What is digital strategy?
In essence, the term refers to a plan that employs digital initiatives to achieve company goals. Seemingly simple, a digital business strategy is anything but, and requires expertise and experience to implement successfully. And the definition of digital strategy differs depending on who you ask. For example, the marketing department would see it in terms of web channels, such as social media and email. Then again, those in finance would think of online revenue tools; the cloud for IT specialists, data analytics for the operations team, and so forth. Aligning all these varying divisions with both a digital and a general business plan is a complex challenge, and often the reason for a company’s failure to exceed or even meet their targets.
What are the benefits?
Creating a clearly defined plan has obvious advantages for every venture. While digital tools can transform a business, it is important to keep in mind that they should be viewed as enablers. Simply going all in on every latest technological trend is not the answer, and will only do more harm than good.
Developing a blueprint and laying out a digital strategy template can help to see the bigger picture, to pinpoint where digital options can be applied to harness efficiency and effectiveness. This plan can be utilized to reduce waste, keep departments on track, monitor progress and make necessary adjustments.