The digital transformation of companies is a recognized necessity.
Some companies are ahead, others are lagging behind.
The customer journey is one of the critical points of this digital transformation, as it must at all costs be complete and successful.
There are a few rules to follow if you want to make the transition to a digitalized customer journey a success. 
Why a digitized customer journey?
With the democratization of Internet access, high-speed and even ultra-high-speed broadband, including mobile access from a smartphone, new purchasing behaviors have emerged.
Customers are no longer satisfied with a single point of entry before making a purchase.
Quite often, research is carried out on the web – models, prices, opinions of other customers – before finalizing an order on an e-commerce site or in-store.
The reverse is also true.
A product spotted in store is then examined on the web to determine whether it is really interesting and whether it is possible to find it cheaper.
So it’s vital to be present everywhere, and for a customer’s digital journey to be particularly efficient.
To achieve this, there are a number of constraints to bear in mind:
- The customer journey must be able to take place via several channels, which must be able to communicate with each other.
- Every customer journey must be personalized.
All customers are looking for a different experience, and only a personalized customer journey can deliver that. - The purchasing process needs to be simplified as much as possible.
This means optimizing the user experience on every channel.
How do you set up a digital customer journey?
Adapting the company to demand
To begin with, you shouldn’t imagine your digitalized customer journey on the assumption that the user will accept or adhere to it.
It ‘s up to the company to adapt to the customer’s expectations in terms of the digital journey.
New technologies are changing customer expectations.
They no longer necessarily expect expertise, they build it.
They want to be more autonomous, less dependent, and above all, they expect immediate answers when they ask questions.
This adaptation will only be possible if there is a real willingness on the part of the company’s management.
Being omnichannel
It is therefore imperative not to be multichannel, but tobe omnichannel.
Whatever the point of contact – social network, instant messaging, email, chatbot or physical store – the customer must receive an immediate, personalized response.
To achieve this, you need to know your customers well, and identify their expectations, soliciting a representative sample if necessary.
Involving the whole company
Implementing a digitalized customer journey often requires major changes to the company’s organization.
So there’s no room for improvisation or guesswork.
The whole company must be involved, even if the project itself is managed by a dedicated team, and all decision-makers must be pulling in the same direction.
The advantages and benefits of the approach must be highlighted.
Implementing a digitalized customer journey willimprove the customer experience by ensuring consistency across all channels, including physical stores.
Putting people at the heart of the system
Whatever the case, digitizing the customer journey does not mean eliminating the human element – quite the contrary.
Digital transformation must be human-centric.
All the tools put in place must have a single objective: human satisfaction.
Customer satisfaction, of course, but also the satisfaction of all those involved.
The vast majority of customers believe it should always be possible to get in touch with an advisor.
The most sophisticated chatbot will never replace a human.
Customer service, for example, although an integral part of the digitalized customer journey, must remain human. 
Key points of the digital customer journey
As we’ve already mentioned, it’s important for the digitalized customer journey to be omnichannel.
Customers need to be able to find the information they’re looking for, whether they’re connecting from a cell phone, an e-commerce store, a physical store or a call center.
All these channels must have access to the same centralized information.
In this way, customer service needs to know that the customer calling has already placed an order on the e-commerce site.
The customer journey must be accessible from any connected device.
Information can come from smartphones, tablets and computers, but also from more varied connected objects such as connected watches or vehicle GPS.
Customer responses need to be personalized, as do marketing offers.
It’s no longer a question of sending a promotional message to all customers.
Each customer must receive an offer tailored to his or her specific needs.
All the data shared by customers across multiple channels must be aggregated and exploited to identify real customer needs.
Be careful, however, that data collection complies with the legal framework of the RGPD.
It’s important to communicate transparently with users about what data may be collected, for what purposes and, above all, that it is totally secure.
Support from start to finish
As we’ve seen, implementing a digitalized customer journey is not something that can be improvised.
It requires a real commitment on the part of the company’s management, as it will undoubtedly require a profound reorganization.
But a digitalized customer experience can only be beneficial to the company and the e-commerce site.
On the strength of my many years of experience, I’m at your disposal to support you in your transformation and in the implementation of your digitalized customer journey.
Please don’t hesitate to contact me to discuss your needs.
