{"componentChunkName":"component---src-components-articles-js","path":"/blog/5-ways-digital-transformation-optimizes-b2b-distribution","result":{"data":{"allContentfulArticles":{"edges":[{"node":{"body":{"body":"{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Data is lucrative\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Customers are becoming more aware of how much data they share online. As your business gets more and more integrated in the cloud ecosystem you share more and more information with other parties. There is company and customer information residing in your application servers. There is information across all third party providers your business uses. Your accounting system is moving online. Your doctor appointments are moving online. Online banking adoption has jumped to over 90%. You interact with these services with the expectation that your data is private and secure. There were 1473 reported data breaches in the US affecting approximately 165 million records in 2019.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{\"target\":{\"sys\":{\"space\":{\"sys\":{\"type\":\"Link\",\"linkType\":\"Space\",\"id\":\"c19yvuqa76ak4\",\"contentful_id\":\"19yvuqa76ak4\"}},\"id\":\"c2M941W5YV18rXoNgPAhZAf\",\"type\":\"Asset\",\"createdAt\":\"2020-05-11T09:45:52.696Z\",\"updatedAt\":\"2020-05-11T09:45:52.696Z\",\"environment\":{\"sys\":{\"id\":\"master\",\"type\":\"Link\",\"linkType\":\"Environment\",\"contentful_id\":\"master\"}},\"revision\":1,\"contentful_id\":\"2M941W5YV18rXoNgPAhZAf\"},\"fields\":{\"title\":{\"en-US\":\"us data breaches 2013 vs 2019\"},\"file\":{\"en-US\":{\"url\":\"//images.ctfassets.net/19yvuqa76ak4/2M941W5YV18rXoNgPAhZAf/35838c692ff510ca8f8481551ec2e40a/us_data_breaches_2013_vs_2019.png\",\"details\":{\"size\":44119,\"image\":{\"width\":1002,\"height\":1044}},\"fileName\":\"us data breaches 2013 vs 2019.png\",\"contentType\":\"image/png\"}}}}},\"content\":[],\"nodeType\":\"embedded-asset-block\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Data is lucrative. It can generate revenue through legal means such as advertising or be used for ransomware, identity theft and fraud. Websites get an average 60 attack attempts a day. Banks have reported on average over 80 serious attack attempts a year. You get the idea. You start working on your business digital strength, offer innovative online solutions to customers and now all information you have collected is on the network. Most attacks are automated, without any specific incentive to attack your business. You might be able to legally limit your liability when such data is abused by third parties or breached, but the publicity will cost you a lot of business and scrutiny. You need to be proactive in understanding what data you are collecting, why you are collecting it and how you are keeping it safe. This is not a job only for the developers working on your project. Data security should be an important discussion point on every digital transformation project you start. It should be part of the organizational culture and should have leadership support.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"What and why\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"It is important to understand why you need the information you are asking from your users. Information you collect should be essential for the product or service you are offering to work. Hoarding on customer data that has no use to your service has no benefit and exposes you to more risk. Many times young developers working freelance or for small agencies will create generalized data collection forms for the customer registration or transactions. Make sure you go over these forms and understand what data is being captured and why is that needed to make your product work. Evaluate the importance of data you are collecting. Are you connecting the customer accounting system? What information do you get from there? Why are you getting this information? Do you operate in a health related business? Does your customer use online methods to communicate with you? Are you collecting Protected Health Information (PHI)? Is your solution HIPAA compliant? You need to understand what data you are collecting and how sensitive that information is. Unless you have a strong reason to have that data stored, don't. Many industries are regulated in terms of how customer data is stored and processed. Understanding that is crucial to avoid expensive consequences and lead your digital transformation project ethically.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Who and when\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Who can access the data in your system? Can a disgruntled employee wreck havoc and expose data? What privileges are required to access customer information? Have procedures in place to handle who and when can customer data be accessed. It is important not to ignore the importance of proper access control policies in your organization. Many times the risks to data integrity and information security are internal. When dealing with encrypted data, make sure you understand the process at a high level. Access logs should be in place. Access should require authentication and failed authentications should be logged. \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"How\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"How are you keeping data safe? This is important for different types of data. Is sensitive data encrypted? Do all your web services or websites have an SSL certificate? SSL makes sure that data is encrypted from your servers to the end user (in transit). Is data encrypted when stored (at rest)? Who has access to the encryption keys? How often are encryption keys rotated? Is there 2-factor authentication in place for both customer access and employee level access? As part of your digital transformation project you should schedule a meeting to discuss different aspects of security and make sure the leadership team has an understanding of the process and implications at each step. Depending on the scale of your project you might want a third party independent security review before the project goes live and have the reviews scheduled continuously to make sure everything is running within the project specifications. Building secure solutions is only the first step to data security. Systems, applications and access privileges should be audited regularly. Third party integrations and data exchanged with with them should be clearly defined.