Digital Transformation in Customer Experience (CX) and Social Media

Digital Transformation (DTN) and Social Media Use (SMU) are reshaping how firms pursue competitiveness and sustainability. Yet, their combined effects on Sustainable Business Performance (SBP)—particularly in emerging-market retail contexts—remain insufficiently explored. This study contributes to closing this gap by exploring how DTN and SMU jointly enhance SBP through interrelated organizational capabilities: Collaboration Networks (CNS), Service Innovation (SIN), Customer Experience (CEX), Organizational Resilience (ORE), and Competitive Advantage (CAE). A dual-method design was adopted. In Phase 1, twenty-three experts participated in a three-round electronic Delphi (e-Delphi) process, during which Fuzzy C-Means (FCM) clustering was used to refine forty-seven indicators and validate expert consensus. The integration of e-Delphi and FCM clustering introduces a novel approach to consensus validation, enhancing methodological rigor. In Phase 2, survey data from 982 Thai retail executives were evaluated employing Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The results revealed that DTN and SMU significantly improve SBP when mediated by SIN, CEX, and ORE. Specifically, SMU fosters CNS and SIN, whereas DTN strengthens CEX and CAE. Theoretically, this study integrates the Resource-Based View (RBV) and Dynamic Capabilities Theory (DCT); empirically, it provides rare large-scale evidence from Thailand’s retail industry; and practically, it positions DTN as a driving force behind innovation, resilience, and inclusive development consistent aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Purpose This research is the first to use bibliometric analysis to provide insight into the landscape and forecast the future of customer experience research in the banking sector. Design/methodology/approach We used bibliographic coupling and co-word analysis to delineate the existing knowledge structure after reviewing 338 articles from the Web of Science database. Findings The bibliographic coupling analysis revealed five key clusters: customer engagement and experience in digital banking; customer experience and service management; customer experience and market resilience; digital transformation and customer experience; and digital technology and customer experience—each representing a significant strand of current research. In addition, the co-word analysis revealed four emerging themes: customer experience through AI and blockchain, digital evolution in banking, experience-driven ecosystems for customer satisfaction, and trust-based holistic banking experience. Practical implications These findings not only sketch an overview of the current research domain but also hint at emerging areas ideal for scholarly investigation. While highlighting the industry’s rapid adaptation to technological advances, this study calls for more integrative research to unravel the complexities of customer experience in the evolving digital banking ecosystem. Originality/value This review presents a novel state-of-the-art analysis of customer banking experience research by employing a science mapping via bibliometric analysis to unveil the knowledge and temporal structure.

Aim: This study examines the extent of readiness of Nigeria construction firms toward digital transformation within the study area.
 Study Design: It was a survey research, questionnaires containing information relating to digital Technologies, trend and transformation were administered randomly to selected construction practitioners in Anambra State, Nigeria.
 Place and Duration of the Study: The study was conducted in Anambra State, Nigeria for a period of 6 months.
 Methodology: A total of 84 questionnaires were administered to selected respondents; 80 copies were completed, returned and found useful, thus, giving a response rate of 95%. Data collected were analysed and presented using mean, percentages, relative importance index (RII), bar charts and pie charts.
 Results: The study found out that 63% of construction professional is satisfied with their firm readiness to digital transformation. However, the application of digital technologies skills and its transformation in the study area is still at foundation level. The use of mobile and social technologies (83%), entrepreneurship (73%) and Customer experience & strategic thinking (59%) are common in the study area while InMemory Databases skills (36%), Cloud Computing (39%) and Big Data Analytics (44%) are rare. Furthermore 35%, 53% 1% and 11% of the firms are planning to kick up digital transformation, undergoing some forms of digital transformation, attained or don’t see the need for digital transformation respectively.
 Conclusion: The study was concluded by recommending that construction practitioners should be properly sensitised on the need to understand and conceptualise on how digital transformation and technology will impact construction processes & activities and ability to manage or work within digitally-savvy environments.

The relationship between social media and brand experience remains unclear in spite of the strategic importance of social platforms in marketing. To narrow this gap of knowledge, this paper addresses three research objectives: first, defining what is brand experience on social media. Second, explaining how does brand experience come to life on social media? And, third, understanding how do social media create a brand experience. A set of propositions that comes from sense-making, marketing, and cognitive literature suggests that (a) brand experience on social media is the bundle of brand associations to attributes, emotions, or sensations that result from a sense-making process by which a consumer gives meaning to brand-related content consumption or creation on social media; (b) consumer encodes, stores, and retrieves brand experiences for declarative memory as brand associations to attributes, emotions, or sensations; (c) social media may trigger brand experience creation; however, these media may have challenging effects for brand experiences management (e.g., make difficult the creation of long-term brand experiences). Such a conceptual understanding of the role of social media at customer experience creation, paired with a set proposition for empirical work, provide a guide to future research into this field.

