When people at your company talk about wanting to create great digital customer experiences (DX), do they quickly venture into the land of the abstract by talking about technology platforms and features?  

If so, you’re not alone. I see this every day in my research on web content management and related software that supports digital experience strategies. It’s easy for technology, marketing, and business people to embrace the concept of creating delightful multichannel digital experiences. But far too many organizations still find it difficult to actually create DX that matters to customers and helps their brand gain a competitive edge.

Fortunately, inspiration isn’t far away. We’ve reached an inflection point in the evolution of digital experience where companies and brands are now selling the digital experience as much as they focus on what they're actually selling.  

Suddenly, technology-enabled experiences have morphed into the product. This should be a wakeup call for application development and delivery (AD&D) professionals everywhere to grasp this challenge. The same goes for digital experience agencies and partners that service brands. When digital experiences become the product, technologists have the opportunity to help bridge the DX vision and DX technology planning and project execution inside organizations. Tech capabilities and features matter most when you interpret them for the business and show people what’s possible. 

Recent TV commercials here in the US from Geico, AutoTrader, and La-Z-Boy each shine the spotlight not so much on their products (auto insurance, cars, and furniture, respectively) but on sweet digital experiences that focus on the needs of their customers. Specifically:

  • Geico shows that, if you buy their auto insurance, you’ll get its nifty iPad app that streamlines filing a claim and scheduling a visit from the adjustor after your car gets wrecked.
  • Although dozens of competing sites offer similar information on used and new cars (and even source the same listings from the same databases), AutoTrader highlights its digital search and filtering tools that makes its website smarter, better, and faster in your search for a car.
  • A delivery man, an ugly elephant, and Brooke Shields walk into a living room. The punch line? You can avoid buying an ugly sofa that won't match your decor (the elephant in the room) using La-Z-Boy’s iPad app with which you can view  upholstery options before you place your order.

I’ve included each TV ad below. Take a look.  Behind every great digital experience is a smart AD&D pro or team, translating ideas, requirements and priorities into tech decisions and getting the work done to make the experience happen.

Let me know what you think. Add a comment. Has your organization developed a great digital experience? How did you bridge ideas and technology to achieve success? What challenges did you overcome? Share what you’ve done in the comments — show us how you’ve made DX come to life.