Technological development in the new millennium has undergone an unprecedented acceleration. In recent decades the widespread diffusion of IT supports , ease of access to the network consumer habits have also changed.
To choose a good or service to buy, in fact, they have a virtual showcase that is always on, where they can compare products, reviews and prices. This is why it is essential for a company not to lose this Big chance, "bringing" your business (also) online with a corporate website.
The situation in Italy according to DESI
According l 'DESI 2022 edition (index of digitization of the economy and society), theItaly is placed at 18esimo place among the 27 Member States of the European Union, with regard to digitization rates, with a score of 49,3 compared to an average of 52,3.
Despite a slight improvement (in 2021 our country was in 20th position), there is still a long way to go. The annual report, which monitors the progress made by the EU in the digital field, in fact highlights how the percentage of digital specialists among Italian workers is still below average; furthermore, enrollment and graduation rates in the ICT sector are still modest.
With regard to SMEs, in particular, just over half (55%) of companies has a basic level in the adoption of digital technologies. This is still too low a percentage, especially if we consider that the EU has set a goal for which by 2030 "at least 90% of SMEs should have a basic level of digital intensity”.
A change of direction therefore seems necessary. The pandemic has certainly accelerated the digitization process of companies and public bodies, but it is necessary to continue to invest and enhance digitization interventions to reach European standards.
SMEs: how to digitize the company
Making your company smarter and more digitized is possible, although it requires some very specific steps. Among the most effective solutions there is for example the improvement of digital presence of the enterprise. In fact, many Italian companies have an almost minimal online presence and unfortunately lose many useful opportunities in terms of business growth.
How to fix? The first step consists inopen a website for your business: if you don't need to sell products online, a simple showcase site is sufficient, with basic information, portfolio and contacts. To create it, simply register the domain (i.e. the name you choose for the site) and rely on a hosting service (the "space" dedicated to the website). Once this is done, it will be appropriate to choose a Simple and intuitive CMS like WordPress, for example. They are on the web WordPress hosting guides and reviews very useful for orienting yourself among the various options available.
To make the most of the site's potential, the ideal would be to rely on experts marketing, capable of planning a long-term strategy to make the brand take off on the web. For some SMEs, the use of social networks, for example, appears to be fundamental, while for others a well-structured SEM/SEO strategy may be.
In addition to the digital presence, however, other equally crucial aspects must be considered. For reasons of practicality and safety, in fact, it will be appropriate to exploit digital technologies for a better availability and document protection. An example of this is the use of spaces cloud safe to store all sensitive documents and data managed by the company.
This change does not only involve the "intangible" apparatus of the company, but must also embrace the entire company workforce, i.e. the employees. From logistics to accounting, through order management and customer service, it will be appropriate train employees current and hire new professionals digital experts; alternatively, to optimize some specific aspects of the activity, external consultants can also be consulted.
Although it sometimes involves considerable costs, digitizing a company is a crucial investment that will also pay off in the long term, opening new and important channels for development and growth.
