29 Jun Transform your business model
Let’s talk about digital transformation. What is digital transformation, really? Cláudio Fernandes, CEO of Impacting Group, which includes companies such as Adclick and Impacting Digital, explains that the answer lies in the very word “transformation”. Stick with us to learn more.
In this article we will try to describe the impact of digital transformation. And we say “try” because there is so much to say on this subject!
Cláudio Fernandes, who for ten years ago saw (and very well) a great opportunity in the digital market, tells us that today we cannot talk about online and offline. Everything that exists, in one way or another, is already digital. “When we speak of digital transformation, we are talking about a second phase of the digitization process of companies. In the beginning, companies built websites and started implementing internal software to make processes easier. The digitization process had already begun, therefore, a long time ago, ” Fernandes explains.
So why are we talking about digital transformation today? For Claudio Fernandes, when discussing digital transformation, we have to emphasize the word “transformation”. “Many companies have adopted digital techniques, but they have not really transformed themselves. This transformation must be based on two pillars: focus on the customer and focus on the business model “, he explains.
In the examples of digital disruption that are given today, where digital businesses have wiped out traditional business – such as in publishing, where paper no longer makes sense – the process of transformation has involved not only changing media, but changing the business itself. “Digital transformation is, inevitably, a transformation. Transformation of the business model, transformation of internal and external processes. Organizations must transform and have leaders with vision to transform their business model,” -says Cláudio Fernandes, for whom it is currently impossible not to be 100% digital and for whom the basic pillars of digital transformation are based on the optimization of company processes, its business models and in the management of client relationships.
Transform ideas into projects and projects into companies
Cláudio Fernandes and his two partners, saw great opportunities in the digital market and they were right. They started with one company and today they own Impacting Group, which has 150 employees, is present in 17 countries and is made up of seven companies:
> Adclick, the group´s first company, boasting ten years of existence, is a digital publisher, of sites such as E-konomista and Vida Ativa Portugal and a creator of audiences, seeking to offer the most varied digital marketing solutions;
> Emailbidding, an email marketing optimization tool that allows advertisers and publishers to create campaigns targeted toward multiple databases, creating a positive impact on subscribers;
> Beeleads, focuses on online marketing in Brazil;
> Smarkio, a technology company that owns a powerful multi-channel marketing automation and chatbots tool that revolutionizes communication between brands and their consumers;
> Impacting Digital, a consulting agency oriented toward digital transformation clients promoting innovative business solutions;
> We Mystic, a digital publisher;
> Pushnews brings the power of push notifications to content publishers.
The truth is that the opportunities in the digital market are immense, “there are always ideas that can be converted into projects and projects into businesses. So, from the beginning we knew that we could not have a business model and a common organizational structure, because, one of the main challenges that any company faces is keeping people motivated,” – says Cláudio Fernandes.
They decided that the best way to grow would be through independent companies, with clear and well- defined business models, with one entrepreneur managing each one of the companies.
Impacting Group is seen as a reference digital marketing school and its entrepreneurs are requested by other companies in the industry. “Over the course of ten years, we have reached a high level of quality. Our strategy from the beginning has been to hire entrepreneurs. We always wanted people to look at the business as if it were their own business,” says Fernandes.
The challenges of digital transformation
For Cláudio Fernandes, the current challenges of digital transformation are identical to the challenges of ten years ago: keeping employees motivated, developing and growing business, as well as having a relevant role for customers.
Another challenge is the issue of data privacy and information. “Digital only works if there is information. In order to have information, it is necessary to collect data. In turn, in order to obtain a better service, the user must say more about himself so that the information meets his fields of interest,” Fernandes explains.
However, this is what people want: targeted information, as opposed to being bombarded with advertising and content that does not interest them or does not match their tastes and preferences.
It is important to never overlook legal issues related to privacy and data protection, a sensitive field that Impacting Group takes care to give due attention and relevance.