The relationship between social media and brand experience remains unclear in spite of the strategic importance of social platforms in marketing. To narrow this gap of knowledge, this paper addresses three research objectives: first, defining what is brand experience on social media. Second, explaining how does brand experience come to life on social media? And, third, understanding how do social media create a brand experience. A set of propositions that comes from sense-making, marketing, and cognitive literature suggests that (a) brand experience on social media is the bundle of brand associations to attributes, emotions, or sensations that result from a sense-making process by which a consumer gives meaning to brand-related content consumption or creation on social media; (b) consumer encodes, stores, and retrieves brand experiences for declarative memory as brand associations to attributes, emotions, or sensations; (c) social media may trigger brand experience creation; however, these media may have challenging effects for brand experiences management (e.g., make difficult the creation of long-term brand experiences). Such a conceptual understanding of the role of social media at customer experience creation, paired with a set proposition for empirical work, provide a guide to future research into this field.

The effectiveness of digital transformation provides an improved customer experience depends on several factors including infrastructure preparation, strategic adoption and makes the social media influences for customer views. The current study aims to investigate the level of social media and digital transformation affect B2B client satisfaction and involvement along with the challenges and possibilities that they use in the Sudan's ICT sector. Data were collected from 278 ICT experts in Khartoum to determine the level of digital transformation adoption and to the result connects to B2B customer experience. The results show that while the majority of ICT businesses are rapidly implementing digital transformation systems, infrastructural, labor force preparation and capital access limitations limit overall implementation. It also reveals social media platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn have a major impact over consumer views and commitment to a company. The study verifies current theories such as the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), Dynamic Capabilities Theory and Diffusion of Innovations Theory provides actual proof suggests the achievement of digital trans-formation based on requirement and strategic planning for the B2B client. This research focuses on digital transformation within the system of Sudan's ICT industry and also provides data on businesses can utilize the possible benefits of social media in developing B2B customer interactions. This will help Sudanese ICT enterprises function in the virtual world, encourage innovation and increase consumer satisfaction with increased interdependent global economy.

Despite the rapid growth of digital transformation in Indonesia, many firms still face challenges such as limited digital literacy, unequal infrastructure, and high implementation costs, which hinder their ability to fully leverage technology to enhance customer experience and achieve a competitive advantage. Drawing on Dynamic Capability Theory, this research examines how digital transformation initiatives influence competitive advantage through enhanced customer experience in the context of a developing economy. The data for this research were collected using an online questionnaire of 350 managers and business leaders from Indonesian companies that have implemented digital transformation initiatives. The sampling criteria included companies with at least one digital transformation initiative implemented in the past two years and respondents with direct involvement in digital transformation programs. Using structural equation modeling for analysis, this study’s results reveal that digital transformation positively influences both directly and indirectly to competitive advantage through customer experience mediation. The findings of this study indicate that customer experience takes a significantly mediating role in translating digital transformation efforts into competitive advantages. Furthermore, the research demonstrates that despite implementation challenges in developing countries, companies can successfully leverage digital transformation to enhance their competitive position through improved customer experience.

This study examines the impact of digital transformation on brand engagement in developing economies, using Coca-Cola’s online platform strategy in Nigeria as a case study. The research focuses on three key dimensions of digital transformation: social media and digital communication, digital technology adoption, and digital customer experience, and how these influence consumer engagement in a digitally evolving marketplace. A quantitative survey design was adopted, and data was collected from 380 respondents through structured questionnaires distributed across urban centers in Nigeria. The data were analyzed using SPSS, employing descriptive statistics, reliability tests, correlation, and multiple regression analysis. Findings reveal that all three dimensions of digital transformation significantly and positively influence consumer engagement, with digital customer experience having the strongest effect. The study concludes that digital platforms are vital tools for brand-consumer interaction and loyalty development in developing economies. Coca-Cola’s strategic use of social media, technology-driven services, and customer-centric digital experiences has enhanced its consumer engagement in Nigeria. The study recommends that brands in emerging markets invest more in personalized digital experiences, adopt scalable technologies, and leverage social media for effective brand communication. This research contributes to the growing literature on digital marketing and consumer behaviour in emerging economies, providing practical insights for multinationals and local businesses seeking to strengthen customer engagement through digital transformation.