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Transparency\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Unfortunately no system is immune. It is important to have procedures in place when things do not go as planned. All 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands have enacted legislation requiring private or governmental entities to notify individuals of security breaches of information involving personally identifiable information. It is not just the right and ethical thing to do. Transparency is a legal requirement. You need to have processes in place to make sure that customers are notified of any data breach within the limits dictated by law. \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Looks complicated\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"It does. Security is complicated. It is important not think of it as a fancy feature, or nice to have. According to \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"},{\"data\":{\"uri\":\"https://www.ibm.com/security/data-breach\"},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"2019 Cost of Data Breach Study\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"hyperlink\"},{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\" by IBM Security/Ponemon Institute, a data breach costs businesses an average of\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"},{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[{\"type\":\"bold\"}],\"value\":\" $3.92 million\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"},{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\", averaging at \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"},{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[{\"type\":\"bold\"}],\"value\":\"$150 per record breached\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"},{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\". Costs go substantially down when the breaches are detected and handled earlier. The financial implications are serious. You and your digital transformation consultant and the development team should work together to mitigate data security risks. As you explore patterns to help you in your company journey, make sure you pay close attention to data security competence.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"}],\"nodeType\":\"document\"}"},"id":"1926b4a7-7730-5a70-8121-2df3ec6b8855","title":"Make Sure Your Digital Transformation Projects Are Secure by Design","intro":"In 2019 billions of records were leaked in data breaches across social, financial, job seeking sites and many other things you interact with every day. As you take measures to improve your digital strength, it is crucial to be security minded.","updatedAt":"2020-05-28T02:22:23.938Z","createdAt":"2020-05-11T09:47:17.732Z","cover":{"localFile":{"url":"https://images.ctfassets.net/19yvuqa76ak4/O8O0F0GoPgtSIRnZHAIDs/fdb44df3f325e1145e35fa7637062b74/jon-moore-bBavss4ZQcA-unsplash.jpg","childImageSharp":{"fluid":{"base64":"data:image/jpeg;base64,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","aspectRatio":1.3333333333333333,"src":"/static/146ead9144a9f05cbf0b2206d54b6e27/14b42/jon-moore-bBavss4ZQcA-unsplash.jpg","srcSet":"/static/146ead9144a9f05cbf0b2206d54b6e27/f836f/jon-moore-bBavss4ZQcA-unsplash.jpg 200w,\n/static/146ead9144a9f05cbf0b2206d54b6e27/2244e/jon-moore-bBavss4ZQcA-unsplash.jpg 400w,\n/static/146ead9144a9f05cbf0b2206d54b6e27/14b42/jon-moore-bBavss4ZQcA-unsplash.jpg 800w,\n/static/146ead9144a9f05cbf0b2206d54b6e27/47498/jon-moore-bBavss4ZQcA-unsplash.jpg 1200w,\n/static/146ead9144a9f05cbf0b2206d54b6e27/0e329/jon-moore-bBavss4ZQcA-unsplash.jpg 1600w,\n/static/146ead9144a9f05cbf0b2206d54b6e27/8a511/jon-moore-bBavss4ZQcA-unsplash.jpg 6667w","sizes":"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px"}}}}}},{"node":{"body":{"body":"{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"It is not business as usual anymore\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"We love to think of traditional businesses as things that are out of the reach of the online world. There is something romantic about it. As much grounding as the thought can feel, there is very few businesses today that are not impacted by the technological changes of the past 20 years. This is not to say that being online is the the golden solution to all business problems. It just provides a new way to do business, while providing great tools to optimize existing ways. Sure, e-commerce has still a long way to go to even come close to in-store sales, but ask book shops, computer shops and toy stores what they think about it. While e-commerce for grocery shopping remains at very low adoption rates, almost every other sector gets a big share of their business handled online. Things change rapidly. Every year new buzz words take center stage. Automation, AI, Big Data, AR/VR. It is easy to think of these as issues that do not concern you. Most probably they don't. Most of these technologies are just starting to bring value to the large companies that spent billions researching them. It takes time for technology to trickle down to practical use cases. Not much time though. Things move fast. The reason it takes time is that implementation costs start to go down, and more businesses or consumers can adapt the technology. More developers can see use cases and develop solutions that solve business challenges. Why is the web so crucial now? Internet adoption rates are high, very high. They say a picture is worth a thousand words so here we