Digital Adoption

What is Digital Adoption?

Digital adoption happens when people actually learn to use software well enough that it becomes part of how they work. Not just clicking around the interface, but genuinely understanding what the tool can do and using it to get better results. The difference matters. Someone might log into a platform every day without ever touching the features that would save them hours each week.

When digital adoption really clicks, users stop seeing software as something they have to use and start seeing it as something that helps them. Effective change management can accelerate this shift. They find shortcuts. They discover features on their own. The tool fits into their workflow instead of interrupting it.

Here's the problem: most organizations struggle with this. Research suggests that poor digital adoption affects around 96% of companies, and only about 37% rate their employees' software adoption as excellent. Even more telling, the average core feature adoption rate across SaaS products sits at just 24.5%. That's a lot of unused capability sitting on the shelf.

Key Characteristics of Digital Adoption

• User-Centric Focus: It's about people, not just technology. How do users actually interact with the tool? What do they gain from it?
• Behavioral Integration: The software becomes a natural part of daily work, not something forced on people by management
• Value Realization: Success is measured by what users accomplish, not by how often they log in
• Continuous Process: Learning doesn't stop after the initial training session. People keep discovering features and building skills over time
• Performance Enhancement: When adoption works, productivity goes up and results improve

Digital Adoption Examples

Example 1: CRM Implementation in Sales Teams

A company rolls out a new CRM to its sales team. At first, reps use it mainly for logging customer info because that's what they're told to do. But real digital adoption kicks in when they start exploring on their own. They find the automated follow-up reminders. They play with pipeline forecasting. Someone figures out how to connect it to their email. Word spreads. Pretty soon, the whole team is using features that actually help them close more deals with less busywork.

Example 2: Project Management Software for Remote Teams

A distributed team starts using project management software. Early on, it's basically a shared to-do list. That changes when people realize they can get automatic notifications when tasks update, share files without hunting through email threads, and see what everyone else is working on. The tool starts showing up in standups and planning meetings. Fewer status update emails clog everyone's inbox.

Example 3: Documentation Platform for Customer Support

A support team gets access to a knowledge base platform. Initially, agents might skim it occasionally. Digital adoption happens when they start adding their own articles, fixing outdated information, and recording quick screen captures to show how things work. Good training documentation accelerates this process. The knowledge base becomes the first place they look when solving problems, not the last resort after asking three colleagues.

Digital Adoption vs Digital Transformation

These terms get tossed around interchangeably, but they're actually different things. Digital adoption is about getting people to use specific tools well. Digital transformation is a much bigger project that involves rethinking how an entire organization operates.

Here's the connection: digital transformation doesn't work if people don't actually use the new technology. Adoption is what makes transformation possible, and employee onboarding is often where the process begins. And the payoff can be significant. Organizations with strong digital adoption tend to see revenue increases of around 34%.

How Glitter AI Helps with Digital Adoption

Good documentation makes digital adoption easier. That's where Glitter comes in. Teams can record their screen while walking through a process, and Glitter automatically generates step-by-step guides from that recording. No more writing instructions from scratch or hoping people can follow a wall of text.

This kind of visual, contextual documentation helps users see exactly how features work. They're more likely to discover capabilities they'd otherwise overlook. And because creating guides is quick, teams can actually keep documentation up to date as software changes. That ongoing support is what separates initial "we rolled out the tool" from genuine, lasting adoption.