Every organization needs a digital innovation strategy. No matter the industry, every company can innovate and disrupt using digital technology. Most organizations today are unaware of the massive amount of opportunities that exist to do so. Developing strategic initiatives can feel like a cumbersome undertaking, but start with these next five items and you’ll be well on your way.
So what are these opportunities?
1. Your Website
There is a vast difference between a mediocre website and a great website. Improving your organization’s digital presence can lead to large increases in revenue, sales AND customer satisfaction. It is the first impression your company makes on a customer, so it needs to capture attention and be clear about what you can offer.
Your website is an integral part of your business’s marketing, sales, and customer support efforts. Let it be the most important part of your digital innovation strategy.
2. Build Mobile Apps
Has your organization built companion mobile apps for your products and services? Investing in companion mobile apps offers your customers a better overall user experience (UX) than your competitors. With the availability and ease of mobile products, this is an area of innovation that all companies need to invest in.
A great example is Dominos. They didn’t stick with the notion that customers can call and order their pizza, they made it as simple as clicking one button on a mobile app. Moreover, you can even TRACK your pizza. This helped Dominos stock climb 5,000+ % since 2008 (outperforming most other blue-chip stocks)!
3. Implement a Sales and Marketing Infrastructure
Do your sales and marketing teams have the digital tools necessary to most effectively market and sell your products and services?
Marketing automation, digital product catalogs, e-commerce, and other sales & marketing infrastructure can increase the efficiency of your sales and marketing teams. When simple tasks are automated and your services and offerings are clear, customers can easily find what they are looking for and spend money with you.
4. Modernize Your Customer Support
Customers no longer want to wait on hold forever, speak to someone who can’t help them and hang up frustrated because their issue wasn’t solved. There are so many ways to speak to a customer and everyone has their favorite medium.
Innovative companies help support customers in a variety of ways. They not only offer the traditional mediums of support via phone and email but they implement chatbots, wizards, app integrations and other means of modern customer support. Making it faster and easier to talk to your company is never a bad thing – it helps make the customer experience
5. Data, Analytics & Personalization
Is your organization effectively capturing user data and using it to better serve your customers? If you’re not, you should be. Predicting your customer’s needs before they happen is essential to your sales and marketing teams. Not only does it help them plan more effectively, but it also helps them connect with the customer on a more personal level. Find out their needs. What are they hoping to achieve? What is their intent? How did they end up at your site? These are all questions you should be asking before you even sit down to start any project or campaign.
User data and analytics also allow for personalization. Every customer can receive personalized messaging, product recommendations and more via advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning. It allows them an opportunity to feel seen and heard from any organization willing to listen to their customers.
The bottom line here is: KNOW YOUR CUSTOMER. We see this all the time, but it is inherent to any digital innovation strategy to know who you’re innovating for. Innovation is better together.
