2020 has marked a turning point in companies’ processes for digital transformation. The coronavirus and its procession of health measures, restrictions and precautions have strongly impacted human societies as well as the business world. Let’s take a look back at the data management challenges related to COVID19.
With the closure of physical points of contact, the widespread use of remote work, logistical tensions and uncertainties all around the world, throughout 2020, companies have had to reinvent codes, implement new methods and develop new strategies. The challenge? To maintain the link between employees and customers, who are kept at a distance by more or less strict measures.
According to a study by Gartner, 69% of companies believe that the health crisis has accelerated their digital business initiatives. For 60% of them, digital transformation is a perspective to improve their operational efficiency. Another study conducted by Pega Systems reveals that 56% of companies have increased their budgets related to their digital transformation. Sixty-nine percent consider that the health crisis is leading them to become more empathetic to their customers. At the heart of these challenges: data management.
Accelerating digital transformations… with data
According to estimates from a study carried out at the end of 2020, the COVID-19 crisis has accelerated enterprises’ digital strategy at an average of 6 years. In fact, 97% of business decision-makers believe that the pandemic has accelerated their digital transformation.
The same study reveals that in the face of the crisis, 95% of companies are looking for new ways to engage customers and 92% say that the transformation of digital communications is critical to meeting today’s business challenges.
Behind these findings, there is a compelling need: to make the most of data. Indeed, beyond identifying new levers to engage customers and keep in touch with your audiences, it’s first and foremost about understanding their needs. To show empathy, you need to know who you are talking to and which channel you can interact effectively with them.
Data management is the foundation of this whole process of accelerating your digital transformation!
Data allows you to define your marketing strategies as well as define the axes of your campaigns (which is essential to preserve the continuity of your business activity in times of crisis). It also conditions your priorities in terms of R&D. In fact, the customer knowledge provided by data management allows you to include innovation in a data-driven dimension.
The objective: to design and develop products and services corresponding to the expectations and needs of your target audience. A study by Solocal, published at the end of 2020, highlighted that for 81% of companies seeking to accelerate their digital transformation, their objective is to solicit and respond to customer feedback.
Certain sectors at the forefront of digital transformation
Integrating real-time data into business strategies, analyzing customer journey, deploying predictive analytics solutions to accelerate commitments or detecting weak signals in order to anticipate them… The scope of data management is widening every day.
During the COVID-19 crisis, some business sectors had to completely reinvent themselves and, thanks to their data assets, managed to find levers to maintain business continuity.
For example, a recent study by the consulting firm QuantMetry, published last October, showed that 68% of companies have maintained or even increased their data-related budgets in 2020. During the health crisis, Uber for Business noted an explosion in demand for meal delivery. With the careful use of their data assets, the company managed, in just a few months, to design a new offer for marketing departments. The concept? To offer meal delivery vouchers not only to employees working from home, but also to corporate customers as a loyalty lever.
The offer, with a B2B2C strategy, is also positioned as an alternative to all those moments of sociability linked to professional events. These vouchers are also first-rate marketing tools because many indicators are related to them (type of use, type of meals ordered, geographical area…). These are all useful KPIs for Uber for Business, but also for the companies that use them to refine their customer retention strategies… or talent retention strategies.
If you are in the middle of digitally transforming your business, check out our tips on how to succeed your transformation!
