How digital transformation impacts CX

If you still think that brand and customer loyalty are what will keep your business ticking, think again! In this age of exponentially disruptive technological change, customers are increasingly looking for experience-based brand connections. 

Customers expect awesome experiences from companies and their standards are raised each time they interact with various industries. In the State of the Connected Customer 2020 report by Salesforce, 62% of customers shared that their experiences with one sector influence their expectations of the other. 

Moreover, customers pick experiences over brands. In fact, 91% of those polled in the above report shared that they would make a repeat purchase after a positive brand experience. 

Thus, the experience you offer becomes your brand differentiator. 

Customers are increasingly shifting to online purchases on their smartphones and laptops. Hence, businesses are focusing on improving their online experience. One sure-shot way of doing this is through digital transformation. 

This post offers interesting insights into how marketers can use digital transformation to boost their customer experience and conversions. 

What Is Digital Transformation? 

Digital transformation enables marketers to engage their digital audience and deliver the seamless experiences they expect. It integrates digital technology into all areas of a business, thereby bringing about significant changes in the way a business operates and the value they deliver to customers. 

Businesses that are investing in digital transformation are successful in engaging their audience and positioning themselves as a better brand than their competitors. In a recent Digital Transformation Report by PTC, a majority of executives agreed that digital transformation helps improve efficiency and their ability to meet customer expectations. 

Source

Another report by McKinsey revealed that B2B companies investing in digital transformation experienced a 10-20% cost reduction and 10-15% revenue growth. 

Modern technology has changed customer habits. Disruptive technologies like IoT, machine learning, augmented reality have, and automation allows customers to get what they want when needed. Hence, these digitally-aware customers rate businesses offering such experiences higher than those who do not. 

Hence, to accommodate and engage these modern-day customers, businesses need to think digital. 

How Can Digital Transformation Improve CX

As mentioned earlier, digital transformation helps brands understand their customers, engage them, and deliver multi-channel customer experiences. Let’s see how this powerful tool can improve brand experience. 

1. Allows Businesses to Process and Apply Analytical Data

We all agree that customer feedback and online behavior are a gold mine. They represent crucial insights into the customer experience. 

Customers also want organizations to treat them as an individual. They expect firms to know their preferences. An Accenture report reveals that 83% of customers are willing to share their data for a personalized experience. 

Through big data analytics, digital transformation can help you recognize customer thought processes and feedback beforehand. This can minimize complaints and address the dispute before it’s too late. 

For instance, digital adoption is a central concept for businesses undergoing digital transformation. It helps the sales and marketing team to gather, interpret, and apply customer data. This is critical for creating and offering unique experiences. Feedback from customers on a product alerts businesses about usability that could be impacting sales. 

2. Triggers Change Programs That Focus on Effective Digital Adoption 

Digital transformation focuses on customers and their experiences along their journey. It helps create meaningful experiences, not just for customers but also for employees. A firm’s customer service is directly linked to the experience they offer to their employees. 

Digital transformation triggers change processes that go beyond the implementation of new technology. Merely investing in new technologies is useless if a firm’s internal customers don’t tap the full range of features they offer. 

Digital adoption platforms help employees successfully master the new framework, allowing them to keep up with the speed at which technology evolves. 

Let me explain what a digital platform or DAP is. The platform provides online applications with a guidance layer that helps users in real-time. This helps them accomplish their digital tasks. Up to 93% of businesses agree that innovative tools help them reach their digital transformation goals. 

Thus, as a part of the organizational changes and transformations resulting from digital disruption, firms can integrate new technologies into their business to improve processes and productivity. 

3. Reduces Friction 

The last thing any business wants is to have their customers experience some form of friction on their journey. Though friction is unavoidable, digital transformation can reduce friction by simplifying and streamlining business operations. 

For instance, automating low-value processes using innovative digital solutions allows businesses to focus on critical tasks like developing products and improving customer experiences. Moreover, digitization allows firms to cater to customers looking at faster response times, self-service, and online or mobile touch-points. 

4. Offers a Seamless Multi-Channel Experience

In a study conducted by SuperOffice with Jeff Toister, a third of customers expect businesses to respond to in an hour or less. This need for instant gratification has forced businesses to remain alert and accessible at all times. 

Moreover, customers aren’t active on one channel. They browse online stores, shop online, comment on social media, share feedback on applications, and ask questions on online forums.  Hence, businesses need to be present on all the possible channels. 

Digital transformation ties all these interactions together, enabling businesses to create a single digital profile each time they interact with a customer.

5. Creates an Agile Business Environment

All organizations realize the importance of implementing agile systems. An agile enterprise architecture allows firms to easily adapt to new business models and requirements. This enables businesses to meet new challenges in the rapidly changing CX marketplace. 

Thus, having the right technologies (like the cloud) to power your digital strategies is critical. These technologies can make businesses fast, dynamic, and flexible, allowing them to meet customer demand quickly. 

For instance, by connecting customer databases, big data analytics, and apps, businesses can record all customer touchpoints to procure valuable information. The insights derived from these can be used to understand when and why customers buy products and services and what can be done to retain them. 

6. Creates a Consistent Support System 

The customer service and sales team play a vital role in delivering exceptional experiences. Every experience impacts a customer’s overall perception of a brand. Hence, interactions with these teams can make or break your CX. 

Without digital transformation it is challenging for businesses, small or big, to keep track of all the customer interactions. It allows businesses to share customer data and keep it updated in real-time. 

For instance, a fully integrated CRM system that records and tracks customer data like purchase history or service issues. Similarly, chatbots are quite effective in resolving customer issues and offering product recommendations. 

Thus, digital transformation can help brands use technology to its fullest extent and create enjoyable experiences for customers. 

7. Helps Firms Reimagine the Customer Journey

As mentioned earlier, every interaction with customers contributes to their perception of the brand. Hence, businesses should focus on building strong relationships with their customers throughout the journey. 

Shifting to digital from legacy technology stacks and focusing efforts around customer journeys can help businesses foster these relationships. This will improve the brand experience and operational efficiency and reduce the friction in the customer experience. 

A delightful customer experience is a differentiator that helps in retaining existing customers and driving top-line growth. 

The Way Forward!

Today’s fast-moving connected world requires firms to engage modern buyers and supersede their expectations of a seamless customer experience. Having said that, implementing a sound digital transformation strategy is a complex undertaking. 

To get started - 

• Invest in cloud solutions to make our business agile and meet customer expectations. 

• Count on technologies like CRM software or a digital adoption platform to improve customer and employee experiences.

• Regardless of what channel they are on, customers expect seamless experiences. Leverage digital transformation to tie all these channels and improve your customer experience.

We are sure the information shared in this post will guide you as you embrace the new digital landscape and embark upon your digital transformation journey.