Loyalty marketers often talk about customer engagement through a digital customer experience. With the global mobile explosion, digital customer engagement is paramount. Loyalty marketers everywhere agree.
Or do they?
According to a new global survey (“Are Businesses Really Digitally Transforming or Living in Digital Denial?) from Progress, most marketers freely support and understand the inherent benefits of “going digital,” but the majority of respondents are hitting road blocks.
Those road blocks include: Lack of internal alignment, lack of adequate skills, and plenty of cultural resistance. These road blocks are coupled with technology constraints and an overall inability to execute.
Here are some intriguing findings from the survey:
96% of organizations view digital transformation as important or critical, yet 62% say their organizations are in denial about the need to transform digitally
86% say they have two years to make inroads before suffering financial or competitive consequences (55% say a year or less); 59% are worried they may already be too late
99% say the main driver for digital transformation is optimizing customer experiences and engagement
61% say customer engagement is a No. 1 priority for the next 12 months and 50% plan to invest in building applications in the next year
72% feel IT is more likely to be the final decision maker/budget holder for digital initiatives
78% say better alignment of IT and marketing is needed to deliver on digital transformation efforts
58% say a high reliance on IT to deliver strategy is a barrier to provide improved customer experience through digital transformation
More than half cite lack of skills and leadership as key barriers
“Digital technologies are radically transforming business as we know it today and the driving force of change is based on the customer experience,” said Mark Troester, Vice President, Digital Solutions, Progress. “Yet, many organizations continue to resist change. There needs to be a rapid awakening and acceptance that organizations must digitally transform to survive—and do it now. This survey brings to light the reality of today’s digital transformation challenges, helping to educate and equip businesses with the information they need to succeed. Broad ‘digital’ concern has been palpable, but now we have data to prove it.”
Survey respondents included more than 700 global C-Level/VP decision makers; heads of marketing, digital, and IT; as well as developers, IT architects, directors, engineers, and line of business managers.