All digital transformation solutions have one common goal: to use digital technology to improve results. Here at WillDom, we believe technology can solve almost any challenge, so digital transformations are fundamental. Not all challenges can be solved this way, but, as we saw with the transformation that occurred in the work-from-home revolution, many can!
To learn if digital transformation solutions will work for your business, read on. We’ll explore what these transformations are, why they work, and 5 common types. Then we’ll review when you may need to digitize and examples of how others have done it. Though this process is complex, it can mean the difference between revolutionizing your industry and stagnating into obscurity.
More Than Creating an App
Digital enterprise transformation solutions cover a wide range of technologies. The idea isn’t digitizing one aspect of your business, but it’s changing how your team members, clients, and customers interact with your brand.
We’ll soon go into more detail but think of the example of in-person banking and cash to online banking and apps. It’s not just a single technology change but an overhaul of how we do business. Because of this wide scope, you need clear goals, a flexible team, and a strong foundation to see it through. A change of this magnitude can cause a lot of resistance but a successful adaptation can make you a leader in your field.
Why Do Digital Transformation Solutions Work?
Staying the same doesn’t get you ahead. Especially in today’s business landscape. With the high speed of technological change these days, you’ll quickly be obsolete if you don’t keep up.
For example, if Netflix had stayed a deliver-by-mail DVD service, we wouldn’t have the streaming, production studio powerhouse it is today.
You get higher efficiency, lower costs, and faster product innovation without sacrificing quality.
5 Types of Digital Transformations Solutions
- Business Process Transformations
Back-end changes for systems that your team and vendors use. Research, data gathering, and data storage. Modes of communication and methods of sharing information.
Goal: Reduce costs. Improve efficiency and usability of product or service.
- Company Culture Transformations
Getting your workforce to buy in and use improvements to collaborate. If change and improvement are the norms, you will create a better experience for your end -user (and your team members).
Goal: Continuous innovation and adaptability.
- Cloud Computing Transformations
Moving into the cloud for faster and more accessible data transfers. Security is a concern but the future is the cloud.
Goal: Increased efficiency for data storage and sharing. Scalability and flexibility.
- Market Share/Business Model Transformations
You have a current limitation. You need technology to surpass it. For example, going from a local brand to a global one or a DVD service to a streaming one.
Goal: Go beyond your current market.
When You Need It: Better, Faster, Stronger
- AI Could Do It Better: processes that are extremely important but also time-consuming and repetitive can often be automated.
- Compiling and Analyzing Data: get instant feedback and produce workable solutions based on that feedback. Netflix tracks how long you watch an episode, how many times you watch it, and what time of year. They don’t send you a survey, they just track and analyze your actions. They may know better than you what you actually like.
- Removing Limits: if you have a bottleneck at any point in your interactions, from customer acquisition to material production, revisiting your process is the way to go. There is, as they say, probably an app for that.
Examples of When Digital Transformation Solutions Can Help
We’ve touched on some of these transformations already but here’s a quick breakdown of some big shifts with huge gains.
Banking
We’ve gone from in-person, ledger-written, cash deposits to cash apps and cardless payment on your watch. We now have accounts with no brick-and-mortar locations and digitized currency as far as the eye can see. Even independent contractors can accept credit card payments with a tap — even with cryptocurrencies.
Banking is more accessible and profitable than ever.
Deliveries
Remember the old days of licking stamps and mailing letters? Now you can buy stamps online and pick up that package at your doorstep.
There’s AI that designs optimal delivery routes in seconds, better gas mileage, faster delivery, and fewer emissions. There’s also bluetooth automation to alert drivers if a package is loaded on the wrong truck and automated ETA alerts straight to your phone.
Entertainment
We once shifted from radio to black and white TV to cable and blockbuster movie theaters. And now we have streaming, YouTube, and user-generated content ruling our screens. Algorithms make suggestions more personalized and every successful platform works on mobile.
Now that you know the how, what, when, and why of digital transformation services and solutions, you can decide if this mammoth project is for you. If it is, big-picture planning and detail-oriented software development are the next steps. First, make an end goal and a timeline, then look for experts who have done similar work before. You’re not reinventing the wheel but you are reinventing your business.
Your digital transformation solutions await! If you’d like a helping hand, reach out to us at WillDom or connect with us on LinkedIn. Whether or not you partner with us, we can’t wait to see the beautiful digital butterfly you become.
