and tutorials, newsletters and e-books. In other words, it offers something to your future customer, solves an issue, or clears up a doubt.
But that doesn't mean that Inbound Marketing is better than Outbound. In many businesses, combining the two forms may be the best option. There is no ready-made formula; everything must be tested and adapted to each specific market.
You see how it is not possible to evolve in business without adopting digital transformation? You can be sure, it's what everyone who wants to grow is doing and it's what the new consumer market made up of people from generation Z and others that are being born increasingly connected demand!
This is the way to remain competitive in today's world.