Dare to dream
Creating a website and digitizing processes may have seemed cutting edge at one time; but technologies have continued to advance, and retailers must keep up. Gerard Szatvanyi, an entrepreneur and founder of OSF Digital, a leading Salesforce partner, knows firsthand what it takes to remain on top (and not become obsolete) in today’s connected retail world. Global brands and companies of all sizes have turned to him, time and again, to help them through their own digital transformation journeys. Thanks to the expertise of Szatvanyi and his team, these retailers have been able to avoid the red. Better yet, they have built systems that support customer interactions and enable an integrated, experience-driven path forward.
What does it take to digitally transform? Szatvanyi is aware of the obstacles, and he doesn’t shy away from tough topics in the retail space, including the challenges surrounding stores and misunderstandings about remote work. Rather, in an approachable “around the fireplace” style, he extends his hand and invites readers to sit back with him and dream. After all, with the technologies available today, the possibilities are nearly endless. Szatvanyi points out that the starting line is not a budget review or the development of a to-do list. Rather, it’s a thinking exercise; a conversation, if you will, about what could be.
In his pragmatic way, Szatvanyi turns the complicated topic of digital transformation into easy-to-digest segments. What other strategy allows you to play video games for a few hours and try on headsets? Yet that’s exactly what Szatvanyi advises. Doing so can help readers understand the potential of these technologies. After engaging in up-and-coming channels, it’s often easier to imagine ways to use them to interact with customers. With personal examples and case studies sprinkled throughout, readers shift from thinking about new ways to live and work to seeing them in action.
Szatvanyi lays out:
• What digital transformation is
• How to be customer-centric
• Ways to create mobile experiences
• The purpose of on-the-ground stores
• How to engage in video
• Guidelines to give employees meaningful tasks
• Ways to reimagine remote work
• What to know about headless commerce
• How to target a niche market
• Why building a community matters
• How to capture data the right way
• Best practices for setting up teams and systems
After presenting concepts, Szatvanyi shares practical guidelines to weigh the costs and benefits of new implementations. The book maintains a focus on revenue generation and improved profit margins. In every chapter, Szatvanyi lists questions to help readers re-think their current practices and re-imagine their business. These takeaways make it easy for organizations, regardless of their available resources or budgets, to take steps forward. Readers will be inspired to start their own digital transformation journeys and lead their brands toward a bright, profitable future.
GERARD SZATVANYI is the founder and president of OSF Digital, a leading global commerce solutions and digital transformation company. Throughout his career as an entrepreneur and visionary, he has been a thought leader for the intersections of life and work, laying out trends and upcoming shifts in the tech industry. Szatvanyi is also the president and chief technologist at eSkill, the market leader in pre-employment testing which offers standard and customized hiring assessments. His first book, The Great Digital Transformation, guides readers through the steps to take to reimagine the way they interact with customers to enhance experiences, which can ultimately enable companies to improve their profit margins. Based in Hong Kong, Szatvanyi regularly travels the globe and shares his knowledge with up-and-coming entrepreneurs.