Digital transformation has a potential to deliver numerous values for an organisation through transforming its business models, organisational processes, products and services, and customer engagement. Such a transformation assists organisations to create new capabilities to better serve customers, leading to the improvement of customer experience. As a result, numerous organisations have been investing in digital transformation in today’s dynamic environment. There is however, lack of a comprehensive framework for facilitating the implementation of digital transformation in organisations towards improving customer experience. This paper develops a capability based framework for digital transformation in organisations with respect to improving customer experience. Such a framework consisting of analytics, business, customer, and digital is developed through a thematic analysis of qualitative data collected from digital transformation experts in an organization in Australia using semi-structured interviews. The paper contributes to digital transformation research by the development of a capability framework for better understanding digital transformation in organisations related to the improvement of customer experience.

This research aims to investigate the impact of digital transformation on the operational efficiency, customer experience, competitive advantage, organizational performance, and risk management in Jordanian Islamic banks. A descriptive analytical method was used, collecting primary data from a survey of 68 employees across four Islamic banks. Statistical tools, including linear regression and correlation, were used for data analysis and hypothesis testing. The findings revealed that digital transformation significantly influences the operational efficiency, competitive advantage, customer experience, organizational performance, and risk management of Islamic banks at a significance level of α ≤ 0.05. While digital transformation generally enhanced operational outcomes and customer experience, it also increased exposure to risks such as electronic attacks, fraud, and privacy concerns. The results highlight the importance of integrating digital transformation in Islamic banking while employing robust risk management strategies. These findings provide insights for policymakers, bank managers, and researchers in formulating strategic initiatives for digital transformation in the banking sector. The research contributes to the literature by focusing on the role of digital transformation in Islamic banking, a less-explored area in academic studies. This research also presents valuable implications for practice, specifically for banks and regulators to balance the potential of digital transformation with the associated risks.

Customer experience (CX) is currently the strategic enabler for business-to-business (B2B) firms in today’s fast-changing digital economy. This study examines the synergistic impact of digital transformation (DT) and social media engagement (SM) on CX performance in Sudan’s information and communication technology (ICT) industry. Drawing on TAM, Sociotechnical Systems Theory, and Customer Experience Management theories, the research employs a mixed-methods design, collecting data from 231 questionnaires and 47 interviews in Khartoum’s digital hotspots. Quantitative results demonstrate that DT is a significant driver of operational effectiveness and mediates the SM–CX relationship, enhancing engagement and satisfaction when strategically used. Qualitative findings pinpoint leadership gaps, competency deficiencies, and demographic differences as drivers of digital responsiveness. Grounded in a conceptual framework with demonstrated reliability (Cronbach’s Alpha = 0.884), the study provides ICT firms and policymakers with pragmatic prescriptions, convergent digital solutions, inclusive skill development, and customer-focused innovation to support sustainable development in emerging economies.

This has changed in the digital age, where social media is no longer seen as a tool of communication, but rather it has become a transformation factor that is transforming how organisations innovate and redesign their business processes. The review paper discusses the complex influence of social media on digital innovation and transformation of business processes based on the strategic importance of social media in facilitating agile, data-driven and customer-centric organisational ecosystems. Based on an integrative review of the existing research, the research paper summarises the ways social media platforms enable open innovation, promote collaboration, spread knowledge faster and democratise the generation of ideas via digital communities. The paper explains how social media analytics, artificial intelligence, and big data help in enhancing innovation potentials through providing real-time insights, predictive intelligence, and evidence-based decision-making. The review further examines how the business processes, especially marketing, customer relationship management, human resources and supply chain operations, are undergoing reengineering with the integration of social media, which is facilitating the firms to respond with personalised digital experiences. Although these opportunities exist, the review marks various challenges, such as privacy concerns, overload of information, skills gaps, organisational resistance and reliance on a particular platform that could lead to barriers to beneficial transformation. The paper ends with future research directions highlighting the use of social media and emerging technologies, including AI, IoT, blockchain, and the metaverse, to provide future directions for further digital transformation. On balance, the study offers a detailed insight into the role of social media as an agent of digital innovation and the transformation of the business process that allows organisations to be competitive in a constantly evolving technological environment. Keywords: Social Media, Digital Innovation, Business Process Transformation, Social Media Analytics, Open Innovation, Digital Transformation, Emerging Technologies

