In this article, we will discuss hiring a certified digital consultant in Singapore, and the difference between a digital consultant, digital transformation consultant and digital marketing consultant, as well as a digital marketing agency.
First, if you are looking to hire any type of consultant, it is important to pick consultants that fit your needs. All consultants have their domain expertise and consulting focus.
For example, in the field of marketing alone, you can have consultants who are experts in:
- Strategy
- Digital Marketing
- Branding
- Marketing Communication
- PR & Media
- Advertising
- Events
- Research
Some consultants may have expertise across these sub-domains while some may focus on just one aspect of marketing. This is generally the case for all consulting fields, across industries.
WHAT IS A DIGITAL CONSULTANT?
In terms of a digital consultant in Singapore, the definition of a digital consultant can be quite broad. It can be a professional, most likely a certified digital consultant, who helps an organisation transform digitally from product innovation to customer acquisition to workflow processes to business operations and marketing. Ultimately, digital transformation should simplify processes and improve productivity and efficiency.
Digital transformation can be a disruptive process. That is why you need a digital transformation consultant who will help you through it. Not only can a consultant develop and implement a comprehensive digital strategy for your business, but he can communicate its value to your organisation’s leaders and outline what the benefits will be.
There are different types of digital consultants, such as digital transformation consultants and digital marketing consultants.
Study.com outlines the role of the digital transformation consultant as one who “seeks to enhance a company’s technical performance. These consultants do so by analysing a company’s infrastructure and finding gaps in service. They focus on not only increasing a company’s short-term performance but also meeting their long-term strategic objectives.”
One type of digital consultant is a digital marketing consultant who is more specific. This professional focuses on a digital marketing strategy and recommends which types of digital marketing fit into a business.
A consultant may or may not do the execution such as web development, SEO services, managing paid advertising campaigns and social media management etc. If the consultant does not do it, then the client will have to do it themselves or engage an agency. I explore the differences between a digital marketing consultant and a digital marketing agency in this article.
Forbes identified five market trends that are creating demand for digital consulting:
Design Appreciation – Exploring modern, ergonomic and visually creative design for products, packaging, workspace and marketing material (traditional and digital).
Visualisation and Analysis – Using analytical software applications that can quickly visualise data to find outliers, trends or patterns help business managers to identify problems or opportunities and make decisions.
Mobile Audience Growth – Designing content, apps and interfaces on mobile devices to advertise, engage, sell and service consumers.
Startup Entrants – Providing both front and back-office support to help transform processes and build new products.
Marketing Evolution – Bringing the right mix of design, technology, and brand expertise to build a holistic plan and then execute on it as campaigns unfold.
If you are specifically looking for a digital consultant in Singapore, you need to be clear what sort of digital consultant you want; one who knows how to digitally transform your business or a digital marketing consultant who knows how to market your brand on digital channels.
For example, at Evolve & Adapt, we are both certified strategy and digital marketing consultants. This combination gives us experience and expertise in advising on how to digitally transform your business and connect, engage, communicate, and sell to your customers. As hybrid marketers, we also ensure there is alignment between your offline and online business processes and marketing.
You can look for consultants by Googling and refer to review lists or search the Enterprise Singapore certified management consultant directory.
ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT GRANT FOR DIGITAL CONSULTANT IN SINGAPORE
If you are a Singapore company and are specifically looking for a digital consultant in Singapore, you may also want to seek one that is a certified management consultant so that you can tap on the Enterprise Development Grant (EDG).
The EDG, or sometimes erroneously referred to the EDG grant, can be used to help offset consultancy-related costs (SMEs up to 70%; non-SMEs up to 50% of qualified costs).
The EDG Singapore grant funds qualifying project costs namely third party consultancy fees, software and equipment, and internal manpower cost.
As announced at Supplementary Budget 2020, the maximum support level will be raised to 80% till to end of December 2020.
For enterprises that are most severely impacted by COVID-19, the maximum support level may be raised to 90% on a case-by-case basis.
You can read more about hiring an EDG-recognised digital consultant in Singapore here.
