Why even worry about future-proofing your digital experience platform?

Many businesses think about investing in a DXP when they’re already experiencing problems with their digital marketing strategy. Others have decided to invest heavily once as a commitment to future-proofing their marketing, often choosing a vendor they’re familiar with rather than looking for key features.

Unfortunately, those common scenarios are part of the reason why those users don’t have a long-term strategy on their radar, which leads to additional investments and patchy solutions down the road. They treat content management systems as a matter of cost, not potential revenue, let alone productivity or agility gains.

Nobody can look into the future, of course, but implementations that are solely chosen based on a current pain point rather than a detailed strategy typically run into a few issues early on:

• Lack of flexibility doesn’t allow for new tools.

• Teams can only work on projects sequentially, not in parallel.

• Editors can’t easily reuse components, even for a related article.

• Systems don’t scale well with operations.

• Patchy solutions lead to additional investments.

• Uncoordinated strategies result in missed opportunities.

• Unnecessary gathering of personal information without tangible customer benefits.

Your enterprise hierarchy will differ from your competitor’s, and that means that different departments will be involved in the decision to invest in software solutions. When you hardly include anyone from editorial or technical teams, consolidation becomes increasingly important. That could be because those decision makers prioritize cost above all else, but it could also be because they feel more comfortable trusting a big brand name.

While cost and vendor support are obviously important, the perspective on cost alone often blocks the view on factors like long-term compatibility and growth. Considering how increasingly fast industries and production workflows are changing, the ability to integrate future tools will always trump any initial benefit the one-size-fits-all platforms promised.

Obviously, every industry is different, and we can’t tell you how to run or restructure your business. However, we do see that more agile operations tend to perform better in today’s climate. So, if you don’t feel comfortable installing someone in a mediator role within your company, maybe you could rely on an external partner to coordinate your multi-vendor strategy. That single shift will future-proof your business more reliably than any software feature could.

Which key components make a composable DXP future-proof?

It’s clear that a composable DXP isn’t simply better because it can “do more.” It doesn’t include a wider array of features because that philosophy no longer reflects the needs that today’s market demands. Instead, it lets you flexibly adapt to even the most unpredictable developments.

So, if you can’t use feature lists for guidance, what do you need? Here’s what to look out for in a composable DXP:

Modular architecture

The foundation of a future-proof DXP is its modular design, which allows for flexibility in selecting and integrating specific functionalities. Your DXP should enable integration with various packaged business capabilities that cater to different operational needs, such as content management, customer relationship management (CRM), and analytics.

Seamless integration

Your service center may be pleased with your CRM tool today and simply outgrow it tomorrow. That’s not a sign of a bad tool; it just means that every software comes in different flavors for various industries and company sizes. However, as your business grows, the ability to switch services and integrate new ones becomes critical. A composable DXP should help you synthesize all your customer and marketing data in one place.

Multi-site and multi-tenancy support

Addressing multi-site scenarios with several business branches or websites means that your DXP needs to offer capabilities that can streamline and consolidate complex content management workflows. If you’ve already solved a formatting issue for one business, you shouldn’t have to go through the same struggle for every other website or customer segment. Composable DXPs will let you replicate those changes quickly to save time and resources.

Scalable infrastructure

To accommodate business growth, consider the infrastructure choices it allows you to make. Some vendors may limit your cloud storage options, whereas truly flexible solutions will even let you combine several providers. This ensures that expanding into new markets doesn’t disrupt your existing operations and that you can easily fine-tune your setup based on local governance and compliance requirements.

Vendor support

Ensure that your DXP vendor offers the level of support you require and that your own staff or other service providers can cover what they don’t offer. That doesn’t apply to the initial setup phase but also to ongoing maintenance. Once you’ve covered technical skills, you may want to consider availability, either in terms of weekdays or communication channels. For some vendors, including Magnolia, support will also include regular penetration testing or support during launch phases.

