Four Proven Ways To Attract Today's Tech-Savvy Consumers

Saturday, March 1, 2014

Tech-Savvy Consumers (NAPSA)—Perhaps the top trend affecting businesses todayis the accelerated adoption of digital technology by consumers. In fact, two-thirds of Americans own smartphones, spending 60 hours per week consuming content on them. Having modern technology can be a business differentiator. Upgraded technology sharpens your competitive edge in ways you maynot have considered. Here are four proven ways to attract new customers and stay relevant in today’s digital age. Invest in Technology Investing in your future success often meansbeing current with the latest technology. In fact, customers expect it. Sixty-two percent of consumers said they are likely to become a repeat customerof a business that uses modern technology. There is a myth that enterprisegrade technology requires a significant investment. Thereality is that today’s cloud-based technology is much moreagile andflexible, oftentimes requiring muchless investment and downtime due to potential on-premise hardwareissues. Adapt to a Mobile-First, Cloud-First World With the prevalence of smartphones and the demand to be always connected, businesses need to adopt a mobile-first, cloud-first technology strategy. Consistent, up-to-date technology lets businesses optimize responsiveness and maintain a customer service edge. The experience for employees becomes seamless, so they can be more productive and focus on important tasks. When employees can work across multiple platforms, studies have shown, there’s a 30 to 40 percent increase in productivity. For modern businesses, technology offers some new “secret weapons” for getting more customers. Embrace Security Basics Consumers expect their information to be secure. Whenit comes to cyber attacks, no businessis too small to be targeted, and sometimes, the biggest threats aren’t from hackers, phishers or viruses. They’re from everyday, lax business habits and accidents such as losing devices, choosing weak passwords, and e-mailing sensitive data and files. With a business technology suite such as Office 365, up-to-date spam and virus protection is built in to protect your important business information. Build Long-Term Relationships Winning customers today means staying connected. Savvy small businesses use cloud-based communications tools such as Microsoft Lyne and OneDrive to connect, coordinate and collaborate with customers, suppliers and employees through the latest cloud-optimized devices. In a Forrester study, 65 percent of small businesses that use smartphones to do business do so to collaborate with colleagues during customer interactions. Learn More For further facts, tips and trends about technology and business, go to www.aka.ms/modernbiz myths.

--- PHOTOS ---

File: 20190816-153811-20190816-153810-84344.pdf.jpg

--- FILES ---

File: 20190816-153810-84344.pdf