The market fluctuates, job positions change, and business strategies are altered, but one constant in business is the use of technology in the workplace. As technology continues to advance, digital solutions have played a critical role in determining how businesses progress.

Once technology entered the workplace there was no going back. Wi-Fi became necessary, cloud systems provided an easy way for employees to share and view digital documents, and smartphones allow for easier communication among coworkers, clients, and suppliers. Today we look toward automation and finding more ways to create a productive virtual work environment.

Technology in the workplace eventually began to define business operations and even influence consumer desires and behaviors. Businesses strive to stay on top of what customers are looking for and learn how to make their operations more efficient which is where automation technology and artificial intelligence (AI) learning give businesses a competitive edge. Businesses will rely more and more on technology in the workplace, even if that workplace is virtual.

Brief History of Technology in the Workplace

In the 1980s, technology in the workplace started becoming common with the introduction of personal work computers, laptops, and the world’s first cell phone. Suddenly, there were new avenues for businesses to explore thanks to technology.

In the 1990s came the internet. The internet came around in 1989, but in the 90s we started seeing it being used more frequently in the work environment. With the internet, businesses could better communicate to their clients or suppliers and it also allowed them to expand their clientele through the use of emails, websites, and e-commerce stores.

In the 2000s, the cloud was introduced and became the new technology in the workplace. Businesses began digitizing their data and uploading it to a secure cloud for simple storage, organization, and file sharing. Smartphones also became part of the norm which gave businesses opportunities to reach their consumers in more unique ways.

In the 2010s, technology was completely integrated into the workplace. Some companies already implemented a solution for employees who worked from home or spent a lot of time traveling. 

At this time, we were introduced to the Internet of Things (IoT). We started seeing IoT devices that connected to just about anything from motion sensors to speakers. It became common to implement software integrations that helped to streamline workflows or hardware integrations that could connect to other devices. As everything became more connected, the possibilities began growing.

Today’s Technology in the Workplace

While technology in the workplace was already growing, the COVID-19 pandemic forced businesses to shoot ahead with their digital solutions. With lockdown initiatives and people choosing to stay at home to stay safe, it became a requirement to have specific digital solutions in place to ensure that productivity remained the same and workflows were unhindered while people worked remotely.

According to a McKinsey Global Survey, 93% of companies shifted to remote work during the pandemic and 34% reported migrating assets to the cloud more quickly. There's no denying that the pandemic pushed digital transformation forward quickly.

At this point, technology is essential to create an effective and smart work environment for employees, especially in companies that continue to have employees working fully remote or working in a hybrid environment.

Today, technology revolves around the ability to work from a distance or to automate tedious and repetitive tasks to cut down on costs and make operations more efficient. Companies are now relying on platforms and software to help streamline workflows and allow employees to easily collaborate. Many are digitizing document files to ensure that employees, no matter their location, can access certain documents in a cloud.

Companies are also providing more online support for their consumers as the expectation of connectivity grows. Companies are ensuring that a service, whether it's an e-commerce site or a solution, would work just as well on a desktop as it would on a mobile device. These tools have become a critical aspect of business operations, and digital transformation has become a priority for many businesses to remain competitive.

If we look ahead, we can expect to see further automation and technology in the workplace. Over 50% of workers believe that technology will determine changes in the workplace within the next 5 to 10 years. In a sense, we're already seeing this as many companies that are embracing digital transformation have required a digital security team specifically in place, thus creating new jobs.

Around 70% of employees feel good about increasing automation and technology in the workplace stating it will increase their productivity and free up their time to work on less repetitive tasks and more creative ones.

It's not news that technology in the workplace has the capability of increasing creativity and productivity. In 2019, before the pandemic, employees who worked in an environment that supplied automation and technology were 31% more productive.

Benefits of Technology in the Workplace

Technology in the workplace benefits companies, employees, and consumers. With the use of automation and helpful software, organizations have been able to increase their efficiency quickly, especially with automation. Many tasks that were once time-consuming to complete manually can be done rapidly and accurately using an automated system. As we mentioned before, this allows employees more time to focus on more strategic and creative aspects of their position rather than spending time on tedious tasks.

While many people have touted fears about technology reducing jobs, AI is expected to create 97 million new jobs by 2025. The implementation of AI will by itself create positions that we haven't needed before. As an example, when cloud systems and software were first introduced to companies, there became a need for IT and digital security teams. As more technology in the workplace is introduced, we’ll begin to see more positions open.

Any company that had to or continues to operate remotely or on a hybrid system understands the importance of technology in the workplace. Even for companies that require on-site workers, technology in the workplace still benefits them. Not only can automation technology remove tedious tasks and perform them more accurately and more quickly, but many different platforms and software systems allow employees to better collaborate, create workflows, and streamline operations.

