Avoiding The Digital Titanic

Avoiding the digital Titanic

Digital transformation is here and companies must adapt to survive in the API economy.

Here are 5 key elements

1. Define and understand your current digital infrastructure

Do not eliminate your current infrastructure to experiment and adopt new tools. Deliver what your customer needs today and predict what they may need in the future.  New tools often require deep technical knowledge and focus from employees. Maintaining the “status quo” with minimal interruptions to the business will in turn increase productivity and produce results to scale to other areas of the business.

2. Political environment and dated business models

Reduce internal politics, keep the decision making processes small. i.e. critical stakeholders like project sponsor, strategy and execution leads. Digital requires an adoption of agile methodology and principles through the promotion of speed. Small teams promote agility which becomes the antidote for bureaucracy.

3. Work bench tools

Invest and adopt tools that are simple to execute and with the ability to expand. Even complex integration can use simple strategy.

4. Talent management

Hire people with the right skills to deliver upon your company's strategy. Invest in training and give responsibilities with authority. Build an environment where creativity trumps the fear to fail.  Fail fast and get up faster. This is truly empowering the employee and instilling a simple mantra: "Train, guide and encourage. Train, guide and encourage".

5. Promote positivity

Digital is the land of the unknown, embrace positivity and enjoy being uncomfortable. The introduction of new things is always a challenge especially when employees are stuck in their old ways and are resistant to change. It is very common for employee to fear new operating models and usage of new tools. Avoid this negativity and behavior by allowing them to see their potential in their career and overall growth.

Ultra Marketers

Since the introduction of the World Wide Web (WWW) by Tim Berners-Lee in March 1989, the world of marketing has transformed through the creation of new virtual routes-to-market for both new and existing customers.

The dawn of this digital era has opened up a world of potential marketing channels to build and maintain meaningful relationships between customers and brands.

The complexity of digital marketing has a defined organic focus with a strong emphasis on the following components: Web environment (user experience), search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC), social media marketing (SMM), email marketing, display advertising (also known as banner ads) and content marketing.

Together, they work to enhance the digital marketing experience. This has transformed marketing from a narrowly focused department to an emerging, driving force across the organization. In a digital-centric world, customers are making more informed buying decisions through virtual channels. As a result, new forms of revenue are being generated at an unprecedented rate.

Digital marketing is about capitalizing on these opportunities. For every online interaction, there is an opportunity to capture a customer’s attention, convince them of a need, and convert a lead opportunity into a sale.

As such, the next generation of marketers has emerged.  These “ultra marketers” bring a mix of traditional marketing savvy and innovative technology skills that have catapulted the industry into the future.

This new era represents our passion to learn, our spirit of experimentation, and, most importantly, our fearless exploration into an unchartered world.

The Programmatic Dilemma

USA today reported how brand advertisers are getting angry over google's programatic advertising, placing their brand message on websites with offensive content.

When comes to the usage of technology like programatic buys, is the risk too risky? Can we afford to not use such tools if we want to remain competitive?

Google's issued an apology statement as damage control to regain top advertisers trust. As software improves it's accuracy of content placement at appropriate websites risk stays.

We live in a fast pace and always moving market that puts consumers in the driver's seat. It is impossible to rely on human capacity alone to get the job done.

Brands to survive the digital era must use technology solutions to scale and win market. There is no better way to reduce costs, gain data processing power and remove simple daily tasks from us.

Brand values are at stake and causing them to re think their strategies when comes to the use of man vs software. 

Risk factors will always exists when executing in a digital space, how you deal with such events a must. The key is how to identify and correct such errors fast, learn from mistakes and push for new policies.