SLN Web Interview: What is Digital Transformation?
Posted: Thu Dec 26, 2024 9:22 am
In this unprecedented period, a question arises: Is this the right time to organize your digital transformation ?
For many companies, this is becoming a priority, even a question of survival.
But concretely, what does this term mean?
We had the pleasure of interviewing Ludovic and Sébastien, founders of SLN Web , a B2B Digital Marketing and Sales Agency. They support companies in the performance of digital actions and business development.
Update on digital transformation:
1. First of all, tell us about yourself, your background?
Seb: I studied international business because the prospect of traveling france telegram data and getting to know new countries and cultures for work has always fascinated me. I had the chance to work in international business development in a few companies, I have very fond memories of it. I have always had a sales-consulting role in all my positions. I have mainly worked in SMEs related to digital.
Ludo: I created my first blog from a game console – the Dreamcast for those who are nostalgic – connected to a 56K modem. At the time, my mother screamed because not only was I making the telephone line unavailable (and yes, that's how the Internet was at the time) but also because, I quote, "I'll never make a career out of it". Suffice to say that my mother was very visionary... Since 2000, I have been experimenting and passing on absolutely everything I know to help companies improve their marketing and sales performance.
2. And your collaboration, how did it come about?
Seb: “Hello Ludo, how are you at work?” – The answers have very frankly never been a clear and massive YES.
For my part, it was the same. We had already said to each other on quite a few occasions that Seb on the business side and Ludo on the marketing side, it could make sense.
Ludo launched his Web Marketing agency in 2013. For my part, I started using web marketing tools in my Sales work in 2015. And when we talked about the tools we used together and understood that an alignment between Marketing and sales through processes and tools could make sense in many companies, we accelerated our exchanges. A little less than a year later, we started working together.
Ludo: Seb usually says that we met 10 years ago at university. The problem is that he's been saying it's been 10 years for 3 years Haha!
Seb summed up the trigger for our collaboration well. On my side, I was generating leads with my marketing actions but my clients were having trouble converting them. On the other hand, Seb had no problem converting but was having more and more difficulty finding prospects. This is where our association made sense.
Today, we support our clients from lead generation to conversion into revenue.
3. What does digital transformation really mean for today’s business leaders?
Seb: It's a term that is too often used wrongly. An example comes to mind: a former colleague left to work in a PR company. Cool for him! I took a look at the website of his future company and I saw the famous "digital transformation" in the "our services" section. A few months later, my former colleague explained to me that behind that there was campaign management for a Facebook page...
For me, digital transformation is about people, processes and tools.
Employees with digital skills and invested in transformation, documented marketing and sales processes and tools to automate everything. This pretty much sums up what we do for our clients: improving the skills of our clients, working on processes and implementing tools.
Ludo: Digitalization, there are those who talk about it and those who do it. As Seb says, it is not enough to invest in a tool to go digital. Digitalization, in my opinion, is a philosophy and an honorable objective: exploring new technologies to gain in productivity and competitiveness while improving the quality of life at work of employees.
4. You need to be consulted by companies of all sizes on this issue. On a very general level: which companies typically contact you? And what do they want to know?
Seb : There are several categories of companies that contact us. Some have already begun to think deeply about how they make marketing and sales work. This category of companies has generally understood that something is happening and that external help is needed to make the most of the possibilities linked to digital.
They want to understand a lot of things and above all not make mistakes in their strategic choices and the tools to use.
Ludo: I'm going to deviate a little from the question. If digital is not your top priority, if you don't see the commercial and human issues, don't contact us
Some companies that contact us have understood this well, it's great because we have a lot to offer them. Others call us because it's "fun" to work with us on these subjects: here, it's very frustrating because we don't find the requirement and the desire to question ourselves that are essential to obtain results.
5. What questions should you ask yourself before getting started?
Seb : Where do I want to go, what am I trying to accomplish, do I have the right resources internally and most importantly where am I starting from? We see quite a few companies that are “angry” with digital because they have spent a lot of time, energy and money for a very low or even non-existent ROI.
