What are common conflicts in digital strategy and how can you address them?

I would add that the question itself highlights one of the fundamental conflicts with digital strategy. In practice digital strategy should be part of your overarching, business strategy. It's not "separate from" business strategy. It's "yes, and." The conflict that often arises with digital strategy tends to occur when we treat it as though it is entirely separate from our overarching business strategy. Instead, digital strategists within your organization must work with the company's key stakeholders to ensure that digital complements, enhances, and extends their company's ability to meet the needs of customers and reach its overall business objectives. Otherwise, digital is just tactics and fails to be strategic at all.

Stakeholder alignment on digital strategy is the surface. If they aren't aligned on the existence, the drive of impact and profitability, and where things are heading first, alignment on digital strategy won't even matter. If that is on track, we also must understand that many stakeholders aren't necessarily those doing the work and may not have the depth of understanding. So it's alignment in the people you have doing the work, the budget to fund everything, the resources to manage everything, and the timeline set to pursue desired OKRs and KPIs through digital strategy. From there, it is a matter of preferences: tone, visuals, mediums, systems, etc. What does the process and inputs look like with the preferred timeline and outcomes?

Digital Strategy has the potential to change the balance of power between different parts of an organisation internally. Take a retail organisation with a number of pysical sales points starting to sell online. Digital sales will be seen to cannibalize the physical sales points and existing business owners will naturally work against digital. This is why digital strategy should not sit in a vacuum with siloed objectives. It needs to be inclusive of the existing organisation and be sure to incentivize rather than penalize the non-digital dimension of the business. Once a clear organisation with shared objectives is in place, alignment will be child's play.

? Why is Stakeholder Alignment Crucial? When clients, agencies, team members, users, and partners are on the same page, magic happens! It eliminates misunderstandings, delays, and dissatisfaction, paving the way for smooth sailing toward our goals. ?? ? How Can We Achieve Alignment? ?? Clear Communication: Frequent and transparent dialogue is the foundation. ?? Define Objectives: Establishing clear goals and scopes ensures everyone knows the mission. ?? Inclusive Decision-Making: Involving stakeholders in decisions fosters collaboration and understanding. ?? Manage Expectations: Realistic expectations lead to satisfaction and trust. ?? Resolve Conflicts: Addressing issues promptly prevents roadblocks.

Mitigating conflicts in digital strategy is essential for a successful project. The lack of alignment among stakeholders can hinder progress. To add value, consider implementing a structured communication plan that fosters collaboration, setting clear project objectives, and using tools to streamline feedback and issue resolution. This proactive approach can lead to smoother project execution and increased satisfaction among all stakeholders.

Resource constraints often pose a significant challenge in digital strategy. Factors like limited time, budget, staff, skills, tools, and data can impact the strategy's quality, scope, and feasibility. These constraints can also lead to stress and burnout within the team. Address this by meticulous resource planning and allocation, prioritizing critical tasks, and streamlining processes. Flexibility and adaptability are crucial, allowing you to navigate changing circumstances effectively. If needed, explore external support or collaboration options to mitigate the limitations and ensure the success of your digital strategy.

Digital skills are scarce and will always be your strongest constraint. When a business area is only a few years old and the growth is double digit, organisations will always struggle to find sufficient well-qualified staff. This has been the case in digital marketing for many years, and it is not an easy puzzle to solve, because you will rarely feel capable of moving as fast as you would like due to the maturity of your organisation. Most businesses will hire experienced staff and let them hire, train and upskill their next generation of digital marketers. And while you are building such an organisation, you might use agencies and freelancers to fill the gap.

Resource constraints can pose challenges to successfully implementing a digital strategy but where there a challenges it offers the opportunity for learning and growth. Flexibility is key to managing and working through those challenges whether it is budget related or people related.

Resource limitations like time, budget, skills, tools and data are inevitable challenges. Carefully prioritize allocation to focus on critical areas first. Scope projects in phases when needed. Streamline processes to maximize constrained resources. Take an agile, iterative approach to deploy resources quickly. Supplement via partnerships or outsourcing when beneficial. Leverage free and low-cost digital tools where possible. Cross-train and hire digitally savvy talent. Set clear expectations on roles. Foster a culture of experimentation, creativity and resilience. With the right prioritization, optimization and mix of internal capability and external support, resource constraints can be navigated. Stay focused, flexible and future-minded.

Artificial Intelligence has been a game-changer for marketers, especially when it comes to overcoming resource constraints and streamlining repetitive tasks. Marketers can turn many time-consuming tasks into automated processes freeing up valuable resources. This includes the creation of content briefs, analyzing campaign performance and other marketing data, identifying emerging trends, and more.

Integrating different technology platforms can be fun, exciting, insightful as well as hard, challenging, frustrating and can take ages to get an understanding as to how to go about doing it. I’ve been through it all when dealing with multiple systems and trying to get the data to flow through them all to build a seamless end to end journey. One thing I have learnt from my experience is picking the right software (for your purpose) is key! This is the first and one of the most important steps to take. There are a wide range of software out there, from open source or free to paid subscription, on premise to cloud. How you identify what to use needs to align with your digital strategy.

One of the things I have learnt from my experience is that choosing the right technologies for your organisational needs and success play a key role in becoming sustainable. One of the common mistakes you find are often other people making decisions on key technological infrastructure that has a significant impact on the future of an organisation. This can serve not just as a challenge but as a threat especially when those key actors don’t stand down. Also, there is the part of thinking the more expensive a technology is, the more sustainable it is. In the real sense that may not be what an organisation needs. Being honest about the pros and cons of any technology will determine it’s successful implementation.

