When technology dominates nearly every aspect of daily life, companies are defined by the digital experiences they deliver. But are businesses missing the mark? A recent study indicates that customers judge digital experiences against their last best experience.1 The same study also shows over 40% of organizations believe they fall short and do not meet their users’ expectations or needs.1 From small startups to multinational corporations, improving the digital experience of apps and services may be the missing piece to achieving the relevance, credibility, and bottom-line results today’s business needs.
Personalized Experiences
Customers can be perceived as, well, demanding. They expect businesses and services to anticipate and satisfy their needs, fast. It’s what’s contributed to the mainstream adoption of in-app chatbots and co-pilots, delivering immediate access to user help, insight, and resources.2 However, creating engaging digital experiences goes beyond just embedded digital assistants. Experts suggest that the most engaging apps are the ones that deliver personalized and unique experiences that fit seamlessly into a user’s workflow or lifestyle.3 The more frictionless and intelligent, the better. Best practices recommend merging data analytics, AI, and machine learning algorithms with customer insights (such as preferences, behaviors, functions, and demographics) to deliver personalized in-app experiences that simplify processes and tailor services to meet unique user needs.3
App Consistency
In today’s ultra-competitive market, success requires constantly adapting services to address new and shifting preferences. Yet as applications are consumed across multiple channels and devices, driving innovation while maintaining consistency can be challenging. From websites and mobile apps to digital marketplaces, businesses are striving for ubiquitous and seamless experiences, regardless of the touchpoint. While Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) and standardized user experience (UX) principles improve solution development and design across operating systems and device classes,4 how do businesses maintain consistency across entire application lifecycles? Best practices suggest the use of digital experience testing platforms. By unifying functionality, usability, performance, and compatibility testing, these services enable organizations to identify and resolve issues and improve app consistency broadly across devices and platforms.5
Corporate Responsibility
While usability and functionality play an irreplicable role in satisfaction, customers are putting new emphasis on corporate responsibility. With increasing concerns around data privacy and cyber threats, most users are emphasizing proper protections and security measures at the foundation of any app or service. This commonly extends to maintaining compliance with industry and regional regulations such as GDPR, CCPA, and more. Sustainability is also entering the fray, as customers demand digital experiences that are mindful of carbon footprints, energy consumption, and environmental impact.6 Sustainable Software Engineering (SSE) is an emerging discipline at the intersection of software, hardware, and data-center design. Perceived as cheaper, better performing, and more modern, buying preferences have indicated an uptick in digital services that have a meaningful impact on the carbon pollution of their applications.7
Disruptive Technologies
As technology continues to advance, customers are always mindful of ‘the next big thing’. By challenging existing norms and conventions, disruptive technologies force industries to evolve, introducing new efficiencies and opportunities for businesses and consumers, alike. As evident from the recent rise of technologies like AI, IoT, blockchain, AR, and more, customers continually gravitate to solutions and services that remain at the forefront of the latest trends.8 However, embracing disruption often takes a concerted and disciplined approach. Experts suggest that organizations that stay agile, remain hyper-focused on user needs, and make proper investments in employee skillsets are best positioned to capitalize on new and disruptive technologies.9 This includes building strong technology partnerships that accelerate development lifecycles and deliver joint innovations.
- Adobe, 2023 Digital Trends, 2023
- Forbes, The Latest Trend in AI: What Is A Copilot?, Jan 2004
- MoEngage, Mobile App Personalization: What It Is, Why It Matters, + Top Strategies, Feb 2024
- UX Magazine, How Much Personalization Is Enough in UX Design?, Feb 2024
- Inoxoft, Benefits of Progressive Web Apps (PWA) – Advantages and Disadvantages, Aug 2023
- Helms, Sustainable Software Engineering – What Is It And What You Need To Know
- Microsoft, The Principles of Sustainable Software Engineering
- Simplilearn, What Is Digital Disruption and the Top Five Digital Disruptors to Watch Out for in 2024, Dec 2023
- FasterCapital, Disruptive trends: Riding the Wave of Disruptive Trends in the Market, Dec 2023
