Most digital transformation initiatives begin with customer journey mapping, a process that helps fully understand the dynamics of your target customer and their behavior. Journey mapping connects the dots from your customer’s initial interaction with your brand, through their entire experience with your brand via multiple channels (e.g., website, mobile app, phone call, direct mail coupon), to their choices related to your brand and the reasons why.
In life sciences, customer groups include clinical subjects, investigators, site personnel, customers/patients, physicians, employees, research partners, regulatory agencies, and more. Because customer journey maps are not one-size-fits-all, each customer group (and, possibly, sub-groups within each group) requires its own journey mapping effort.
Once you possess a solid understanding of your stakeholders’ needs, wants, and expectations, you can build products and services to meet them. And, of course, you’ll never stop gathering and analyzing stakeholder data and refining your strategies accordingly.
Examples of Digital Transformation Initiatives
Similar to the way digital transformation means different things to different people, there are myriad types of projects and initiatives that fall under the concept of digital transformation, including:
- Implementing methods that enable changes to be made quickly on digital platforms, such as websites, mobile, social, and portals
- Developing websites and portals that are mobile-friendly
- Creating a seamless customer experience by integrating various technology, such as social media platforms, the web, and mobile
- Upgrading customer-facing systems to improve and expedite interactions
- Forming a social media program that is first-rate among competitors
- Transforming customer service that leaves a good impression
The process of digital transformation may seem overwhelming at first, but with the right data, technology, and strategy, the metamorphosis can lead to beautiful things: more effective clinical studies, more engaged patients and physicians, increased sales, more efficient internal operations, more satisfied employees, and a better bottom line.