Taking action without taking the time for strategic thinking will either result in failure or in achieving results that cannot be reproduced.
Ludo: For my part, I ask 3 very simple questions to know if the project will be successful.
What are your numerical objectives? Without them, we cannot move forward.
What are your priorities? If there are 36, we will not move forward equally. Digitalization is an important business project, we cannot lead 50 of this caliber.
Are you ready to question yourself? If the company is not ready to hear no, then again, it will be very complicated. Digitalization means chaining experiments and adaptations. You have to be ready to deal with uncertainty.
6. Where should companies start with digital transformation?
Seb : We talk to a lot of prospects. Marketers and CEOs. We always listen attentively to their story with digital.
Those who tell us they are not successful all have one thing in common: they chose a tool before knowing what to do with it.
In other words, to start your digital transformation well, you need a digital strategy. The tools come next.
Ludo: The first thing to do is to co-construct the project with the teams. We see too many companies that call us and are ready to sign with us without even having spoken to the teams. Transformation means change. Employees will have to change their habits. If they do not participate in the discussions, the project will not go to completion or will take 3 times longer to complete.
7. What are the key stages of digital transformation?
Seb : It all depends on the maturity of the management teams and the people impacted, but overall we will find the following steps: Definition of a strategy, work on objectives, choice of tools, user training, change management, support for middle management and study of adhesion.
To anticipate the duration and intensity of these steps, we carry out analysis work and interviews with employees. We thus draw up a "digital capital" established at the beginning of the mission.
Ludo: Co-constructing the project with the teams is the starting point for defining a vision and shared objectives for all. Then analyzing the starting point and working on a documented strategy to reach the end point is essential. Then, everything is played out in the Human and the management of change.
8. What are the obstacles that generally block this transformation?
Seb : There are several elements that can block digital transformation. Denial, at the very beginning of the process, in other words the posture is that digital will not have an impact on the company.
Then comes the lack of vision on what digital can bring to a company.
The lack of leadership on such an important issue is highly damaging.
Ludo: If we don't talk about the budget which can be a brake for some companies, there is only one and Seb mentioned it: the lack of leadership. Digitalization cannot succeed if employees do not adhere to it. However, employees need one or more leaders to fully grasp the vision and scope. Our companies have many bosses, very few leaders. This is felt in the delays they are experiencing in this transformation.
9. What culture should be instilled within the company itself? How should it be approached?
Seb : Take your time. Time is a concept that varies enormously from one company to another. A large group wants a proposal quickly and signs 6 months later but wants results in 3 weeks because "you understand, we're behind schedule!"
Take the time to develop the teams’ skills. Take the time to maximize the teams’ buy-in to the project.
Transformations take time and we address this specificity from the first discussions with our prospects.
Ludo: For my part, I would say exchange. Without exchange, there is no digitalization. Information must circulate efficiently. It is crucial to promote communication to relieve tensions, doubts and frustrations. Feedback is also essential... In short, without exchange, we forget!
10. Has digital transformation accelerated as a result of Covid-19?
Seb : No, I don't think so. What has accelerated, however, is the implementation of "blow-up" actions and "short-term digital action plans". Thinking about a 2- or 3-year strategy must be done in a calm atmosphere. More generally, we don't intervene like firefighters on subjects that are so involving for a company.
Ludo: I'll be direct. With this damn virus, companies are realizing that life would be simpler if they were digitalized. 100% of companies are therefore trying things, in one way or another. Tomorrow, when all this is behind us, 99% of these companies will return to their outdated processes. Only 1% will have the will to dig into the subjects released under constraint.
11. Will the pandemic change the way we work?
Seb : Yes, more teleworking and more video conferencing but for us it doesn't change, we already do a lot!
Ludo: In the short term, no, I don't think so. For the reasons I mentioned earlier. What will change significantly, and I'm happy about it, is the way employees will approach their professional lives and attach more importance to their desires and expectations. More ambition, other vocations... And that will inevitably have an impact on management in the long term. Companies that adapt will see great opportunities appear. The others, those that already have trouble recruiting and retaining their employees because they still think that offering a contract and a salary
For many companies, this is becoming a priority, even a question of survival.
