This article was co-written with Alex Gheordanescu, co-founder and Managing Director, Augmentation X.

In the rush towards digital transformation, many organizations have left behind a crucial aspect, and that is stepping up their game in digital communications- the only link between them and their audience.

The priority seems to have been to set up one social media channel after another, forgetting that this is only one piece of the communications puzzle, and overlooking what happens next in the audience’s journey. Websites are flooded with text heavy and static content, and so do essential communications, all the way from newsletters to reports, which simply take the shape of a digital PDF.

Related: Infographic: Enhancing Leadership Communication

With over 4.9 billion internet users worldwide that consume digital content more than eight hours per day, digital became for organizations a battlefield for their audience’s eyeballs. And despite this tremendous consumption growth, the key metric that supports organizations drive their objectives keeps on decreasing, as audiences are dropping off content within the first 8-10 seconds.

The question that stands is thus how can brands and organizations change this, and thus stand out and engage their audience in a crowded digital space.

Effective communication was, is, and will always be a two-way street. Digitally, companies have been steering away more and more from this fundamental concept as one essential component is missing: interactions.

Audiences are spoken to instead of spoken with, leading them to jump from one communication piece to another in a split second. Here is where organizations are missing out opportunities to drive their objectives- if your audience doesn’t engage with your communications, they are likely to be engaged with someone else’s.

Related: Lost In Translation: Communication, Multiculturalism And The Middle East

Communications thus require a reset, and it means going back to the basics, by mimicking two-way interactions digitally. What we have seen so far in all our projects at Augmentation X (AGX) is that once an audience is given the chance to have relevant interactions, delve into areas that matter most to them, digital communications become a magnet that pulls audiences towards that company.

This applies for any type of business communications- not only for those directed towards customers and potential clients, but also informational business editorials focused on the wider audience or internal team bulletins.

It is no secret that it all begins with a search. 90% of consumers start their journey by looking up online a product or a service, which mostly leads them to a website. Yet again, websites are composed of various pieces of content aimed at informing, engaging and converting audiences, making them a valuable communications tool for any organization.

Related: Corporate Communications Will Never Be The Same Again (Thanks To Social Media)

However, they have mostly been neglected, and audiences land on text heavy, static and almost identical websites. On top of this, digital or screen fatigue is becoming quite common, and when we are presented with communications that look the same, it results in disengagement and dropouts.

Rethinking this important channel from scratch and transitioning towards digital experiences gives brands and organizations an edge in providing their audiences with memorable communications that keep them engaged. What companies need to remember is that engagement leads to returns.

With the rise of social media, vanity metrics have started to dominate the digital space and with a few exceptions it all became a game of following and likes. Not to say that these are not important- quite the contrary, as more awareness leads to having a stronger brand value. But as mentioned in the beginning, social media is essentially the first of many steps, so what happens next needs granular analytics that truly demonstrate the communications’ return on investment.

The more you know, the better the decisions and results.

Is it time to say goodbye to old ways of presenting digital communications? Just try to think when was the last time you came across a memorable piece of digital communications that captivated and engaged you, wanting to discover more and more- and you will have the answer.

Related: Why Local Knowledge Matters: The Importance Of Contextual Intelligence For Your Business