go. \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{\"target\":{\"sys\":{\"space\":{\"sys\":{\"type\":\"Link\",\"linkType\":\"Space\",\"id\":\"c19yvuqa76ak4\",\"contentful_id\":\"19yvuqa76ak4\"}},\"id\":\"c16WAx8Jr5qTuofnZThKzVA\",\"type\":\"Asset\",\"createdAt\":\"2020-05-10T03:07:13.198Z\",\"updatedAt\":\"2020-05-10T03:07:13.198Z\",\"environment\":{\"sys\":{\"id\":\"master\",\"type\":\"Link\",\"linkType\":\"Environment\",\"contentful_id\":\"master\"}},\"revision\":1,\"contentful_id\":\"16WAx8Jr5qTuofnZThKzVA\"},\"fields\":{\"title\":{\"en-US\":\"internet usage by age\"},\"file\":{\"en-US\":{\"url\":\"//images.ctfassets.net/19yvuqa76ak4/16WAx8Jr5qTuofnZThKzVA/8ec13ab1f95cdc705a0b8a5379165570/internet_usage_by_age.png\",\"details\":{\"size\":144722,\"image\":{\"width\":2593,\"height\":1396}},\"fileName\":\"internet usage by age.png\",\"contentType\":\"image/png\"}}}}},\"content\":[],\"nodeType\":\"embedded-asset-block\"},{\"data\":{\"target\":{\"sys\":{\"space\":{\"sys\":{\"type\":\"Link\",\"linkType\":\"Space\",\"id\":\"c19yvuqa76ak4\",\"contentful_id\":\"19yvuqa76ak4\"}},\"id\":\"c2SzDNMEwZwlYVWbRnoiT4W\",\"type\":\"Asset\",\"createdAt\":\"2020-05-10T03:07:47.904Z\",\"updatedAt\":\"2020-05-10T03:07:47.904Z\",\"environment\":{\"sys\":{\"id\":\"master\",\"type\":\"Link\",\"linkType\":\"Environment\",\"contentful_id\":\"master\"}},\"revision\":1,\"contentful_id\":\"2SzDNMEwZwlYVWbRnoiT4W\"},\"fields\":{\"title\":{\"en-US\":\"internet usage general\"},\"file\":{\"en-US\":{\"url\":\"//images.ctfassets.net/19yvuqa76ak4/2SzDNMEwZwlYVWbRnoiT4W/e07fdd18d0a382df4b1912bbaa451db3/internet_usage_general.png\",\"details\":{\"size\":137544,\"image\":{\"width\":2593,\"height\":1396}},\"fileName\":\"internet usage general.png\",\"contentType\":\"image/png\"}}}}},\"content\":[],\"nodeType\":\"embedded-asset-block\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Your customers are online. Your suppliers are online. Your government is online. That's why companies rush to adapt and understand the new ways they can grow their business in a world that is connected more than ever before. \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Digital native companies\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"If competition from the good, old and known was not enough, new digital native businesses are started every day. You might think this concerns only technology startups, a reality far, far away from raising cattle, for example. You would be wrong. There are digital native companies in agriculture, fishing, distribution, construction, fashion, marketing, technology, publishing, you name it. Digital native companies are built from the start to take advantage of every innovation the web and a connected world can offer them. They run operations at lower costs, they know of problems earlier and are more resilient. Existing businesses followed suite. The New York Times is 170 years old. In 2019 their growing digital ads revenue surpassed their declining print revenue. Out of 4.4 million subscribers, 3.3 million were digital subscribers. Long standing businesses have gone a long way to adapt, use the challenges of the web as opportunities to transform and grow at fast pace.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"How soon is to soon?\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"It you have to ask the question is already late. If you start your business today, make sure it is a digital native business. It will save you the headache down the road. There is no reason why you would ignore the opportunities the cloud offers. Your competitors won't. If you have an established business, you need to take a look at your operations, sales and other business processes. Check out your competitors and get a general view of your industry. Follow the thought leaders in what you do. You will most likely hear the same thing no matter the industry. Everything is moving towards cloud integration. Digital transformation is not about costs. Most companies can pay the initial costs of getting the systems set up.  Digital transformation is more than anything else about having innovation at the core of the organizational culture.  It does not really matter what sector you operate in. Your digital strength impacts revenue and profitability directly. \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Does it apply to what you do?\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Yes. I do not really need to know what it is that you exactly do to answer that question. I can be more specific if I did, but 99% of the time the answer will be yes. I like to take cattle as the example when it comes to questions like this. Sure you can go about your business as usual. Your competitors are not. Your digital native competitors can understand when something is wrong with their cows ahead of time. They can monitor each cow activity, feeding levels, milk yield and quickly identify patterns that require intervention before it becomes costly. Your digital native farmers run more cost effective operations, at higher revenue growth. Humans have domesticated and raised cattle for over 10000 years. 10 millennia of human experience and yet digital transformation has touched the sector with excellent results. In the odd case that you operate in an industry sector where digital transformation has not affected business processes, it definitely has affected marketing and sales. So yes, it applies. \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"What can you do\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Running successful digital transformation projects takes more than coming up with a website where people can read about you. Although, in case you do not have a website yet, please get one built for you. Start a discussion. Learn how digital transformation helps businesses like yours. You hire lawyers, accountants and yes, you need to higher consultants in the digital transformation field. You will find a wide range of firms specializing in digital transformation to reach out to. Since you are reading this here, you probably know that's what we do as well. We would be thrilled to know more about what you do. Whether we