What Is Digital Transformation?
A quick Google search reveals many definitions of “digital transformation.” One comprehensive description is:
“The acceleration of business activities, processes, competencies, and models to fully leverage the changes and opportunities of digital technologies and their impact in a strategic and prioritized way.”
In simpler terms, digital transformation focuses on using technology to grow your business. Modern customers expect more from businesses than ever before, and digital transformation is a holistic approach to addressing these higher expectations.
Below are three key areas commonly involved in digital transformation:
Transforming Customer Experience
Customer Understanding
Top-Line Growth
Customer Touch Points
Transforming Operational Processes
Process Digitization
Worker Enablement
Performance Management
Transforming Business Models
Digitally Modified Businesses
New Digital Businesses
Digital Globalization
Why Should I Care About Digital Transformation?
Every business has a core product or service. Ideally, this is where most founders and owners want to focus their time. However, daily operations often include numerous administrative tasks—such as managing receipts, paying employees, or handling supplier issues—that can distract from the core.
Founders and business owners have limited time each day, so essential tasks can easily become bottlenecks or sources of frustration. This drain of time and energy can be a key reason businesses fail; it’s easy to lose sight of what truly matters when you’re buried in paperwork or repetitive tasks.
This is where digital transformation comes in. Automation, streamlined workflows, and well-chosen software solutions free you up to focus on your core offering and strategic goals. The right digital tools can simplify repetitive tasks—like responding to customer inquiries or submitting documentation to your accountant—ensuring these essential but non-core activities don’t derail your main mission.
Digital Transformation Case Study
Business Type:
Hair and Beauty Salon
Core Offering:
Beauty services and products
Problem:
A salon’s profitability depends on delivering high-quality services and maximizing the number of appointments each day. If the salon is not in a high-traffic area (e.g., a busy shopping center), it must find creative ways to attract and retain new customers.
Choosing a prime location like a shopping center typically means higher rent. That cost often forces higher service prices, potentially driving some customers away. Additionally, running a salon usually requires at least two people: one to handle treatments and another to manage bookings and customer inquiries.
Solution:
Focus on acquiring more customers with minimal effort, i.e., making the journey from “I’ve heard of you” to “I’ve booked and paid for a service” as seamless as possible. One solution is to implement an online booking system that allows customers to:
Learn about available services at any time
Schedule appointments from anywhere
Pay securely and conveniently
This automates large parts of the booking process, saving time and boosting customer satisfaction.
Business Outcomes:
Top-Line Growth (increased revenue from more bookings)
Process Digitization (automating scheduling, payments, and reminders)
Customer Understanding (gaining insights from digital bookings)
Pros:
Reduced time and cost spent acquiring new customers
Automated and streamlined booking and payment process
Staff can focus more on delivering an excellent service experience
Fewer booking-related errors and time spent on administrative tasks
Shifts some of the workload onto customers (self-serve booking)
Cons:
Some customers may resist using apps or digital platforms if they’re not used to it
If leadership and staff do not fully embrace the new system, it can fail to become the business standard
Where Do I Start?
A good first step is to break down your company’s core and supporting activities. Most businesses can be grouped into four major functions: Marketing, Sales, Finance, and Operations. Each has tasks essential to achieving overall business goals, though priorities vary by business type.
Create a list of all relevant activities for each area—including tasks you know you should do but have yet to implement. For example:
Marketing
Creating and posting digital content on social media
Running ads on various platforms
Building and refining your brand
Researching new concepts and markets
Sales
Attending networking events, conferences, and workshops
Cold calling and emailing potential leads
Building relationships with prospects and partners
Upselling to existing customers
Finance
Budgeting and financial planning
Developing business models
Ensuring legal and tax compliance
Operations
Delivering products or services to customers
Managing staff and workflow
Overseeing and maintaining facilities
Once you’ve mapped out these tasks, ask yourself for each:
Priority – How important is this task to your core operations?
Time Spent Per Month – Is this taking up more time than it should?
Could It Be Improved with Technology? – Is there a digital tool or process that can handle this more efficiently?
You may revisit this process several times to refine your priorities. By focusing first on high-priority tasks that could benefit from technology, you’ll quickly see which digital tools and processes can make the biggest impact.
Final Notes
I hope this article sheds some light on how digital transformation can help you grow your business. If you’d like more assistance or deeper insights, feel free to reach out to us. We also recommend you check out our previous articles on the importance of digitizing your business.
Try Out Skywalk
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