Based on those features, it’s becoming evident that the role of a mediator is growing in importance for future business. To get the most out of your DXP, someone needs to mediate between different components and technical requirements without being responsible for content marketing projects. That way, you can easily switch between a setup with 3 and 5 CRM systems without slowing down day-to-day operations.

Watch out for these features for a seamless customer journey

It’s only natural to seek a DXP that offers a seamless customer journey. However, it can be challenging to fill that vague goal with meaning, and the ramifications of a poor platform choice often only emerge over time. Users may adapt to inefficient workflows that force them to complete tasks one at a time rather than concurrently, hindering productivity.

We can see this frequently occurring in manufacturing, where companies jump on the hype cycle of artificial intelligence and machine learning. Yes, those technologies can help these enterprises gain valuable insights into their operations. However, a lot of them haven’t even completed the small steps of updating their machines or supply chain services, let alone gathering customer data. So they’ve got all the brain power in the world and hardly any machine to talk to the algorithms.

At the same time, it’s not uncommon for consultants to encounter clients so constrained by a prior large investment that they suspend further technological investments. In some cases, their policies may even prevent them from investing in additional software for several years, which then stymies their response to market changes and harms their business even further.

To future-proof your digital strategy, ensure that your DXP includes the following essential elements:

• Scaling options: Look for a platform that grows with your business needs, whether you’re expanding across regions or managing multiple websites.

• Easy integration: Your platform should seamlessly integrate with the latest technologies, allowing you to stay ahead in the digital space.

• Governance, security, and compliance: Robust features in these areas ensure that your operations align with regulations and protect your and your customers’ data.

• Long-term customer success: Your chosen DXP should be an ally in your journey, supporting your goals and adapting to your evolving requirements.

The right DXP can revolutionize your approach to content marketing and customer service, whether that’s through integration capabilities or artificial intelligence workflows while the wrong choice may leave you with cumbersome and clunky workflows of yesteryear. Always try to envision your long-term business objectives to deliver the best customer experience possible.

Best practices to implement DXPs for personalized experiences

Big suites focus on all the bells and whistles your team has to learn to even handle their software. Composable DXPs focus on effectively leveraging data you already have to enhance user engagement and ensure each interaction is tailored and impactful. That said, there’s still an endless array of tools and platforms claiming to be composable. So, how do you choose, and who on your team should be responsible for doing so?

As we’ve seen, this task requires the interdisciplinary perspective of someone capable of mediating between technical features and various vendors, with the flexibility in mind to choose multiple ones if necessary. That integrator needs to know about the DXP itself, but they also have to be familiar with DevOps and your overall infrastructure.

Once you’ve chosen this path, you’ll recognize that the previous notion of having to select one vendor for your cloud storage or CRM doesn’t apply anymore. The initial investment in an integrator will transform your entire business setup and software strategy more fundamentally than any single software platform ever could.

Naturally, you should also ensure that reliable policies and governance models are in place so your teams can benefit from clear responsibilities. That streamlines your teams’ workflows from a technical perspective but also helps you illustrate the business value of your initial investment over time.

Let’s say you’re responsible for a multi-brand setup and plan to push out a new update across multiple sites to comply with a recent local regulation. In those scenarios, your DXP should enable you to repurpose at least some components for different brands, websites, and regional markets. This may sound trivial at first, but it’s crucial to understand the hidden cost benefits of truly composable solutions.

Yes, consolidation will save cash on paper (at first). There’s no doubt that using one tool is cheaper than using two. However, once you realize that your chosen solution can’t keep up with editorial workflows or technological developments, your company will lag behind. If every editor takes an extra 10 minutes to polish the latest blog post or newsletter, you’re slowly eating away at your initial cost savings while neglecting the personalized digital experience modern customers expect.

Therefore, it’s best to notice those seemingly tiny inefficiencies early, poll your team, and define a strategy based on flexibility, not ego. It may seem like the safe choice to pick the tool that can “do it all,” but it doesn’t reflect your marketing team’s daily needs. Choosing a tool that adapts to editors’ typical workflows will give you a competitive edge, save money, and future-proof your business.