have the privilege of serving you or not, we hope you understand that in today's world success is inevitably linked to digital strength. \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"}],\"nodeType\":\"document\"}"},"id":"58c60d60-04e5-5e46-9944-f7dd28e069ce","title":"How Soon Is Too Soon to Worry About Digital Transformation","intro":"You have run your business for years and things seem to be going as usual. Should you start thinking about digital transformation? Maybe your are just starting out and wondering if websites and web applications really matter at your stage.","updatedAt":"2020-05-28T02:20:05.300Z","createdAt":"2020-05-10T04:05:33.628Z","cover":{"localFile":{"url":"https://images.ctfassets.net/19yvuqa76ak4/DtdwRzPnhNcAJsETry1Kz/35ea0721f6cc6e3e451bbdd044185963/jon-tyson-FlHdnPO6dlw-unsplash.jpg","childImageSharp":{"fluid":{"base64":"data:image/jpeg;base64,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","aspectRatio":1.3333333333333333,"src":"/static/7b7a7047d59d7ed780355a27d39d5d02/14b42/jon-tyson-FlHdnPO6dlw-unsplash.jpg","srcSet":"/static/7b7a7047d59d7ed780355a27d39d5d02/f836f/jon-tyson-FlHdnPO6dlw-unsplash.jpg 200w,\n/static/7b7a7047d59d7ed780355a27d39d5d02/2244e/jon-tyson-FlHdnPO6dlw-unsplash.jpg 400w,\n/static/7b7a7047d59d7ed780355a27d39d5d02/14b42/jon-tyson-FlHdnPO6dlw-unsplash.jpg 800w,\n/static/7b7a7047d59d7ed780355a27d39d5d02/47498/jon-tyson-FlHdnPO6dlw-unsplash.jpg 1200w,\n/static/7b7a7047d59d7ed780355a27d39d5d02/0e329/jon-tyson-FlHdnPO6dlw-unsplash.jpg 1600w,\n/static/7b7a7047d59d7ed780355a27d39d5d02/d5fee/jon-tyson-FlHdnPO6dlw-unsplash.jpg 2439w","sizes":"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px"}}}}}},{"node":{"body":{"body":"{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"The Love/Hate Relationship\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Sales is always a touchy area. Your business cannot do without great sales people. Development agencies cannot do without them. They do not necessarily join teams early on, but sooner or later, they will be in the meeting rooms across businesses trying to generate and convert leads and increase revenue. They do an ugly work of sorts. They are usually considered bothersome when they call, and yet we love them to call if we are not the customer. We have this strange relationship with the professionals in the field. All sales people will know they are rejected far more times than they succeed. Their work is important, but it does not take much for an over zealous sales person to blow a whole digital transformation project up. When rejection is so much part of what a person does, being overzealous is always a risk.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Two Sides of Selling in Digital Projects\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"If there is one thing that can drain you energy and that of the team you hire is wrong expectations. Sales people are great at getting you excited, and getting your expectations in order is not their main concern most of the time. This may come to cost you and your own team a lot down the road. In digital development teams in particular sales people are selling to two parties at all times. They are selling the development team to you and they are selling you as a client to the development team. They have a difficult time to accept no for an answer from either side. They will talk with you. Understand what would make you say yes and the more inexperienced and overzealous ones will try to frame an offer around that. They will then approach the development team and make sure they take the project on. With some help for up in the hierarchy where revenue driven people work, the development team will be working on a project they are not sure they can deliver, for a client who was promised it in an unrealistic time frame. That doesn't sound right, right? It itches everyone the wrong way, and yet the process is very common. It is important to understand and work around the pattern when you encounter it to make sure your expectations are met.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"When Sales Are in Charge\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Web development projects are complex. When developers and designers work on them they juggle client requirements, technical aspects, security, performance, usability, accessibility and time. Most teams want to deliver the best they can in the shortest time possible. That said, organizational dynamics will always influence the outcome of your project. When sales people are in charge they tend to dictate unrealistic deadline, and push development teams to cut corners they would not normally cut. If they are not involved in decision making or in the initial proposal they will be pressured constantly around the promises made to you.  Your project will suffer in ways that might not immediately visible. First to go will be proper software architecture and testing. Why? You as the client cannot immediately see them. They are hidden in the engine that makes your project work. It saves time now and starts accumulating what developers refer to as technical debt. Unfortunately, nothing is free. It will be usually followed by total disregard for accessibility. Accessibility is what makes the web possible for people with visual or other impairments. The ability for screen readers to understand you website. Who has time to think about that with that stubborn deadline coming up next week, right? Then comes security. If your project is of any considerable size you should have a third party run a security audit. Good development agencies will have third party independent security reviews as part of the project quote depending on the project scale. Stubborn deadlines negotiated by sales teams tend to not concern themselves with the boring details on security. We have seen plain text passwords stored in projects for big Fortune 500 companies with their own dedicated teams on board. We have seen publicly accessible channels that control device power state just because no one had time to even handle authentication. Imagine now the implications this approach has when financial and health information is concerned. It can cost you quite a bit. We have seen this patterns be most prominent in sales led development teams. As necessary as sales people are, they should never dictate development terms. They should work together to create proposals with realistic expectations and deliverables for the customer.