All throughout the country, people have been throwing about the term "digital transformation" in meetings for years, usually followed by a mad dash to develop policies and processes to get oneself on the proper digital road.
But what exactly do we actually mean when we talk about a "digital transformation"? Simply said, digital transformation is an organisation's embrace of digital technology with the intention of either increasing efficiency or creating novel methods of reaching the intended audience. As has always been the case, the focus is on technology and the advantages it can provide to businesses. This was a common line of thinking before the epidemic hit about how businesses might improve their processes and provide more efficient products. Yet, due to its pervasiveness, others argue that the phrase has lost its usefulness.
Here are some numbers I found intriguing about how firms handled digital transformation during the Covid-19 pandemic:
- Post-pandemic, 80% of businesses see digital transformation as crucial.
- Nine out of ten businesses reported at least one challenge to their transformation initiatives.
- In the years before the epidemic, setting up a remote workforce would have taken months, if not years.
- It is evident from the data that the epidemic had a domino effect, compelling businesses to embrace digital transformation in order to survive. Survivors who were able to swim farther ashore enacted the transformation technique that had let them thrive throughout the epidemic.
Strategy vs. Technology
While incorporating state-of-the-art technology into your daily operations is a necessary first step, don't expect technological advancements to miraculously improve your productivity. Your transformation will fail without a digital plan. That's what you get when you use the proper strategy: quicker reactions to shifting conditions, less digital resistance, and more time to risk-minimise and opportunity-scout.
It's no secret that the Covid-19 epidemic forced many businesses to finally take the plunge into the digital age, whether they had been planning to make the transition for some time or it was their first time making the switch.
Because of the epidemic, people were essentially quarantined in their homes, making online communication crucial. If you're a business and you aren't making use of the internet, you're leaving a lot of money on the table.
Indeed, the number of internet users increased by 10.2 per cent in the first year of the epidemic, the highest growth in a decade. Some companies suffered because of the epidemic, while others thrived because they shifted their operations online.
During the beginning of the pandemic, March 2020 reports show that Facebook and Google stood to lose over $44 billion in ad income, leading to an 18%-19% drop in their entire net revenue. The use of messaging applications increased by more than 50%, yet these services are not commercialised in any way.
Mail-order business Chums is only one example of a firm that benefited from this trend by adjusting its pay-per-click (PPC) methods. The on-demand/virtual entertainment industry saw a 102% increase in search ad conversions, so even though PPC was a net loser during the pandemic, this doesn't account for the industries that grew exponentially (and also had lower costs due to reduced competition), like DIY and home improvement, sports entertainment, medical/health products, packaging, and shipping.
The digital revolution after Covid is picking up speed
Most sectors took advantage of digital transformation to develop new products and services for clients as it became apparent during the epidemic that there was no escaping it. Industries including food service, finance, and retail all gave digital transformation serious thought.
It's no secret that brick-and-mortar establishments had to shut down or, if they stayed open, shift to a takeout-only model (or, in the case of supermarkets, institute "one-in, one-out" processes and queue systems outside their store, isolating customers from each other).
Concluding ideas
Over the course of the past two years, both the real and online worlds have undergone significant changes, and individuals have adapted accordingly. Concerns about the digital skills gap grew prominent during the epidemic; digital resistance has been a growing issue for many years, and the pandemic intensified these worries.