Risks

A company that fails to manage the intersection of digital innovation and customer experience runs the following risks:

• Losing control of its brand since a number of influencers have the opportunity, on social media or elsewhere, to insinuate themselves between the company and its customers.
  
• Falling behind competitors since the bar for customer experience has been raised across industries. Companies can’t compete on features anymore. Traditional entry boundaries are disappearing as such companies as Amazon and Apple set the bar for customer experience across all industries, not just for the industries in which they compete.
  
• Failing to differentiate its brand from competitors who have effectively leveraged customer experience to change the way they interact with customers.

At the highest level, the greatest risks are commoditization and extinction.

Opportunities

A company that effectively manages the intersection of digital innovation and customer experience enjoys the following opportunities:

• The ability to differentiate their brands from competitors.
  
• The ability to create relationships with customers that competitors can’t duplicate.
• The ability to innovate in existing industries through the use of digital technology and leveraging superior customer experiences (e.g. ZipCar, Airbnb and Uber).
• The ability to sense and respond to customer needs quickly and accurately.
  
• The ability to increase their company's chances for survival in a rapidly changing world by creating a stream of new offerings that meet customer's real needs and desires.