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Talk to the whole team\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Always ask to talk to the team that will deliver your project early on. Developers, unlike sales people, tend to be cautious when promising deadlines. They want to deliver good, secure, accessible projects and they want you to succeed. They are proud of the work they do and they will try to push themselves to solve the challenges you have. Aim for an open communication early on. Setup weekly meetings with everyone involved. It is an opportunity to be updated on how the project is going. Discuss what challenges if any were faced during the week, if anything is pending a solution. Prioritize your core feature list. Most projects will have one or two core features and plenty of secondary nice to haves. Make sure you keep your focus. Successful digital transformation projects are by their very nature a shared leadership endeavor. Keep your customer needs front and center so each project adds real value to your business. Make it clear you care about code quality, security and accessibility.  Take your project as far as it can go without cutting dangerous corners. \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"}],\"nodeType\":\"document\"}"},"id":"ac4bf088-b689-542d-9567-9f3fd60f64ea","title":"The Dangers of Sales Led Development Teams","intro":"You cannot do without them just as development agencies cannot do without them. In tech teams however the dangers of over promising impact the customer most. Understand why talking to the tech team is important before committing to a project.","updatedAt":"2020-05-28T02:15:58.779Z","createdAt":"2020-05-09T07:33:37.976Z","cover":{"localFile":{"url":"https://images.ctfassets.net/19yvuqa76ak4/6RihhDFbMCVkAZ81xDvjPD/098e43aca506c8fb2f65f355fbb410da/sales_led_development_teams.jpg","childImageSharp":{"fluid":{"base64":"data:image/jpeg;base64,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","aspectRatio":1.3333333333333333,"src":"/static/44466aad88de01292dc9edae79911bd6/14b42/sales_led_development_teams.jpg","srcSet":"/static/44466aad88de01292dc9edae79911bd6/f836f/sales_led_development_teams.jpg 200w,\n/static/44466aad88de01292dc9edae79911bd6/2244e/sales_led_development_teams.jpg 400w,\n/static/44466aad88de01292dc9edae79911bd6/14b42/sales_led_development_teams.jpg 800w,\n/static/44466aad88de01292dc9edae79911bd6/47498/sales_led_development_teams.jpg 1200w,\n/static/44466aad88de01292dc9edae79911bd6/0e329/sales_led_development_teams.jpg 1600w,\n/static/44466aad88de01292dc9edae79911bd6/c3bd3/sales_led_development_teams.jpg 2504w","sizes":"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px"}}}}}},{"node":{"body":{"body":"{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"The evolving terminology mess and promised golden solutions\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"If you have run a digital transformation project before, you know this one. You know tech people love jargon. Sales people that got you to the tech people love to over-promise. You will see fancy moving things and shiny colors and feel like robots are roaming the streets. Before long you will loose focus on what matters most: Creating value for your business. There is a usual suspect when you cannot understand how the conversation is relevant to what you do.  The other party is clueless about who your customers are and what their customer journey is.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Do you know your customer?\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"When you started your business you had a customer in mind that would be a great fit for your products and services. Your team evolved and now it is more than you and an idea. With hard work and luck your team might have grown quite a bit. Your customer have evolved, too. Their purchasing habits have changed. What they care about has changed. Their relationship to your business is not the same. When you run a business you are joining your customers in their journey, they are not joining you. This is true no matter the business size. Your challenge is to keep up. What you spend in digital transformation projects, you do so you can keep up. It cannot help you have an understanding of your customer core needs as it relates to your business. Your talented team should know the customer. The talented agency you hire, should know your customer. They don't always do.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Does your digital transformation partner know your customer?\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Many times you will find agencies and professionals try to avoid asking questions. They want to be the image of an advisor who knows it all. They might fear being perceived as less capable if they have to let you know that they don't know. Yet, they don't. We don't.  The right consultant will bore you with questions focused on your customers. You see, development agencies have talented people on board. They spend a lot to hire the best. That said, these talented people are technology focused. Amazing as they are, they have no clue about what you do and how all their talent can help you. That's why you should insist to let them know, and be glad if they bore you with questions. \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Why does it matter?