Digital Transformation: Could the Current Disrupted Period Due to Covid and Standardized Remote Work Be the Perfect Time for Companies to Transform, Deepen, or Enhance Their Digital Strategy?
"Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth." — Mike Tyson
What better way to illustrate our observations from recent discussions with clients and prospects than this quote from Mike Tyson? The health and economic crisis has hit numerous sectors hard, forcing companies to adapt their marketing and digital strategies—broadly speaking—and their software in particular, in 2020 (and possibly 2021). So, is now the right moment to accelerate digital transformation? This article aims to address this question.
Digital Strategies Conceived in 2019 Are No Longer Relevant
Having a vision and planning are crucial steps in developing a digital marketing strategy. The creation and validation of an annual plan is a key moment for many organizations. However, in 2020, the entire plan was essentially knocked out by Covid-19.
A digital strategy developed under the market conditions of a few months ago no longer makes sense today. With commercial activities curtailed, the allocation of budgets originally designated for media plans or marketing software needs to be reassessed to adapt to this unprecedented situation.
Now is the time for digital transformation to address sudden and unpredictable disruptions. Below are our recommendations to help companies make effective and informed decisions quickly in this new context.
Adapting Digital Transformation: Responding Thoughtfully, Not Irrationally
When conditions are favorable, companies can continue to grow and perform with a technology stack and processes that are not yet fully optimized. However, a crisis tends to disrupt the organization and reveal its weaknesses. The need for digital transformation becomes almost immediate and unavoidable. We believe that marketing, digital, and communication departments need to rapidly rethink and optimize their culture, technologies, and processes to bounce back effectively.
Yes, uncertainty can be frightening. It can lead to irrational or poorly adapted responses to the situation and the specific needs of each organization. Several pitfalls should be avoided:
- Inappropriate Imitation: Attempting to replicate the cultures of highly digitalized companies without considering the unique characteristics of your organization is not necessarily a sustainable solution.
- Hasty Purchases: Purchasing new tools, especially collaborative or communication tools, may complicate remote interactions and may not provide long-term solutions. Reacting to perceived tool deficiencies with "panic buying" is not always effective.
- Budget Cuts: The most human reaction to budget constraints is to cut expenses, such as software licenses. However, it’s important to remember the initial objectives and the reasons why these tools were implemented. Cutting budgets without careful consideration may not be the best approach.
Nevertheless, we are convinced that Martech, marketing technologies, and software can provide appropriate responses if they are part of a new, well-orchestrated digital strategy. Some software solutions will prove or are likely to prove very useful in the coming months, beyond collaborative tools like Slack or Teams.
For example, AdTech—the technologies and software used in digital advertising (such as Ad Exchanges, trading desks, SSPs, Retargeting, Ad Verification, DMPs)—were highly sought after during the initial lockdown due to the closure of stores.
Another technology to consider in the context of digital transformation is Chatbots, which can provide initial responses to consumers, especially when partial unemployment is widely implemented in many companies.
Influencer marketing technologies and audience profiling (analysis and segmentation) will be powerful allies in navigating the crisis, helping to craft messages that align perfectly with target audiences and are endorsed by influential figures in their communities. These are just a few examples—tools should be the result of a strategy and support its execution.
Transformation Must Be Guided by New Digital Strategies
The only solution is to accurately identify the problems to be solved and address them in order.
- Audit: Take stock of the current situation. What was the company prepared for? How was it equipped? Conversely, what was the company unprepared for, and what were its limitations and failures?
- Assemble: Build an internal team with various stakeholders from all departments. The team should reflect the on-ground issues, both operational and managerial.
- Identify: What are the gaps and friction points? What needs to change, and in what order?
- Deploy: Implement a crisis strategy with clear priorities and new challenges. Take a well-considered new direction aligned with the situation.
- Implement: Once the new direction is set, closely monitor new tools, plan purchases and integrations.
- Monitor: Establish and track new indicators and objectives, continuously identifying obstacles and successes.
- STAY VIGILANT.
The pandemic is a threat but also an opportunity to rethink your organization, reinvent it, and fully execute digital transformation. Being on the ropes does not mean being knocked out! If this period of confinement and reopening offers new perspectives on your Martech challenges, Saas Advisor can be your Sparring Partner.
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