There is nothing more vital to a business in today’s fast-paced digital world than a robust and highly engaging digital presence and automated operational infrastructure.

According to Forbes, “A digital presence gives your brand an ideal platform to communicate with consumers and enables you to set the narrative on who you are as a brand. With consumers doing most of their research online, it’s crucial to have a strong digital presence in order to be there for your potential customers when they're looking for a solution. According to a study conducted by Missouri University, people make their “first impression” about your website and company within 0.2 seconds.

So why would we settle on not having a strategy to grow our online presence? A presence that is directly correlated to our business's success. It’s clear that a digital strategy is one of the most crucial steps in developing a robust online presence and in turn a thriving business.

However, many businesses aren’t up to speed. They may have a digital strategy that worked a few years ago but it likely no longer meets customer expectations. Or they may have never actually embraced a digital strategy fully. For these companies (often small and medium-sized businesses - SMBs) to thrive, they need to undergo a digital transformation (DT).

A well-planned digital transformation strategy is imperative for SMBs to succeed in the next decade. Not only does it create a positive customer experience for the end-user, but (in theory) a proper DT strategy will make everyone's job easier.

In 2018, an estimated 48% of SMBs planned to undergo a digital transformation to remain relevant and accelerate their growth. Unfortunately, according to Forbes, about 70% of the money spent on DT efforts (especially efforts taken by SMBs) fails to meet its objective. In other words, 70% of the technology employed by SMBs isn't making their jobs easier, nor is it as effective as it needs to be.

Since so many SMBs fail to execute their DT strategy it’s important to understand the cost of not executing it. When companies fail to implement a successful DT plan, they could become obsolete or be overtaken by companies that remain on the cutting edge of customer expectations.

They could also lose customers who want a better experience and employees who want a brighter future. Over time, companies that lag behind digital innovation have a harder time attracting top talent, making it all the more difficult to catch up with the rapidly evolving market.

For small companies, the obstacles to a solid DT strategy can seem insurmountable. Large businesses have big budgets to allocate for experts to plan their DT strategy for them. Even if they choose not to hire experts, large companies can throw money at the problem with expensive systems, trying and correcting until they find a system that works.

SMBs have to be more careful with their budgets. If a DT plan fails, they may not have the budget to try again. Plus, SMBs have to manage the daily operations of their businesses in addition to building an entirely new strategy. Large businesses can hire out existing activities as needed until they’re ready to resume work.

So why do most SMB digital transformation efforts fail?

To start, there truly is no use reinventing the wheel. It’s imperative to learn from other SMBs and avoid these four common pitfalls that cause most digital transformation strategies to fail.

1. They Don’t Have A Strategy: Many SMBs rush to create a DT plan without taking the necessary time to create a strategy. And at the end of the day, any marketing efforts that aren’t tied to SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely) goals will ultimately fail.

2. They’re Not Leveraging Experts in DT: It’s a basic law of economics that to reach economies of scale, you need to specialize in just a few things and hire experts for everything else. If you’re not a DT expert, you’ll greatly benefit from working with outside experts to review and optimize your DT plan. Very small businesses may have limited funds to hire an expert to create their strategy, but even working with an advisor or expert for a few hours a month can save you considerable time and money in the long-run. Far too often we find ourselves working with companies that have chosen the wrong software and technology solutions to effectively streamline their operations. ShapeConnect provides flexible, month-to-month digital transformation advisory services with an expert team.

3. Their Customer Experience is Lacking : One of the top goals of any DT efforts should be to improve the experience for the customer, but if you don’t do an in-depth analysis of your customer experience before spending money on your DT strategy, your customer experience may be lacking. If you have the means to ask your customers directly what they want to see, strive to build your DT plan around those requests. If not, do your research on your target market and customer needs before you spend a penny on new technology.

4. Their Staff Isn’t On Board: At the end of the day, digital transformation efforts may be threatening to employees, causing them to fear for their jobs. This can cause them to be resistant to changes or even sabotage existing DT efforts (consciously or subconsciously). SMBs fail when they don’t validate and work with their employees.

At ShapeConnect, we believe that every business, regardless of size, should have access to the right expertise and tools to make their digital strategy a success. Contact us today to learn how a community of technology experts can help you avoid pitfalls in your DT plan, so you can continue growing with momentum and have the peace of mind knowing your business is on the right track.