\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Software developers can build amazing things. Their peers will cheer them. Technical minded people will look at their work in awe. They have a thing for solving problems that don't bother anyone for the fun of it. The excitement will sweep you as you and soon enough you loose focus. It helps to stop and ask why you are doing something. If the answer to that question does not come back to your customer, you are wasting your time. Without customer focus, no matter how fancy your project is, it will not be relevant. You will fall out of step with your customer and it will be costly to get back on track. Your business, any business, depends on meeting customer needs as it relates to what they do. If you cannot come up with a reason on why and how a solution benefits your customer, you are wasting money. You can only benefit and add value when your customer benefits and gets value. Do not ask why do you care. You might care for countless reasons. Ask why your customer should care. This takes us a modern challenge of customer focus.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Too much data kills customer focus\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Harvard Business Review described this problem perfectly in 2016:\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"After decades of watching great companies fail, we’ve come to the conclusion that the focus on correlation—and on knowing more and more about customers—is taking firms in the wrong direction. What they really need to home in on is the progress that the customer is trying to make in a given circumstance—what the customer hopes to accomplish. This is what we’ve come to call the job to be done. \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"},{\"data\":{\"uri\":\"https://hbr.org/2016/09/know-your-customers-jobs-to-be-done\"},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Know Your Customers’ “Jobs to Be Done” - Harvard Business Review\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"hyperlink\"},{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"}],\"nodeType\":\"blockquote\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"The issue has gotten worse in the last years with data is front and center.  We get bombarded with it. On Google Analytics we can segment visitors by education, gender, age, geography, interests. We are humans. Give us data and we will make sense of it in a way that is relevant to us. Agencies promise unparalleled insights into user data. That does not mean customer data. That is user data. Knowing your customer means knowing how they related to your product. Why they need it and what problems it solves for them. If you are selling water filtration products to families, the fact that they speak Spanish is irrelevant. You do not need to know. You should not pay to know. If you started your business in San Antonio, 36% of people speak Spanish. That does not mean that Spanish speaking customers prefer your product. It means your business is in San Antonio. It does not tell their story, it tells your story. Reject what information you do not need and be good at telling it apart. Gathering data is easy. It is cheap. It is meaningless unless you asked for it to begin with because it solved a problem you had. We live in an era of unsolicited data feeds. For most businesses wholesale data will not tell you more about your customers than what you can get by meeting them. It will just distract you. Focus on helping customer get things done and make it easier for them. Wholesale data is descriptive, but not predictive. You should decide what data you need based on what you do. Don't make important decisions on data that is not specific to your needs. Next time your digital transformation partner shows you a dashboard with nice charts, ask how that gets you to solve your customer problem. Kill that chart. That takes us to a universal solution.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Keep it simple\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Keeping customer focus is not difficult if you remember why you are in business to begin with. Remember the struggle you are trying to solve. Keep in touch with your customers. Keep solutions and spend money on serving them better. Solving their problem faster, cheaper, conveniently. That's what true digital transformation is about.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"}],\"nodeType\":\"document\"}"},"id":"5c477188-102a-5b6b-889c-9cdd9e3752dc","title":"Keep Your Digital Transformation Project Customer Focused","intro":"It is easy to get distracted as your business starts a digital transformation project. The myriad of technologies available today does not help to stay focused. As you navigate the process you should ask your team one important question constantly.","updatedAt":"2020-05-28T02:08:16.629Z","createdAt":"2020-05-09T00:11:25.236Z","cover":{"localFile":{"url":"https://images.ctfassets.net/19yvuqa76ak4/4zuxdTEQDQxaATp6ry2tOy/b7bf5530f6d9bbc71eb84268ac46bc20/photo-1517701986616-711a9d625afe.jpg","childImageSharp":{"fluid":{"base64":"data:image/jpeg;base64,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","aspectRatio":1.3333333333333333,"src":"/static/cf70c4dd192d557b169cd48573fb54b3/14b42/photo-1517701986616-711a9d625afe.jpg","srcSet":"/static/cf70c4dd192d557b169cd48573fb54b3/f836f/photo-1517701986616-711a9d625afe.jpg 200w,\n/static/cf70c4dd192d557b169cd48573fb54b3/2244e/photo-1517701986616-711a9d625afe.jpg 400w,\n/static/cf70c4dd192d557b169cd48573fb54b3/14b42/photo-1517701986616-711a9d625afe.jpg 800w,\n/static/cf70c4dd192d557b169cd48573fb54b3/47498/photo-1517701986616-711a9d625afe.jpg 1200w,\n/static/cf70c4dd192d557b169cd48573fb54b3/0e329/photo-1517701986616-711a9d625afe.jpg 1600w,\n/static/cf70c4dd192d557b169cd48573fb54b3/7d95a/photo-1517701986616-711a9d625afe.jpg 2794w","sizes":"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px"}}}}}},{"node":{"body":{"body":"{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"B2B distribution is one of the sectors where digital transformation has been a great contributor to improving service, increasing revenue and optimizing costs. The business is by its very nature predictable. Most business customers will buy a predictable amount of goods over time. Relationships are usually long term. Imagine hotel and coffee shops suppliers. Once you account for any seasonality factors and year on year growth it is easy to automate and optimize schedules.