As technology advances, companies are also finding more ways to connect with their consumers through various devices and platforms. Through social media, mobile apps, and e-commerce stores, companies can easily reach their customers and provide online services and products.

Challenges of Technology in the Workplace

Technology brings many benefits into the workplace, but it also comes with challenges that businesses need to face. One such challenge includes making sure employees are appropriately trained in any technology that’s being used. While companies may push forward to implement digital solutions, in their haste, they may forget the proper training and security that is involved with any technology. Technology must be introduced at a steady pace to ensure guidelines are made and appropriate training takes place.

Another challenge with technology is prioritizing security, including antivirus software, VPNs, and passwords. Businesses require effective tools and good organizational skills to ensure that secure information remains safe. A security breach can lead to important data being lost, consumer trust declining, and time being spent fixing anything that went down during the breach.

As more companies implement technology, workers experience benefits but also challenges, particularly with having a healthy work-life balance. It's more difficult for employees to unplug when they can carry their work with them on their phones. Many employees will still respond to emails past work hours. Employees may receive notifications from emails or chats that can distract them when they're focusing on a particular task. Encouraging a healthy work-life balance and implementing a system that allows employees to unplug while they focus on a specific task may be very useful and help employees remain productive.

Conclusion

Technology in the workplace is not new. With the start of floppy disks and personal laptops, technology in the workplace has become an ever-present constant in today's work environment. Just like everything else in business, it will continue to evolve but instead of taking a back seat and playing a supporting role as it did in the past, technology is being pushed further and further to the forefront to where business operations are now relying on and expecting improvements in technology to run more efficiently.

Digital transformation is more important now than ever. It's expected that by 2025 companies will invest around 2.8 trillion in digital transformation. Business process outsourcing (BPO) and business process automation (BPA) providers such as Exela, help companies take steps to further their digital transformation. Finding digital solutions can be daunting and relying on a BPA provider can help to better implement technology in the workplace.

View Exela case studies that show the many benefits companies experienced with digital transformation.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) plays a significant role in businesses, particularly in digital marketing strategy. When it comes to AI, many may think of smart home devices or, taking it a step further, robots in a sci-fi movie. Though various AI devices and programs exist all around us, the AI programs used in businesses tend to work behind the scenes with predictive modeling, data collection, and analysis.

While AI assists businesses in a myriad of ways, it has become crucial for marketing in particular. Companies spend anywhere from 8 to 13% of their annual revenue on marketing making it all the more imperative that their marketing efforts succeed. This is where AI comes into play, working to transform digital marketing strategy.

Improving Content Creation and Content Digital Marketing Strategy

Marketers are constantly trying to determine the right words to encourage a sale and the right way to engage with and keep an audience member hooked. E-commerce businesses often put forth significant effort into content, especially their blogs, as this is one of the primary ways to reach their audience. Content creation stands as a key element in digital marketing strategy for many industries.

One content creation hurdle is identifying what kind of content to create to meet marketing initiatives. Looking at all the data that is created based on web activity, it can be overwhelming for a marketer to make sense of. That’s where AI can help by analyzing millions of data points against a simple objective and then providing a recommendation on the next steps to more successful marketing efforts. This feedback helps marketers learn what actions need to be taken to improve their content in the future and keep their audience engaged.

AI also has the ability to predict what topics an audience may be most interested in, which can further help marketers develop blog posts and content. The goal with marketing is to get the right message out to the right people at the right time. In order to accomplish this, marketers need to deliver content that is directed toward their audience and provides engaging information that interests their audience.

Finally, AI helps determine the best times to deliver content by analyzing consumer behavior. Whether a marketer needs help with crafting a headline for a blog or coming up with phenomenal copy for a landing page, AI programs lend a hand using analytics based on consumer behavior.

Create More Targeted Campaigns

Thanks to AI tools, marketers receive detailed information regarding consumers, allowing them to create hyper-targeted ads designed to speak to specific audiences. Google and Facebook are exceptional examples of using AI for targeted ads. Their platforms use machine learning technology to analyze consumer data and behavior, learn from it, and become more effective at predictions and analysis. These AI tools analyze information including gender, age, interests, demographics, and other aspects that prove to be invaluable to marketers.

Targeted marketing is an imperative component of a digital marketing strategy due to its ability to improve Return on Investment (ROI) and meet marketing goals more quickly. With the right AI tools, marketers can even predict future trends and adjust their digital marketing strategy to stay ahead of competitors.

