Over the past two years, we have seen a dramatic shift in our lifestyle. One of the most transformational for both consumers and businesses is the shift to eCommerce.
As economies continue to reopen, we have returned to the traditional bricks and mortar shops however online shopping has created new customer expectations that have transferred over to the high street and other environments. These expectations can only be managed through Digital enhancement of service models.
How Does Your Digital Transformation Journey Compare To Your Peers?Nearly every business has begun a Digital Transformation Journey but have you ever wondered how you compare to your peers? If you would like a free peer comparison to support your digital transformation journey, fill out the form below. |
Consumer Expectations
{% icon icon_set=”fontawesome-5.14.0″ name=”Truck Moving” style=”SOLID” height=”51″ purpose=”decorative” title=”Truck Moving icon” %}1–2-DAY DELIVERY WINDOWSAlso known as the Amazon effect, online shoppers are coming to expect fast shipping of all their online purchases as most eCommerce and retail giants offer same day delivery or two-day delivery options. |
{% icon icon_set=”fontawesome-5.14.0″ name=”Alternate Map Marker” style=”SOLID” height=”45″ purpose=”decorative” title=”Alternate Map Marker icon” %} ADVANCED TRACKINGThe evolution of package tracking is another factor shaping the online consumer experience and mindset. Today’s online consumers begin checking their package-tracking status almost as soon as they order the product. The use of emerging technologies can help shippers improve customer experience by facilitating advanced tracking capabilities.
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{% icon icon_set=”fontawesome-5.14.0″ name=”Alternate Arrow Circle Up” style=”SOLID” height=”45″ purpose=”decorative” title=”Alternate Arrow Circle Up icon” %}VALUE-ADDCustomers nowadays have more buying power than ever before thanks to eCommerce. It is no longer enough for a business to price items competitively, they must also provide a value-add to increase its desirability and monetary value to consumers. For example, within the B2C model, free shipping and returns has become a value-add expectation. It is an important tactic that is used by businesses to acquire and retain customers, increase brand awareness, and differentiate one’s place in the marketplace. Those not doing so can be negatively impacted with consumers switching to competitors who offer this value-added service.
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Digital Transformation: A Turning Point
We are at a point in our evolution towards a Digital economy where every company must invest in Digital simply to survive. The move to Digital is well recognised and actively being addressed within B2C however, it is much slower within the B2B market.
There is much that B2B can learn and gain, particularly as B2C revenue growth, operating margins and returns to shareholders outperform those of B2B.
If a company invests in digital technology solutions, they have a competitive advantage over their rivals, as companies that have embraced digital transformation are 26% more profitable.
HIGH REVENUE GROWTH |
HIGH OPERATING PROFITS |
HIGH RETURNS TO SHAREHOLDERS |
Digital transformation: B2B Pressure Points
B2B customer expectations are changing and it’s up to brands to get a feel for their customers’ needs and expectations. Today’s B2B customer has come to appreciate and expect tailored programs to support their needs throughout the different stages of their buying journey and product lifecycle which require partial and digital-only interactions.
Digital transformation and the deployment of new technology has always been challenging; however, it is particularly challenging for B2B. There are several key factors that impact the pace of Digital Transformation
Digital Readiness Accelerators
Digital transformation implicitly promises to close the huge digital gaps that exist today in enterprises by exposing massive amounts of information hidden in unstructured data and transforming it into programmatically accessible, active, and shareable knowledge.
While the degree of readiness for Digital across the B2B landscape varies considerably it hinges on how companies currently perform on a few important business dimensions, at the heart of which is willingness to change. There are four key elements that can help accelerate digital readiness for a business:
DIGITAL STRATEGY AS HIGH INVESTMENT PRIORITYHistorically, success rates for digital transformation efforts are low. Many organisations rush to digitise their business without any clear direction or long-term goals. To have a truly successful digital transformation it needs to be driven from the very top – with the individuals who set strategy, allocate resources and investment. |
DIGITAL SKILLS ENHANCEMENTIt is important to do an evaluation of what digital skills are required to help your business achieve digital transformation both in terms of talent acquisition and technology requirements. Many believe that to become Digital means automating and optimising existing processes rather than using the correct digital skills and resources to create a durable competitive edge that cannot be easily matched by competition.
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MOVING BEYOND LEGACY ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURESLegacy organisation structures need to be dismantled in favour of flexible structures aligned with customer journeys. It is important that corporate friction, i.e., anything that prevents or dissuades customers from buying your products or services, is mitigated. Customer experience has become one of the most important factors driving digital transformation in today’s businesses, decreasing friction can enhance the contextual interactions that deepen relationships. |
TEST AND LEARN CULTURETest and learn is one of the best approaches to achieving digital transformation and ensures you incorporate the most suitable elements of Cloud and XAAS (Anything As A Service) to your business. “Test and learn” describes a situation where all changes and investments are considered hypotheses to be tested. Rather than make decisions based entirely on past experience and gut feelings, test and learn organisations set up experiments, observe the results of those experiments, and make decisions based on that data.
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How Does Your Digital Transformation Journey Compare To Your Peers?
Nearly every business has begun a Digital Transformation Journey but have you ever wondered how you compare to your peers?
Peer comparison analysis shows you how you are performing against others within your group. It provides extra intelligence on potential improvements in operations expenses that could translate into considerable value creation. We define realistic Digital readiness and supply chain performance standards across several key performance indicators. Some of these include:
- Profit
- Operational
- Capital metrics
- Asset Turnover
- Freight as % of Revenue
- Cash flow
If you would like a free peer comparison to support your digital transformation journey, fill out the form below.