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Centralize order management with custom online solutions\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"B2B distribution benefits from online solutions to orders, payments and route optimization. Having a place that is open to accept customer orders 24/7 adds value to your customer offerings. You can configure your product catalog and easily keep it up to date. Customers can order and schedule deliveries ahead of time. They have access to their invoices with little back and forth with the AP department. You can easily configure cross selling and promote new product when they interact with your system. They can easily reach you during business hours or interact with intelligent bots for quick solutions to common problems.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Predicting customer orders to add value\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Using predictive technologies it is now possible to understand your customer order patterns. In the B2B distribution sector this can be achieved with fairly high accuracy. Having a schedule in place ahead of time is important to optimize fleet deployment and routing, plan required resources and cut costs.  As good as you system is it usually depends on your customer ordering on time. Unlike in consumer scenarios where one off purchases are more common, B2B is usually characterized by repeat orders of similar items and quantities.  We can usually predict when a customer will order once some time has elapsed, as well as adjust for seasonality and common patterns across all the customer base. With an idea of who will be ordering tomorrow or the day after you might want to confirm deliveries and get your schedule ready. This is another process you can automate in the cloud. Automated calls can be triggered for the customer to confirm delivery, or reschedule it for the next day. If the orders are constant, you can easily collect payment on the same call. The value of acting on predictions and automating processes is especially important to smaller companies with more limited resources.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Optimizing delivery routes to cut costs\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Route optimization is essential in distribution businesses irrespective of fleet size. The benefits are clear. Optimizing the distance drivers have to travel means cutting on both oil and maintenance costs, increasing profitability. The other advantage is being able to serve customers on time making you a more reliable partner. This process can easily scale from small fleets to larger ones. With dispatch automated you can broadcast it to warehouse operations and  driver mobile devices so everyone is in sync.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Tracking and measuring delivery metrics\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"With the schedule on each drivers mobile device you can now track as orders are delivered. You can get automated reports on distance and delivery times. If the schedule is delayed, you can trigger automated messaging to customers notifying about the delay. This will help avoiding surprise calls about orders not having arrived yet and customers will appreciate you letting them know. With less time pressures drivers can operate more safely. Drivers can capture signatures on delivery and accounting systems can be updated automatically. Paperless operations are crucial to help you find the information you need faster later on and cut data entry times back at the office.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Getting paid faster\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Online first systems are excellent means to optimize receivables. In distribution specifically you can accept payments at order time. This can be done whether the order is entered though online systems or automated phone calls. The driver can accept car payment on delivery through mobile terminals. Customers that you offer credit to will be reminded of their upcoming invoices and overdue balance if any. Email reminders with direct payment options or automated calls with payment capture, provide even more options to the business. \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Why digital transformation is so essential\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"The main reason is that distribution businesses are characterized by a set of specific challenges. When working on digital transformation projects the options are vast and provide unprecedented value. This is especially true for smaller distribution firms. Small investments in adopting cloud based technologies can go a long way in helping you grow faster and serve your customers better.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"}],\"nodeType\":\"document\"}"},"id":"f36461e7-75e9-5a32-9144-27a5317c4133","title":"5 Ways Digital Transformation Optimizes B2B Distribution","intro":"B2B distribution is characterized by predictable patterns which make ideal for cloud based solutions when looking to optimize operations","updatedAt":"2020-05-28T01:41:13.190Z","createdAt":"2020-05-09T09:30:27.414Z","cover":{"localFile":{"url":"https://images.ctfassets.net/19yvuqa76ak4/6CU7ep8qOIuleVZ9fMOh4d/4039326b48ff23913c468e314ec2f732/photo-1565793298595-6a879b1d9492.jpg","childImageSharp":{"fluid":{"base64":"data:image/jpeg;base64,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","aspectRatio":1.5037593984962405,"src":"/static/c1f8d547ba975188490c1d2fdd7461d0/14b42/photo-1565793298595-6a879b1d9492.jpg","srcSet":"/static/c1f8d547ba975188490c1d2fdd7461d0/f836f/photo-1565793298595-6a879b1d9492.jpg 200w,\n/static/c1f8d547ba975188490c1d2fdd7461d0/2244e/photo-1565793298595-6a879b1d9492.jpg 400w,\n/static/c1f8d547ba975188490c1d2fdd7461d0/14b42/photo-1565793298595-6a879b1d9492.jpg 800w,\n/static/c1f8d547ba975188490c1d2fdd7461d0/47498/photo-1565793298595-6a879b1d9492.jpg 