The digital industry is always evolving, so how we work with businesses is also constantly changing. It is pretty hard these days to think or talk about \u201cdigital\u201d and think it only means a website or an app. It’s everything now. Digital solutions are the way back-end operational systems integrate to powerful front-end customer experiences; they create seamless transitions between online interactions and in-person relationships; they are both the front door and the foundational infrastructure of a business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are endless digital possibilities and opportunities for all businesses these days. Digital solutions are now the web (pun intended) that power the way businesses work and what determines their success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We talked with Jenny Holman, one of our Account Directors, to see what she\u2019s hearing from clients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Overall, one-off projects are becoming fewer and far between. But we\u2019re also seeing the \u201cAgency of Record\u201d (AOR) concept changing, too. In particular, that relationship was based on an advertising or creative model that gives the associated agency a lot of creative control and ownership of (and responsibility for) ideas. Both the one-off and AOR types of partnerships are still happening, of course, but as clients and teams develop their own capabilities and insights after years of doing digital, we\u2019re seeing the opportunity for new types of collaborations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
More and more, product companies are coming to us to build their product and optimize how they\u2019re communicating that product out into the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We\u2019re experts in user interface design, so they come to us to improve how they connect with their end user. They might have designers or developers making their own products, but doing that requires an entirely different approach than the thinking that\u2019s needed to design and develop software<\/em>. For example, a company that makes cellphone parts has a lot of product-specific designers and technicians on staff. But that doesn\u2019t mean those talented people can or should design the portal that engineers use to build phones from the company\u2019s parts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We\u2019ve also had software clients come to us because the software product they\u2019re building doesn\u2019t quite cut it from an Interaction Design standpoint. Their back-end is rock solid, but their users aren\u2019t getting the experience they deserve (or that will make the company more successful).<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s where our \u201c100% digital\u201d approach really complements teams. Clients needing software expertise can\u2019t just go to a digital marketing agency that builds websites. They need a partner that understands what the end user wants to do and how to design it, whether it\u2019s a platform that integrates with their legacy business systems or a product that seamlessly integrates into a user\u2019s workflow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Companies know that they have to keep looking forward and getting better even when they are already at the top of their game. Any company can get dethroned at any time if they sit still; we see it all the time when businesses and industries are \u201cdisrupted\u201d by new innovations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Businesses are now coming to us saying, \u201cBusiness is great, but what new business could we get that we aren\u2019t seeing?\u201d They want new clients and new customers and in order to do that, they have to continually grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Innovation from inside is hard, and often doesn\u2019t work. Cultures, \u201cthe way things have always been done,\u201d and hierarchy often get in the way. We bring a new perspective to keep ideating and innovating \u2014 we develop prototypes, proof-of-concepts, and user testing while the company keeps focus on the existing business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It used to be that technology happened in silos. Marketing over here, fulfillment over here, HR over here. Clients now know that having fractured internal systems creates problems and missed opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We get to come in and find ways to ensure their solutions are future-focused and integrate with their existing legacy systems. If their parts don\u2019t work together, their whole \u2014 the business \u2014 can\u2019t work very well either. And going back to the original introduction point \u2014 digital powers everything now, so the integration points are more numerous and complicated now than ever before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fixing these big technology problems has only a fraction to do with technology. Most of it has to do with thinking and problem solving. It requires an understanding of business and technology far beyond the thinking that goes into websites and apps (which are still great! Just different.). IT teams are often so focused on keeping the lights on that they don\u2019t have to time to think about the long game. So we come in, stay out of the weeds, and architect big solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\nSecondly,\u00a0we\u2019re coming in as innovation partners.<\/strong><\/em><\/h5>\n\n\n\n
Lastly, we\u2019re finally seeing problems that systems thinking and big infrastructure can solve.<\/strong><\/em><\/h5>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDigital\u201d isn\u2019t so new anymore. What do you see in the next phase of our industry?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n