Why Keeping Up With Customers Will Be a Key Challenge for Digital Brands in 2018

We live in a world where it is now possible to find car service to any destination, a movie to watch in any genre, or a person to go on a date with in any location, all within a matter of minutes. It’s no secret that among consumers, impatience is on the rise, and a tolerance for wasted time is sinking like a stone in open water.

To put things in perspective, 280 companies are now providing on-demand services across 16 different industries. Moreover, businesses have only just started to scratch the surface of the on-demand economy in 2017, as BIA/Kelsey predicts that just 7% of the estimated $758 billion market is currently being served.

This shift towards an on-demand driven market has major implications for brands across all industries. Customers want products and services, and they want them fast, and they will look to the brands that can offer them through the simplest and most straightforward digital experience.

Providing customers with the simplest digital experience, however, is far from simple. It seems as though every time you blink, a new way to log in, browse, shop, or purchase products is established and adopted as the new standard – and brands must keep up. These rapid advancements are great news for customers, and good news for brands too. In fact, 87% of companies believe that digital transformation is a competitive opportunity.

There is something unsettling about rapid advancement, though, that brands must confront. This uneasiness is evidenced by the fact that rapid technological and digital advancement was cited as the biggest challenge for global business leaders.

The reason for this uneasiness?

The driving force behind the proliferation of technology is completely beyond any individual brand’s control.

Brands have no say regarding the number of phones, tablets, and connected devices that are hitting the market on a continuous basis. And it’s challenging to anticipate when the newest voice recognition, VR/AR, biometric, and payment technologies are due to come out. However, brands remain accountable for all of the negative experiences that are delivered alongside of these technologies, so their only option is to quickly react.

As we continue shifting into an on demand-oriented market, quick reactions might not be quick enough. What’s even more daunting is that this challenge – rising impatience and rapid technological advancement – will only become greater as digital capabilities expand.