Discover What Platforms to Focus Your Digital Marketing Strategy On

Using AI tools, marketers determine which social media platforms to focus on, where to display ads to reach the right customers and more. Marketers use AI to view how ads perform on different platforms such as YouTube, Google, Instagram, Twitter, and many more. Based on the information they receive, marketers can narrow down and focus on platforms that perform the best and invest in the platform that will receive the best ROI.

Not only does AI support marketers in deciding which platforms to focus ads and content on, but it also helps with determining when to post on social media to ensure a higher engagement. AI helps to identify what type of posts performed well based on customer engagement. With this information, marketers can create similar posts knowing what their audience prefers to see.

Improve Customer Engagement and Relationships

Companies rely on customers which means that marketers always need to think about how to improve customer relationships. With its ability to track and learn from customer interactions, AI helps to improve customer engagement and relationships.

Many companies choose to implement AI chat boxes that collect data and analyze questions and responses. Not only does a chat box provide customers with a simple way to receive answers to their questions, but it's also available outside of business hours, which makes it especially useful for companies that have a global audience. It also allows marketers to see what questions customers are asking, aiding them in coming up with content topics.

Certain AI tools such as Predictive Marketing Automation can also analyze how customers are responding to brands. This particular analysis tells marketers how their audience feels about the company and the brand in general. Based on what customers are saying, marketers can implement a digital marketing strategy that involves what customers want thus improving brand reputation.

AI Predictive Marketing Tools Help Digital Marketing Strategy Excel

When it comes to creating a digital marketing strategy, AI tools provide valuable insight making it a worthwhile investment. Exela’s Predictive Marketing Automation enhances customer experience and automated collection and processing to enable hyper-targeted campaigns that increase ROI.

Business automation software can help maintain a client database, create audience segments, and record important information. Exela’s Predictive Marketing Automation gathers data from consumer details to consumer behavior to customer feedback so that marketers can understand not only their brand health but important aspects of the audience as well. Marketing solutions help to deliver the right message to the right customer at the right time making AI truly a transformative marketing tool.

To discover more ways that Exela’s Predictive Marketing Automation transforms digital marketing strategy, visit Exela Marketing Execution (XME). Here, you’ll find detailed information about this solution from Marketing Automation to AI-Powered Analytics and even to branded items.

Keeping up with market trends while driving customer interest is a challenge for many marketing teams. For small businesses and multinational corporations alike, maintaining an agile marketing strategy can seem like a daunting task.

Having a smart and reliable marketing platform can make all the difference.

A marketing platform combines tools with technology capabilities to better analyze and manage daily marketing activities. Modern tools utilize technology to forecast, analyze performance for campaigns, help strategize and to make more informed decisions.

But the sheer number of platforms available can make selecting a rather difficult choice - so here’s what you should look for in a marketing platform:

Automation Tools

Business automation tools are making it easier than ever to streamline processes and improve productivity, which can be immensely useful in marketing. While the term “automation” likely brings to mind rows of robotic arms on an assembly line, automation is just as prevalent and useful in handling digital tasks, through robotic process automation (RPA) tools. These digital “bots” are ideal for handling repetitive, rules-based tasks - from simple things like retrieving data from a database to more complex tasks like analyzing customer data or automatically initiating a customer retention campaign.

A marketing platform that integrates these types of automation options is great for lean teams, and can help you implement an agile strategy with fewer resources. By automating high-volume, time-intensive tasks, you can not only get them accomplished more quickly and accurately, but also free up your staff to focus on higher-value creative tasks.

Omni-Channel Campaign Management

There are more ways to reach audiences than ever before, and modern marketing strategies need to take advantage of all of them in the most effective ways possible. While every platform may require unique messaging or cadence, the best marketing campaigns are able to span across multiple media to create a cohesive and recognizable experience, with each touchpoint reinforcing the others.

A quality marketing platform will allow you to manage broad, multimedia campaigns from one centralized hub. From email and SMS messages, to landing pages and social media content, to old school print and direct mail materials, everything should be accounted for under one platform. Look for an option that incorporates not only omni-channel delivery, but response options, and that provides performance reporting to help you identify what’s working and what needs to be adjusted.

A single sign-on gives you access to list and template management, materials management, omni-channel delivery options, manual and automated response tools, and campaign spend and performance reporting.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

Your company's relationships and interactions with customers are crucial, and a CRM gives you greater flexibility and control over these interactions, while also enabling you to extract insights that can help you continually improve your services. This can make for an invaluable piece of your overall marketing strategy, helping you identify key drivers of customer behavior and tailor messaging to the highest-value needs. The system helps companies maintain steady and defined connection with customers, streamline processes, and improve profitability in the long run.