Purpose: In India, the insurance industry has grown rapidly in the last decade, introducing many innovative products. India's insurance industry is vital to the country's economy. Digital Transformation have a drastic impact on the Insurance sector. Digitization results in future innovative designs and launch innovative products which help insurance companies and the customers. Digital innovation is transforming the way how the insurance companies work with industries by integrating IoT devices with health insurance which will also benefit the customers. In this paper, we will analyze and understand how HDFC ERGO has implemented digital transformation that has enhanced operational efficiencies and completely transformed service deliveries and customer experience in the insurance industry. Objectives: To do analysis and review on the digital transformation in the insurance company and how it has impacted the operational efficiencies, service deliveries and customer experience. Design/Methodology/Approach: This company analysis was done by analyzing and referring different sources like online sources, such as websites, blogs, scholarly articles, web articles, and using Technology Analysis as a framework. Findings/Result: Digital transformation and how it impacts insurance company in terms of its operational efficiency, service deliveries and customer experience are discussed. Analysis done to find how the organization should stay ahead in implementing the digital technologies and how digital transformation helps the insurance industry to explore new technologies and provides innovative ideas to improve organizational efficiency Originality/Value: Based on the information and the data available, digital transformation and its impact in the insurance company in the current state is analyzed. Paper Type: A Case study analysis done on the digital transformation in the HDFC ERGO general insurance company.

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the use of digital technologies across small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), forcing firms to reorganize customer-facing activities under conditions of uncertainty, restricted mobility, and market disruption. This study examines how technology-enabled digital marketing supports customer experience and business continuity in SMEs during the COVID-19 period. Rather than treating digital marketing as a set of isolated promotional tactics, the paper conceptualizes it as an integrated system composed of digital platforms, customer data, analytics capabilities, and customer relationship processes. A conceptual review design is used to synthesize prior research on social media, customer relationship management, customer experience, digital transformation, and SME marketing. The study develops a framework showing how technology infrastructure, data-driven decision making, and coordinated digital touchpoints shape customer experience outcomes and support organizational resilience. The analysis suggests that SMEs benefit from digital marketing when technologies are aligned with customer relationship processes, when analytics are used to guide decisions, and when firms coordinate social media, web, mobile, and CRM activities as part of a unified system. The paper contributes by positioning digital marketing within a technology and systems perspective suitable for engineering and information systems discussions. It also offers practical implications for SME managers seeking to improve responsiveness, engagement, and continuity during crisis conditions.

Technology, especially the internet, is becoming the main platform and source of learning, so students understand more about the internet and social media and this can be an experience they feel so that it is likely to be expressed on social media. Schools can see opportunities to be able to attract consumer attention with the existence of experience stories about their schools (Brand Experience) on social media through the behavior of students who write them. The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of private school Brand Experience antecedents and their consequences on the behavior of XYZ High School students on social media. The research methodology is quantitative with 196 XYZ school respondents in South Tangerang, the data obtained is processed with SMART PLS ver 3. The results obtained are evidence of the influence of antecedents, namely positive Brand Identification on Brand Experience, resulting in consequences of student behavior that tells good things and promotions about XYZ schools (Advocacy Intention and EWOM) on social media. Bahasa Indonesia Abstrak Pandemi covid 19 membuat pembelajaran di sekolah yang biasa secara tatap muka menjadi online, sehingga untuk melakukannya memerlukan pengetahuan tentang teknologi dan mengakibatkan adanya penyesuaian bagi siswa juga sekolah. Teknologi terutama internet menjadi platform dan sumber utama pembelajaran, jadi siswa tambah mengerti tentang internet dan media sosial dan hal ini bisa jadi pengalaman yang mereka rasakan sehingga kemungkinan dituangkan di media sosial. Sekolah dapat melihat peluang untuk dapat menarik perhatian konsumen dengan adanya cerita pengalaman mengenai sekolahnya (Brand Experience) di media sosial melalui perilaku siswa yang menuliskannya. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah ingin mengkaji pengaruh anteseden Brand Experience sekolah swasta dan konsekuensinya pada perilaku siswa SMA XYZ di media sosial. Metodologi penelitian ialah kuantitatif dengan 196 responden sekolah XYZ di Tangerang Selatan, data yang diperoleh diolah dengan SMART PLS ver 3. Hasil yang didapatkan adalah adanya bukti pengaruh anteseden yaitu Brand Identification yang positif terhadap Brand Experience sehingga menghasilkan konsekuensi perilaku siswa yang menceritakan hal baik dan promosi tentang sekolah XYZ (Advocacy Intention dan EWOM) di media sosial.