One thing is for certain in modern business: if you’re not innovating, you’re falling behind. To keep up with your competition (let alone get ahead), your business needs to think digitally and make use of technologies that’ll improve both your customer experience and operational efficiency.
Becoming a bigger business—with bespoke software
If you think big, you can become a bigger and better business, whatever your current size—as long as you have the right tools. The question is, what are those tools?
In a nutshell, they’re the web and mobile solutions that we’re all so used to in our everyday lives and the workplace. They’re the software that makes you more productive and effective in whatever it is that you do. Often, you’ll have an idea of the tool your business needs—after all, you know your challenges better than anyone. But how can you get your hands on these solutions?
The most common option is the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model—essentially a subscription service. You pay a certain amount each month, and you get the licenses to use certain software.
While SaaS is flexible, and works well for many businesses, it does have downsides. Often businesses find that the unique features they need just aren’t there, or that the software simply doesn’t work the same way as the business does.
Designed for you
The solution is to build bespoke software that’s designed to meet your business’s specific needs—a solution that can grow with your business over time. It’s a service that many small or medium sized businesses (SMEs) consider to be out of their budget. But in recent years the use of web-based technology has reduced development costs, meaning SMEs can now streamline their operations with innovative web and mobile applications, disrupting markets and large competitors in the process.
While this all sounds quite complex, it’s actually a lot easier than you think. Architecture workshops and rapid design prototypes can be created in just weeks, allowing product owners to assess the user experience and ensure the workflow and features are right for their operation, or the customers’ needs.
This can be considered as the foundation of a truly digital business—setting yourself on the road to that most sought after of goals at the moment: digital transformation.
What does digital transformation really mean?
Digital transformation is a phrase that gets thrown around a lot at the moment. Like many buzzwords, it’s true meaning has become obscured by its overuse. But it is important, and something your business should be aware of. Look beyond the jargon, and digital transformation simply means using everything that digital technology offers your business, so that you can keep up with, or get ahead of, your competition. It’s also important to remember that it’s not a destination. You don’t digitally transform your business, then stop there and think “job done”. It’s an ongoing process.
Bespoke software can play a vital role in your digital transformation strategy, but there’s more you can do to help kickstart the process. In fact, we’ve put together a list of five tips that should help any company move towards a digitization.
Our top five tips to becoming a digital business
- Put customer needs at the heart of your business. Align customer experience with your brand message to make it easier for people to buy from you.
- Visualise the information your customers or Ops Managers want to see when they log in to the perfect system.
- Align all your digital touch-points across desktop, tablet, mobile and beyond, for a consistent and intuitive experience.
- Streamline your back-office processes, so operations can better fulfill your demand, or so your team can communicate more effectively.
- Brainstorm new ideas for digital products and services, then prototype and iterate. After that, it’s important to define, develop and measure key performance indicators (KPIs) until return on investment (ROI) soars.
What to do next
It’s a lot to take in, and we wouldn’t blame you if the whole idea of digital transformation feels a bit overwhelming. To alleviate that, we’re offering a free digital consultation for your business. Get in touch, and we’ll work with you to put together a proposal for your digital future—no strings attached.