This can be as simple as setting up email sequences to reach out to your customers at defined days and time. This improves your customers' experience with your brand while giving you more time to focus on other tasks. With many marketing solutions and marketing platforms, CRM is usually included.

Cost, Plans, and Ease of Use

The next important factor is considering how user-friendly the platform is to use and navigate through. The platforms mostly offer free trials so users can go through and understand the abilities and if it is the right fit. You should consider the features, limitations of the platforms, ease of use, and reporting and analytics aspects.

Beyond this, you should also consider customer service. In the long run, you don't want to be stuck with a company that doesn't work quickly to resolve your issues.

A marketing platform is a solution that supports various functions within the realm of marketing, giving you a bird-eye view and greater control of every aspect. Exela’s Marketing Automation Solution gives you the ability to better manage your digital front and have greater control, while growing your customer base and business.

The term ‘agile’ can sound intimidating to many, especially when considering a marketing strategy. Though we all want to speed up our processes and various operations, we often end up getting stuck somewhere. Achieving agility requires proper planning, defining details, clearly stating goals, prioritizing tasks and much more.

Are you feeling overwhelmed?

With the market constantly evolving and changing, marketing can be tough for brands and attaining an agile marketing strategy may seem like a daunting task.

The main factor differentiating a truly agile marketing strategy from a traditional marketing approach is the focus on business outcomes. Rather than just dealing with the monotonous marketing achievements and deliverables, agile marketing concentrates on the bigger picture and keeps customers at its center. Agile marketing is driven by testing ideas, comparing marketing data analytics, and continual refinement.

Here’s how you can form your agile marketing team and strategy:

Getting Leadership On Board

As most marketing professionals can attest, getting approval on concepts can often add a significant amount of time to the entire process. In order to move fast, try new things, and course correct as you go, you need a retooled approval process that is designed to react quickly. One of the most important things you can do to establish this process is getting leadership on board early especially if you're considering using any digital solutions or business process outsourcing.

With approval from key stakeholders, your team will have an easier time trying new, outside-the-box ideas, and reacting fast to developing trends and situations. Try out some unique strategies or tactics to prove to leadership that your team has the expertise and creativity to be given more leeway to try new things.

Selecting the Right People

Approvals may be the most frustrating time-consuming process, but streamlining the initial development of materials is just as important to creating an agile marketing strategy. In order to move fast and react quickly, you need a small, dedicated team where individuals can be responsible for specific tasks while also collaborating and offering fresh ideas. An agile team must be flexible, creative, and reliable in order to move quickly.

Clearly Defining Marketing Goals

While you may think of an agile marketing strategy as being fluid and adaptable, it’s still important to have clear and firm goals in place to keep the strategy grounded. Setting clear goals that are measurable, trackable, and achievable helps everyone stay on track, while still leaving room for the flexibility and creativity that an agile marketing strategy can bring. Using marketing data analytics, you can better define your initiatives and work them into your strategy. By defining the key, overarching goals for the quarter, any creative discussion can always be brought back to whether it serves the larger end goals.

Providing marketing data analytics while discussing your goals is also helpful in getting leadership on board with your agile marketing strategy. Ground any decisions firmly in achieving the goals you’ve set with your team and with leadership.

Frequent Check-Ins

Once you have your goals and team in place, you should call for daily catch ups with your team. These can be quick meetings to keep everyone on the same page. Set up the tasks for everyone, so all the efforts can be in sync. This also eliminates the need to have multiple time-consuming meetings throughout the day.

In addition, it helps to set up regular meetings with key stakeholders in leadership to inform them of your team’s strategies and successes. These meetings can be less frequent, but are a great way to assure leaders that you’re staying on track.

Testing and Marketing Data Analytics

For an agile strategy to work, you need to arrange regular idea testing and summarizing the results to make constant improvements. For example, you can test out the subject line for an upcoming product launch and finalize on what will work best with your customers.

The team must work on an effective tracking mechanism to capture results. The details must be captured accurately as it helps understand the flaws, areas of improvement, patterns, and other preferences. The factors/ideas that are not working can be quickly discarded.

Developing and maintaining an agile marketing strategy is no small task. Even with all the proper pieces in place, it requires a high degree of attention, time, and resources. That’s why many businesses opt to partner with an experienced marketing business. This option is quicker to implement, less costly, and gives you the immediate benefit of working with proven experts. Outsourcing marketing can help you reduce overall marketing spend while improving your brand positioning.

Exela's Marketing Execution Services (XME) have helped numerous businesses achieve their brand potential. Our years of experience, powerful marketing data analytics tools combined with domain expertise, can translate insights into actionable strategies - delivering the best results for you.