Digital technology is revolutionizing the world of business. It is involved at every level of a business’s operations, including web development, sales and marketing, and even customer support. And these technologies are only going to become more robust as time progresses. This means that implementing these technologies is paramount to the success of nearly any business. In order to start leveraging these technologies at your organization, you need to understand digital transformation.
What is Digital Transformation?
Digital transformation is the process a company undergoes when it integrates new digital technology into all areas of the business. The goal of digital transformation is to provide a company with the cutting-edge tools it needs to boost its productivity and compete in the digital era of business. Digital transformation fundamentally changes how a business operates by streamlining anything from management operations to customer interactions. It is a complex and ongoing process that requires a great deal of commitment and investment from every level of the business.
A clear-cut example of digital transformation in action would be the implementation of a logistics AI to streamline order fulfillment operations. Order fulfillment often requires workers to do tedious, repetitive tasks that can be both frustrating and time consuming. AI-powered logistics solutions can automate repetitive tasks like label generation and earn companies the best rates on leading shipping services. In this example of digital transformation, digital technology is used to lessen the company’s overall workload and help it operate more efficiently.
Everyone Expects Fast and Personalized Service
One of the most significant reasons digital transformation has become a necessity for growing a business is the modern consumer’s expectations. In the age of the internet, consumers expect companies to be able to provide them with swift service that is easily accessible. Businesses have known this much since the meteoric rise of online shopping giants like Amazon. But now consumers are beginning to expect businesses to go a step further than that. Recently, most consumers have become accustomed to personalized experiences with each business.
The most famous example of personalized experiences in business is in the online shopping industry. Online shoppers expect digital retailers to be able to recommend them products and services based on factors such as their past shopping behaviors or location. For example, people who are located in New Zealand expect to be offered shipping options from NZ couriers as well as the international shipping options most businesses already offer. Another example of a personalized shopping experience would be the “people who bought this item also viewed” section of any shopping page. More and more online retailers are implementing this strategy on their storefronts because it leads to more purchases and creates a positive experience for online shoppers.
Employees Need Modern Tools to Be Effective
As technology progresses, employees will need to be provided with the most modern tools available to keep up with the pace of business. Artificial intelligence is only becoming more accessible, and it is accelerating the rate at which tasks can be completed. For example, data entry is a slow, tedious process that is frustratingly easy to mess up. A simple misclick or incorrect value can throw off entire sets of data that are vital to a business’s operation. Fortunately, artificial intelligence is adept at dealing with large sets of data without making errors or feeling fatigued. On top of this, AI is capable of doing this sort of work at speeds that people could only dream of. Automating this kind of work frees up workers to focus their attention on areas of the business that need a human touch to be done effectively.
Security is a Top Business Priority
Most businesses handle sensitive information such as insider knowledge, personal customer information, and shared account passwords in their daily operation. This makes security a top priority for businesses in nearly every industry. Digital transformation can help businesses be more secure by providing tools and technologies that enable stronger security measures to be implemented. An example of this kind of technology that you are likely already familiar with is two-factor authentication. This is a digital technology that requires a user to provide two separate forms of identification before accessing any account information. If you’ve ever been asked to verify your email using a phone number, then you’ve engaged with two-factor authentication.
One of the essential tools online businesses have for keeping information secure is encryption. Specifically, end-to-end encryption has become popular with companies that handle payment information, addresses of customers, and other personal information. With end-to-end encryption, only the sender and intended recipient can read the encrypted message. Even if the data were to be intercepted by a third party, they would not be able to access it because they do not have the encryption key needed to decode the information. This makes end-to-end encryption the most secure method of digital communication available.