"you need to choose the right technologies and platforms" - this is a challenge in itself. With a zillion options out there, how do you choose the right tools? Some of the ways to do it: - ask teammates and other stakeholders who have used what? What were the results? - research the market. Compare options. Have demo calls with representatives. Make sure you've done your work and know precisely what you need from a particular technology to see if it meets your criteria - hire a consultant - check what is the competition using

In the innovative field of digital strategy, one frequently encountered challenge lies in reconciling user feedback with project outcomes. User feedback is a critical asset for evaluating and enhancing digital strategies, offering valuable insights into user behaviors, preferences, needs, & satisfaction. However, it can sometimes prove inconsistent, biased, or incongruent with project objectives & data. To effectively address this issue, it is imperative to amass and analyze user feedback from diverse sources and methodologies, encompassing surveys, interviews, reviews, comments, ratings, & analytics. As well, this feedback must be rigorously validated and cross-referenced with project data & goals, achieving a harmonious equilibrium.

I would add that a company's ability to act upon user feedback and preferences quickly is even more important than capturing the information. Gathering customer feedback is pointless if it does not lead to an actionable change. It's how you drive improvements to the consumer experience, products, and services and ultimately build trust and loyalty. Too often though, organizations struggle with agility: many internal layers, a complex bureaucracy, lack of dedicated resources, etc. end up limiting the ability to pivot and achieve real customer closeness.

Addressing common conflicts in digital strategy is crucial for a successful outcome. These conflicts often involve stakeholder misalignment, resource constraints, technology integration challenges, user feedback discrepancies, and the balance between innovation and optimization. To resolve these conflicts, establish clear communication among stakeholders, define project scope, and manage expectations. Allocate resources carefully, prioritize tasks, and remain adaptable. Balancing these conflicting demands is a challenge in any digital strategy, and it necessitates thoughtful resource allocation and clear communication about priorities.

In the world of digital strategy, there's often a tug-of-war between "Innovation" and "Optimisation." It's like deciding whether to explore exciting new possibilities or fine-tune what's already working. To tackle this, first, clarify your goals: Are you aiming for fresh innovations or streamlined efficiency? Then, allocate your resources accordingly. ????????????????, ??????????????, ?????? ????????-???????????? ?????????????????? ?????? ???????? ?????? ?????????? ????????! It's about balance and aligning your efforts with your overarching objectives!

User Innovation & optimization are both essential for the success of a digital strategy, but they can also compete for resources & attention. To strike the right balance between the two, it is important to align them with the goals & needs of the project, & to foster a culture of experimentation & learning. It is important to measure & evaluate the results and impacts of both goals. It's worth noting that conflicts can arise. Innovation often involves taking risks, trying new approaches, & embracing uncertainty, which can divert resources & attention from optimization efforts. Balancing these conflicting demands is a challenge in any digital strategy, & it necessitates thoughtful resource allocation & clear communication about priorities.

Balancing innovation and optimization in digital strategy is pivotal. Think of optimization as fine-tuning an engine for peak performance, while innovation is its upgrade for efficiency. Limited resources pose the question: refine or reinvent? The solution hinges on your strategy's lifecycle. Early phases require innovation, mature stages lean on optimization. Allocate resources for experimentation, allowing for exploration without jeopardizing core pursuits. Often, refining a strategy sparks innovation, and vice versa.

Digital strategy isn't just about tech; it's about understanding people in a digital world. Put yourself in your users' shoes to really get what they're doing. Stay curious, because the digital world is always changing. Make sure your decisions are based on data, but don't be afraid to be creative. Get people from different departments working together—different perspectives can lead to great ideas. Be flexible and ready to change course when needed. Ethical considerations, especially around data privacy, are super important. And finally, make sure your strategy provides real value to users. The goal is to create a user-centered approach that works in the ever-changing digital landscape.

Resource Allocation Issue: Budget and manpower spread thin. Solution: Prioritize based on ROI and goals. Brand Consistency Issue: Varied brand voice across platforms. Solution: Establish clear brand guidelines. Data Interpretation Issue: Differing conclusions from data. Solution: Standardize interpretation processes. Platform Overlap Issue: Duplicate efforts on platforms. Solution: Define roles and content strategy. Adapting to Trends Issue: Chasing every new trend. Solution: Align trends with brand identity and goals.

Another conflicts that I think should be highlighted is, the struggle between diversifying digital channels and avoiding channels is REAL.. and we aware each platforms has its own strengths and being active on those platforms can boost our brand's visibility. My take on this, always do tests & experiments, see what's working and what's not, monitor and analyse the analytics & optimise the mix of channels.. On top of that, find out where your audience is, fine tune the messaging to walk them thru your funnel and keep them engaged with your brand.

Conflicts often arise from the clash between long-term vision and short-term results. Balancing immediate gains with the strategic goals that require patience and persistence can be a persistent challenge. It's crucial to strike a balance – maintain short-term performance while steadily advancing toward the long-term vision. Aligning KPIs with both objectives, fostering open communication, and cultivating a culture of adaptability can help resolve this tension. This approach ensures that short-term wins don't compromise the pursuit of the broader digital strategy, ultimately leading to sustainable success.

There's conflict around the AIDA model and it surrounds how non-linear it is. Awareness and Interest are the easier elements, but Desire is completely nonlinear. Its messy. Multi-directional and complex. The quicker we understand that and plan accordingly, the more effective we'll be.