But concretely, what does this term mean?
We had the pleasure of interviewing Ludovic and Sébastien, founders of SLN Web , a B2B Digital Marketing and Sales Agency. They support companies in the performance of digital actions and business development.
Update on digital transformation:
1. First of all, tell us about yourself, your background?
Seb: I studied international business because the prospect of traveling france telegram data and getting to know new countries and cultures for work has always fascinated me. I had the chance to work in international business development in a few companies, I have very fond memories of it. I have always had a sales-consulting role in all my positions. I have mainly worked in SMEs related to digital.
Ludo: I created my first blog from a game console – the Dreamcast for those who are nostalgic – connected to a 56K modem. At the time, my mother screamed because not only was I making the telephone line unavailable (and yes, that's how the Internet was at the time) but also because, I quote, "I'll never make a career out of it". Suffice to say that my mother was very visionary... Since 2000, I have been experimenting and passing on absolutely everything I know to help companies improve their marketing and sales performance.
2. And your collaboration, how did it come about?
Seb: “Hello Ludo, how are you at work?” – The answers have very frankly never been a clear and massive YES.
For my part, it was the same. We had already said to each other on quite a few occasions that Seb on the business side and Ludo on the marketing side, it could make sense.
Ludo launched his Web Marketing agency in 2013. For my part, I started using web marketing tools in my Sales work in 2015. And when we talked about the tools we used together and understood that an alignment between Marketing and sales through processes and tools could make sense in many companies, we accelerated our exchanges. A little less than a year later, we started working together.
Ludo: Seb usually says that we met 10 years ago at university. The problem is that he's been saying it's been 10 years for 3 years Haha!
Seb summed up the trigger for our collaboration well. On my side, I was generating leads with my marketing actions but my clients were having trouble converting them. On the other hand, Seb had no problem converting but was having more and more difficulty finding prospects. This is where our association made sense.
Today, we support our clients from lead generation to conversion into revenue.
3. What does digital transformation really mean for today’s business leaders?
Seb: It's a term that is too often used wrongly. An example comes to mind: a former colleague left to work in a PR company. Cool for him! I took a look at the website of his future company and I saw the famous "digital transformation" in the "our services" section. A few months later, my former colleague explained to me that behind that there was campaign management for a Facebook page...
For me, digital transformation is about people, processes and tools.
Employees with digital skills and invested in transformation, documented marketing and sales processes and tools to automate everything. This pretty much sums up what we do for our clients: improving the skills of our clients, working on processes and implementing tools.
Ludo: Digitalization, there are those who talk about it and those who do it. As Seb says, it is not enough to invest in a tool to go digital. Digitalization, in my opinion, is a philosophy and an honorable objective: exploring new technologies to gain in productivity and competitiveness while improving the quality of life at work of employees.
4. You need to be consulted by companies of all sizes on this issue. On a very general level: which companies typically contact you? And what do they want to know?
Seb : There are several categories of companies that contact us. Some have already begun to think deeply about how they make marketing and sales work. This category of companies has generally understood that something is happening and that external help is needed to make the most of the possibilities linked to digital.
They want to understand a lot of things and above all not make mistakes in their strategic choices and the tools to use.
Ludo: I'm going to deviate a little from the question. If digital is not your top priority, if you don't see the commercial and human issues, don't contact us
Some companies that contact us have understood this well, it's great because we have a lot to offer them. Others call us because it's "fun" to work with us on these subjects: here, it's very frustrating because we don't find the requirement and the desire to question ourselves that are essential to obtain results.5. What questions should you ask yourself before getting started?
Seb : Where do I want to go, what am I trying to accomplish, do I have the right resources internally and most importantly where am I starting from? We see quite a few companies that are “angry” with digital because they have spent a lot of time, energy and money for a very low or even non-existent ROI.
Taking action without taking the time for strategic thinking will either result in failure or in achieving results that cannot be reproduced.
