Phygital technologies and environments for breakthrough innovation in customers' and citizens' journey. A critical literature review and future agenda

Abstract

Digital transformation is radically impacting on society and market by disclosing unexpected implications for scholars and practitioners. As enablers of a pervasive innovation process, digital transformation relies on different categories of digital technologies with a breakthrough profile. Among them, phygital arises as a promising topic defined as the use of technology to bridge the digital with the physical world with the purpose of providing a unique interactive experience for the user. Due the actuality of the issue, the literature on phygital is fragmented and far from a full understanding of its meaning and implications. Moving from these premises, our research attempts to analyse the current state of the debate about the promising role of phygital environment to identify how digital technologies are transforming physical world. At this aim, a critical literature review is performed to identify how the customer experience is undergoing a renaissance due to the Covid-19 pandemic that forced organisations to improve the customer experiences. Our findings allow to identify main trends in the academic debate as grouped into five main clusters, related to the adoption of phygital technologies for: i) Marketing and Consumers' Behaviour; ii) Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Urban Development; iii) Education and Learning; iv) Social issues and Politics; v) Technical and Legal Issues. These areas are linked together showing how the different phygital environments lead to the provisions of novel and immersive experience for customers involved into strategic industries such as retail, tourism and education. Directions for future research and management implications are finally provided.