User Experience Trends Driving Digital Transformation
Keeping up with technology is one thing. Mastering the art of digital transformation to meet customer needs in the digital arena is quite another. That’s because roughly 64 percent of companies posit that digital transformation is important, yet many companies are struggling with hitting the mark.
Stuck in the Past
If you walk into some boardrooms, the way some executives talk about digital transformation might sound like something from the past. They talk about “cloud-first” strategies and building an IoT platform to combine or sync everything. These old-school executives want to build mobile-friendly websites and specialized collaboration tools — sometimes it’s about a different messaging platform for every project — but none of that is efficient or effective.
Digital transformation is changing just about everything, just not the way some companies think. Modern systems play well together. Additionally, there’s no need to build anything, IoT, collaboration, or otherwise. There are hundreds of choices available and they all cost less than designing it yourself. Finally, when we talk about digital transformation, it’s not the tools people use to get online, but rather the technology underneath them.
Location Services
One opportunity for digital transformation is location services. Companies are helping their customers realize better experiences by leveraging their location at a given time. Brick-and-mortar stores are sending out coupons and in-store specials to customers when they walk through the door, while hospitals are helping patients navigate through the building to their appointment. These efforts reduce friction from the in-person experience and increase loyalty.
Atomic Infrastructure
Companies are also finding that they can purchase infrastructure by the second. Systems can be faster, and customers can be better supported, because you never reach your data limit. Instead, the usage you pay for is reflexive or atomic, adjusting to exactly what you need when you need it. No more paying for more than you need just in case. You save money and your customer gets a better, faster experience.
Blockchain
Blockchain is still in its infancy for many industries, but that doesn’t mean the technology is not on the horizon. Blockchain allows data to be linked in a public but anonymous ledger. It works for some financial transactions, but it can also add transparency.
For instance, your company’s interactions with ABC company on the Alphabet project could all be linked into the same blockchain – the proposal, the contract, the purchase order, the related materials, the finished product and the invoice. Everything is time-stamped, secure and synchronized. That means no more competing versions of anything.
Artificial Intelligence
Finally, there is artificial intelligence. You can use the technology to automate repetitive tasks and improve their effectiveness. AI will help you develop more personalized recommendations and streamline the customer experience. For instance, you could use interactive voice response to provide a segue between your customer service agents and your customers when they call in.
The IVR system will “listen” and interpret what your customers need and answer simple questions. If additional assistance is needed, IVR will forward the call to an agent who will get whatever background information is available on the caller, the nature of the issue and an idea of the emotional state of the caller.
Conclusion
There are several notable trends driving digital transformation in 2019 and beyond. Forget cloud strategies, mobile-first and DIY IoT platforms. Instead, location services, atomic infrastructures, blockchain and AI are changing the customer experience for the better.
About the Author
Sunit Nandi I'm the leader of Techno FAQ. Also an engineering college student with immense interest in science and technology. Other interests include literature, coin collecting, gardening and photography. Always wish to live life like there's no tomorrow.
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