Digital transformation may sound like the latest line in marketing-speak, but it’s an absolute must for any business that has growth in mind – regardless of whether or not it currently has an online presence.
Small businesses need to get online
The internet has become an indispensable part of every day life, particularly in the world of business, and so every business needs an online presence – but figures from a survey from GoDaddy show nearly two-thirds (60%) of businesses with five employees or less still don’t have a website.
The internet service provider polled 500 small businesses, and over half (54%) of those without a website say they’ve not bothered because an estimated lack of growth doesn’t allow for it.
Conversely, almost two-thirds (60%) of smaller companies who are online expect their revenues to grow exponentially by the end of the decade.
The truth is though every business now needs to deal in digital, if not a website then at least a Facebook page or inclusion in the local listings of Google, Bing, Yahoo or any other online directory – in which case, a digital transformation could well be required to make the most of that online presence.
What is a digital transformation?
As the boundaries between digital marketing and ‘traditional’ marketing become increasingly blurred, so digital transformation becomes a bigger part of any business transformation – if you want your business to grow, you’ll need to get a handle on the technologies that are affecting how it operates and use them to your advantage.
And so the meaning of digital transformation varies from business to business – while one may require a complete overhaul of the way it works, for instance a high-street retailer that needs to embrace online sales, another may need nothing more than a presence on social media.
The important thing to consider is the type of technologies that are affecting your business, and they way in which they’re affecting it.
And once you’ve identified these disruptive technologies, you need to make them work for your business – the degree to which you embrace and innovate will decide whether your business become an industry leader or gets left behind.
