Being digital entails reexamining your entire way of doing business and understanding where the new frontiers of value are.
For some companies, capturing new frontiers may be about developing entirely new businesses in adjacent categories; for others, it may be about identifying and going after new value pools in existing sectors.
Unlocking value requires a commitment to understanding the implications of developments in the marketplace and evaluating how they may present opportunities or threats.
The Internet of Things, for example, is opening opportunities for disrupters to use data analytics to identify flaws in existing value chains. In the logistics industry, the use of sensors, big data, and analytics has enabled companies to improve the efficiency of their supply-chain operations.
At the same time, being digital means being closely attuned to how customer decision journeys are evolving- regardless of channel—and thinking about how digital capabilities can design and deliver the best possible experience, which is crucial to getting ahead of trends.
Creating value at new frontiers
Creating value at new frontiers, entails rethinking how to use new capabilities to improve how customers are served, in fostering ongoing product or service loyalty. Making this happen requires an interconnected set of four core capabilities:
Deliver content and experiences that are personalized and relevant to the customer, but it also extends to personalizing and optimizing the next step in the customer’s journey.
Determine the types of messages and offers to deliver to the customer, by analyzing how a consumer is interacting with a brand and modifying those interactions to improve the customer experience.
Being digital is about using data to make better and faster decisions, across the broad of how companies operate, including creatively partnering with external companies to extend necessary capabilities. This entails cross-functional collaboration, flattens hierarchies, and builds environments to encourage the generation of new ideas. A key imperative is the capabilities in building networks that connect devices, objects, and people.
Automation of customer interactions can boost the number of self-service options that help resolve problems quickly, personalize communications to be more relevant, and deliver consistent customer journeys no matter the channel, time, or device.
That may include, for example, expanding existing customer journeys into new businesses and services that extend the relationship with the customer, ideally to the benefit of both parties. These innovations in turn fuel more interactions, create more insights, and increase the value of the customer-brand relationship.
