If you are a business owner and even if you’re not, it’s very likely that you will have heard the term ‘Digital Transformation’ doing the rounds, even if you don’t really know everything it entails, you’ll probably have some idea. Regardless of the type of industry that your business is in, the digital revolution surrounds us every day and has been pretty difficult to miss.  

 

Making sure that your business is being run as effectively and as smoothly as possible is easier said than done, especially if you are a trying to juggle multiple tasks that come with running a business on a daily basis. The solution could be Digital Transformation.

 

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You might be thinking, what exactly is digital transformation? How do I go about making the changes? If this sounds like you, we are here to break it down for you and hopefully answer those lingering questions you have about it. Read on for our short guide. 

 

 

What is Digital Transformation? 

Digital Transformation refers to a process of change a company takes on board to incorporate new digital strategies and technology to effectively and efficiently service their customers. It is a transformation that every industry and business in the world either has made or should make. Although it's worth noting that not all companies will make the same changes, Digital Transformation means different things for each individual company and their needs. 

  

The changes can be wide and varied from anything from the addition of a new device to make an individual employees’ task easier to bringing in new technology that allows your employees to work remotely, or even taking a paperless approach.

 

Perhaps you have already made some changes but are only now starting to think about getting your branding changed for your online market. If that’s the case, companies like Pearlfisher have helped global brands reach a new customer base with their award-winning designs and strategy. 

 

How Important is Digital Transformation? 

The importance of making the change is essential, especially if you want to stay competitive and ahead of the game. Going digital opens up a lot more opportunities for your company.  You don’t want to be left behind by your competitors, especially if implementing some small changes will allow you to recruit the best employees, improve your teams productivity, potentially increase your revenue, reduce costs, beat your competition and at the end of the day, have a happier customer base and an even happier workforce.   

 

Digital Transformation can help small businesses compete with the larger companies in their sector. Gone are the days of small businesses having to be office bound, surrounded by years of paperwork! 

 

Unfortunately, the reality is that if you are a company who hasn’t embraced the change, you face the negative impact that comes with that and the survival of your company may depend on it. 

 

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How to achieve it? 

So how do you make the change? Many companies may be concerned that the changes will be costly, and can put a stop to them progressing, however, this isn’t always necessarily the case. 

 

In order to create a Digital Transformation strategy for your business, you will need to break it down into key elements and what will work best for your companies’ individual needs.  It’s not something that is going to happen overnight, it’s a process. 

 

Think about it as a journey and focus on each small step instead of being overwhelmed by all the changes that you need and want to make to reach your end goal. 

 

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If you are a small business owner who has yet to make the changes and you find the task quite daunting, the following straightforward steps will help to get you started: 

 

Listen to your customers’ needs 

Listening to your customers’ needs is very important, after all, the customer is always right! Knowing exactly what your customers need for themselves to remain competitive can allow you to set clear objectives to what needs to be implemented in your Digital Transformation journey and gives you the opportunity to know what and where to prioritise.  

 

Pay attention to changes 

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The next big thing is always around the corner, you always want to be on top of your game, there’s nothing worse than feeling like you have been left behind and your company has become antiquated. Paying attention to the changes that are happening around the world will allow your company to move with the times and ensure that you make the necessary changes in developing your products and services accordingly.  

 

Ensure your employees are part of the journey.  

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You could make multiple technological changes in your company, but it is your employees that give your company its competitive edge and what makes you different to your competitors.  It is important that you make them part of the process and include them in the journey that your company is taking. By communicating regularly and transparently with them on the beneficial changes you are looking to make, they can give you their input on what would make them work more efficiently as well as assuring them that they are not about to be replaced any time soon. Together, you can make the optimum changes. 

 

Measure 

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Measuring the success of the changes you plan on making is an important one, there’s no point on continuing with a strategy that simply isn’t working and perhaps costing you. Similarly, if you have implemented a transformation that has proven to be successful, you will want it to continue. 

 

At the end of the day, it is worth remembering that digital transformation is about more than just investing in lots of new technology and spending a small fortune. It can mean finding the most effective way to use existing infrastructure to maximise improvements in your company taking it one step at a time set within a budget that works for you. 

 

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