Ludo: For my part, I ask 3 very simple questions to know if the project will be successful.
What are your numerical objectives? Without them, we cannot move forward.
What are your priorities? If there are 36, we will not move forward equally. Digitalization is an important business project, we cannot lead 50 of this caliber.
Are you ready to question yourself? If the company is not ready to hear no, then again, it will be very complicated. Digitalization means chaining experiments and adaptations. You have to be ready to deal with uncertainty.
6. Where should companies start with digital transformation?
Seb : We talk to a lot of prospects. Marketers and CEOs. We always listen attentively to their story with digital.
Those who tell us they are not successful all have one thing in common: they chose a tool before knowing what to do with it.
In other words, to start your digital transformation well, you need a digital strategy. The tools come next.
Ludo: The first thing to do is to co-construct the project with the teams. We see too many companies that call us and are ready to sign with us without even having spoken to the teams. Transformation means change. Employees will have to change their habits. If they do not participate in the discussions, the project will not go to completion or will take 3 times longer to complete.
7. What are the key stages of digital transformation?
Seb : It all depends on the maturity of the management teams and the people impacted, but overall we will find the following steps: Definition of a strategy, work on objectives, choice of tools, user training, change management, support for middle management and study of adhesion.
To anticipate the duration and intensity of these steps, we carry out analysis work and interviews with employees. We thus draw up a "digital capital" established at the beginning of the mission.
Ludo: Co-constructing the project with the teams is the starting point for defining a vision and shared objectives for all. Then analyzing the starting point and working on a documented strategy to reach the end point is essential. Then, everything is played out in the Human and the management of change.
8. What are the obstacles that generally block this transformation?
Seb : There are several elements that can block digital transformation. Denial, at the very beginning of the process, in other words the posture is that digital will not have an impact on the company.
Then comes the lack of vision on what digital can bring to a company.
The lack of leadership on such an important issue is highly damaging.
Ludo: If we don't talk about the budget which can be a brake for some companies, there is only one and Seb mentioned it: the lack of leadership. Digitalization cannot succeed if employees do not adhere to it. However, employees need one or more leaders to fully grasp the vision and scope. Our companies have many bosses, very few leaders. This is felt in the delays they are experiencing in this transformation.
9. What culture should be instilled within the company itself? How should it be approached?
Seb : Take your time. Time is a concept that varies enormously from one company to another. A large group wants a proposal quickly and signs 6 months later but wants results in 3 weeks because "you understand, we're behind schedule!"
Take the time to develop the teams’ skills. Take the time to maximize the teams’ buy-in to the project.
Transformations take time and we address this specificity from the first discussions with our prospects.
Ludo: For my part, I would say exchange. Without exchange, there is no digitalization. Information must circulate efficiently. It is crucial to promote communication to relieve tensions, doubts and frustrations. Feedback is also essential... In short, without exchange, we forget!
10. Has digital transformation accelerated as a result of Covid-19?
Seb : No, I don't think so. What has accelerated, however, is the implementation of "blow-up" actions and "short-term digital action plans". Thinking about a 2- or 3-year strategy must be done in a calm atmosphere. More generally, we don't intervene like firefighters on subjects that are so involving for a company.
Ludo: I'll be direct. With this damn virus, companies are realizing that life would be simpler if they were digitalized. 100% of companies are therefore trying things, in one way or another. Tomorrow, when all this is behind us, 99% of these companies will return to their outdated processes. Only 1% will have the will to dig into the subjects released under constraint.
11. Will the pandemic change the way we work?
Seb : Yes, more teleworking and more video conferencing but for us it doesn't change, we already do a lot!
Ludo: In the short term, no, I don't think so. For the reasons I mentioned earlier. What will change significantly, and I'm happy about it, is the way employees will approach their professional lives and attach more importance to their desires and expectations. More ambition, other vocations... And that will inevitably have an impact on management in the long term. Companies that adapt will see great opportunities appear. The others, those that already have trouble recruiting and retaining their employees because they still think that offering a contract and a salary