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Read moreBusiness environments are getting more and more competitive every day. As a young entrepreneur, Chris Darnell of the Harvest Group knows firsthand the struggles of growing and managing a small business. Though these challenges have made it tough for business owners to adapt, they have also created markets for new digital tools to help streamline and simplify new processes. If your goal this year is to continue to grow your business, or even maintain it amongst new competition, it might be the time to embrace these new tools and guide your business through your own digital transformation.
The Harvest Group hosted a webinar, “Increase Business Profits with a Digital Transformation,” sponsored by Verizon Connect. During this webinar, our focus was to answer 3 major questions:
- What is a digital transformation?
- What are the benefits of a digital transformation?
- What tools are available for my digital transformation?
What is a digital transformation?
“Digital transformation” can mean something different to each company, depending on factors like your industry, business size, region, etc. This webinar focused on digital transformation in terms of what that means for small businesses in a service industry. Research indicates that most small businesses recognize that they are in need of a digital transformation but don’t feel that they have the strategy—or maybe even the skills—in place to see it through. The reality is that whether you feel ready for it or not, if you want to keep your business sustainable, you must prepare to go through this process, and sooner rather than later. Our webinar discussed some steps you can take to help your company be ready to take the leap.
What are the benefits of a digital transformation?
Though every business can benefit by improving efficiencies, especially for manual and time-consuming processes, other benefits may not be as immediately noticeable. One of the most important benefits, for example, is the ability to gain data-driven insights, such as a sales-focused customer relationship management (CRM) tool that helps your sales team identify each prospect’s readiness to purchase and where those team members would be best off spending their time. These tools usually provide instant reporting and analysis to help users compare performance over previous years. Harvesters Chris Darnell and Ed Laflamme discussed these and other potential benefits and how they can help drive bottom-line results for your company during the webinar.
What tools are available for my digital transformation?
We’re talking digital transformation, so obviously software is a key tool, but it’s not the only one. Though there are many great tools, the webinar focused on comprehensive tools that can help improve daily processes as well as drive profits. Many of these tools are software programs that can be integrated with each other or even existing systems to help reduce issues such as double data entry. As we walk through each section of business, we will discuss multiple tools that can help.
It wasn’t long ago that I was told by a client that one of their team members would sit and hand-fold bills for days, manually stuffing each envelope. Tools such as folder inserters EW technically be considered part of a digital transformation and can greatly reduce the time needed from you or one of your employees. With a folder inserter machine, it would complete this task in less than an hour!
Get ready for the future
Every facet of our lives is being impacted by digital improvements. Many of you remember having to manually check the tire pressure on your car. Whether it was 10 degrees or 110 degrees outside, you had to physically get out of the car and spend 10 to 15 minutes checking and adjusting the tire pressure on each tire. Chris recalls that as temperatures dropped in St. Louis last weekend, one of his tires fell to 28p, triggering an alert on his dashboard. He pressed the “OK” button on the steering wheel, taking him to the next screen, which showed him the pressure in of all four tires. In this age of digital transformation, he was able to check the pressure on all four tires instantly.
There’s no question that businesses hoping to face the future with confidence must prepare for (or even carry on) digital transformation in order to remain competitive and sustainable in the evolving marketplace.
Don’t get left behind while businesses embracing transformation are moving forward. Leveraging technology to improve each facet of your business benefits the bottom line and your employees by streamlining processes and equipping you with the ability to make data-based decisions. Failing to go digital and face the certain future could cost your business in a variety of ways, potentially letting what you’ve built slip through your fingers. Educate yourself on what to expect to make wise choices that lead you to a bright future.
About the Hosts
If closing sales in the digital era feels as though it eludes you, you’re not alone. Keeping up with the ever-changing digital environment is no small feat. On top of all the other responsibilities of running a business, developing a sales and marketing strategy that is adapted to the newest technology—able to reach clients of younger generations—may sound downright overwhelming.
That’s where Chris Darnell, sales and marketing consultant for The Harvest Group, comes in. He knows that there is still tremendous value in business ethics like honesty, integrity, and hard work, but he also knows how to marry those values with digital marketing strategies that will help bring your sales strategy into this technological era.
Ed started his own business from scratch, built it up, sold it and then wrote a book about how he did it. That means he’s been there--he understands your frustrations, worries and concerns. Whether you want to buy companies or sell the one you own, you need expert assessment and guidance before you can confidently move forward. Ed has experience in this area. He is recognized as a CLP: Certified Landscape Professional.