Composable DXP: The key to faster time-to-market for the modern enterprise

Highlights

You’ll learn how a composable DXP accelerates time-to-market by:

• Offering modular, API-driven architecture for rapid deployment
• Enabling parallel teamwork on separate modules
• Facilitating content reuse across channels and projects
• Allowing easy integration of new technologies for quick adaptation to market shifts

How fast a business can get updates and new products in front of their customers can make a huge difference. To do so, you need to respond to many factors, such as new technologies, market shifts, competitive pressure, etc. Hence, the first to launch a new product may get a stronger grip on market shares and profits.

This is why organizations work so hard to reduce time to market. Technology plays a key role from conception to product launch. This is where a composable DXP comes into play. It offers agile, flexible, and scalable tools that can speed up time to market.

Introduction to composable DXPs

A composable DXP allows you to select the best-in-class tools, integrate and pay for only what you need, mix and match technologies, and seamlessly publish to multiple channels at scale.

As your business grows, you can add new features to cater to a new market or customer segment. The typical architecture of composable DXPs includes;

• Modular design: Enables businesses to select only relevant components
• API-first approach: Supports interoperability and allows seamless interaction between modules and services
• Microservices: A collection of small, independent services, each of which is responsible for a specific business function
• Headless solution: Headless CMS that separates content from presentation and uses APIs to deliver content to any channel

Benefits of faster time-to-market

Businesses must ensure quality does not suffer while they work to reduce time-to-market. Aside from the ROI and market share benefits, a faster time-to-market also helps businesses in many ways, as follows:

• Higher revenue: A faster time-to-market implies that you are delivering customer expectations on time. This can lead to revenue gains for the business.
• Lower costs: You incur lower costs when you spend less time in the costly development stage.
• Potential higher market share: A faster time-to-market can give you a headstart in the competition for market shares.
• Improved customer experience: The faster customers get new products, the faster they get value. That improves their experience, which then leads to repeat business. 

So, what role does a composable digital experience platform (DXP) play in these?

Accelerating time-to-market with composable DXPs

A composable architecture saves time, as different teams can, for instance, work on separate modules simultaneously and reuse content with ease. They can also integrate with new technologies via APIs to ensure that product development moves quickly. Here are other ways a composable DXP can enhance time to market.

• Flexibility and scalability: A composable DXP is built from the ground up, allowing you to select digital solutions that support product development. This allows you to reduce vendor lock-in, innovate, and meet your customers' dynamic needs. 
• Rapid deployment and iteration: A composable DXP allows you to deploy each module independently, without reconfiguring the entire platform. This leads to faster testing, iteration, and deployment cycles.
• Easy integration of new technologies: With its modular design, you can plug into the latest technology on the fly. You can do so without slowing down the process if you need to improve your product during its development.
• Content reuse: You do not need to create fresh content for every new project. You can repurpose existing content for new channels and projects. That saves time and resources and allows you to speed up projects.

How a composable DXP improves business agility and ROI

With modular components, you can add required upgrades and improve on existing projects. So, businesses get to adapt to change faster, iterate faster, and release products faster. Here is a deeper look at how it happens.

• Adapting to market shifts: Composable digital experience platforms (DXPs) allow you to quickly adapt and respond to market and tech shifts. They allow you to stay in tune with customer needs and industry trends and support innovation.
• Cost-effective of modular solutions: Businesses invest only in digital solutions that deliver the most value. That leads to cost reduction and better output.
• Future-proofing: Businesses can integrate new technologies without deploying too many IT resources or overhauling their entire system.
• Efficient customer data management: Composable DXPs provide tools to unify data across platforms. So, businesses always have the most up-to-date data, allowing them to update products and deliver timely personalized content, services, and experiences.
• Integrating with existing tech stack: Composable DXPs are designed to integrate with existing systems. So, when developing a product, you can integrate a new technology or solution that helps improve its quality and speed of delivery.

Case study

Golfbreaks

Golfbreaks was seeking to solve user experience and content publishing challenges using AI. Editors were spending too much time on product descriptions, slowing down bookings and revenue. They also wanted an automated process to categorize listings to make it easier for customers to find products.

Golfbreaks attended Contentstack’s AI Accelerator program and learned how the AI and automation solutions offered the solution. Along with the headless CMS, Golfbreaks opted for Contentstack's Automate and Brand Kit solutions. 

With these solutions in place, they reduced time-to-market(TTM) by 78% and saved up to 7 hours each week. They also delivered a more consistent user experience and have since been using AI to solve their business challenges.

Hear from Jack Simkins, the Digital Product Owner. "Contentstack’s AI Accelerator program has been an excellent asset to the business. We’re excited to share the results and to explain what the technology can do, and make use of functionality that we didn’t previously have. The time saved will help the marketing team tenfold. It’s been a breath of fresh air working with people who have deep subject-matter expertise and can ask the right questions that create real business results."

Keep reading to learn how Golfbreaks leverages Contentstack’s AI Accelerator to achieve 78% faster time-to-market.

Implementing a composable DXP strategy

Although many processes go into implementing a composable strategy, we summarize them in four main steps, as follows.

1. Assess the current tech stack: Before you go composable, assess your current tech stack to identify areas for improvement. 
2. Choosing the right components: Consider your business needs and goals. Check and ensure the modules are compatible. Also, evaluate vendors and consider their ability to offer open standards and the possibility of future integration to avoid lock-in.
3. Integrate and implement: Design a plan based on an API-first approach. Then, integrate the chosen modules. Pilot test the system and check integrations. Finally, proceed with the platform rollout.
4. Monitor and optimize the platform: After setting it up, ensure you monitor its performance. Manage vendors and make relevant adjustments as your needs change.

Best practices for integration and deployment

While a composable DXP strategy offers excellent benefits, how you implement it matters. Follow the best practices below to ensure a smooth transition and maximize its benefits. 

• Use a phased rollout approach to reduce any potential system disruption.
• Establish CI/CD pipelines to automate testing and streamline deployment.
• Create a backup and recovery plan to protect against data loss.
• Document and standardize APIs to simplify integration processes.

FAQ section

What is a composable DXP?

A Composable DXP is a SaaS digital experience platform that offers businesses the flexibility to integrate selected modular components that meet their business needs.

How does a composable DXP improve time-to-market?

A composable DXP enables rapid iteration, testing and deployment. Its modular design and API-first approach also allow teams to work in parallel on different parts of a project, saving time.

Why is modular architecture important in a DXP?

A modular architecture allows businesses to select and integrate solutions and services that best meet their needs. They are not tied to vendor solutions that add no value. Also, a modular design supports easy updates.

What are the main differences between composable and monolithic DXPs?

Composable DXPS are agile, flexible, and suitable for multiple digital channels. In contrast, monolithic DXPs are rigid, tightly coupled, and built mainly for web applications. They are also built around specific vendor solutions.

Learn more

Composable DXPs offer a flexible solution that allows teams to reuse content, work in parallel, and streamline workflows. Its modular design allows businesses to integrate the most suitable digital solutions for product development projects. You save time and release updates and products faster.

Contentstack empowers you to build your desired tech stack. Its MACH-compliant architecture saves you time and helps you achieve faster time-to-market. You work smarter, deliver quality products, and step ahead of your competitors. Talk to us today to go composable.