1200w,\n/static/c1f8d547ba975188490c1d2fdd7461d0/0e329/photo-1565793298595-6a879b1d9492.jpg 1600w,\n/static/c1f8d547ba975188490c1d2fdd7461d0/d8e16/photo-1565793298595-6a879b1d9492.jpg 5464w","sizes":"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px"}}}}}}]}},"pageContext":{"id":"f36461e7-75e9-5a32-9144-27a5317c4133","currentPageUrl":"/articles/5-ways-digital-transformation-optimizes-b2b-distribution","article":{"body":{"body":"{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"B2B distribution is one of the sectors where digital transformation has been a great contributor to improving service, increasing revenue and optimizing costs. The business is by its very nature predictable. Most business customers will buy a predictable amount of goods over time. Relationships are usually long term. Imagine hotel and coffee shops suppliers. Once you account for any seasonality factors and year on year growth it is easy to automate and optimize schedules.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Centralize order management with custom online solutions\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"B2B distribution benefits from online solutions to orders, payments and route optimization. Having a place that is open to accept customer orders 24/7 adds value to your customer offerings. You can configure your product catalog and easily keep it up to date. Customers can order and schedule deliveries ahead of time. They have access to their invoices with little back and forth with the AP department. You can easily configure cross selling and promote new product when they interact with your system. They can easily reach you during business hours or interact with intelligent bots for quick solutions to common problems.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Predicting customer orders to add value\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Using predictive technologies it is now possible to understand your customer order patterns. In the B2B distribution sector this can be achieved with fairly high accuracy. Having a schedule in place ahead of time is important to optimize fleet deployment and routing, plan required resources and cut costs.  As good as you system is it usually depends on your customer ordering on time. Unlike in consumer scenarios where one off purchases are more common, B2B is usually characterized by repeat orders of similar items and quantities.  We can usually predict when a customer will order once some time has elapsed, as well as adjust for seasonality and common patterns across all the customer base. With an idea of who will be ordering tomorrow or the day after you might want to confirm deliveries and get your schedule ready. This is another process you can automate in the cloud. Automated calls can be triggered for the customer to confirm delivery, or reschedule it for the next day. If the orders are constant, you can easily collect payment on the same call. The value of acting on predictions and automating processes is especially important to smaller companies with more limited resources.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Optimizing delivery routes to cut costs\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Route optimization is essential in distribution businesses irrespective of fleet size. The benefits are clear. Optimizing the distance drivers have to travel means cutting on both oil and maintenance costs, increasing profitability. The other advantage is being able to serve customers on time making you a more reliable partner. This process can easily scale from small fleets to larger ones. With dispatch automated you can broadcast it to warehouse operations and  driver mobile devices so everyone is in sync.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Tracking and measuring delivery metrics\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"With the schedule on each drivers mobile device you can now track as orders are delivered. You can get automated reports on distance and delivery times. If the schedule is delayed, you can trigger automated messaging to customers notifying about the delay. This will help avoiding surprise calls about orders not having arrived yet and customers will appreciate you letting them know. With less time pressures drivers can operate more safely. Drivers can capture signatures on delivery and accounting systems can be updated automatically. Paperless operations are crucial to help you find the information you need faster later on and cut data entry times back at the office.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Getting paid faster\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Online first systems are excellent means to optimize receivables. In distribution specifically you can accept payments at order time. This can be done whether the order is entered though online systems or automated phone calls. The driver can accept car payment on delivery through mobile terminals. Customers that you offer credit to will be reminded of their upcoming invoices and overdue balance if any. Email reminders with direct payment options or automated calls with payment capture, provide even more options to the business. \",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"Why digital transformation is so essential\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"heading-3\"},{\"data\":{},\"content\":[{\"data\":{},\"marks\":[],\"value\":\"The main reason is that distribution businesses are characterized by a set of specific challenges. When working on digital transformation projects the options are vast and provide unprecedented value. This is especially true for smaller distribution firms. Small investments in adopting cloud based technologies can go a long way in helping you grow faster and serve your customers better.\",\"nodeType\":\"text\"}],\"nodeType\":\"paragraph\"}],\"nodeType\":\"document\"}"},"id":"f36461e7-75e9-5a32-9144-27a5317c4133","title":"5 Ways Digital Transformation Optimizes B2B Distribution"}}}}