If you are already here you probably know all about the buzz around omni channel marketing. This approach has been around for a while. But the outburst of COVID-19 made it a go-to marketing strategy for many businesses. Until now, only exclusive brands managed to create an omni channel journey for their customers. With communication channels increasing, businesses find themselves busy with their presence – be it offline or online.
What is omni channel marketing
Omni channel is an entire shopping ecosystem and experience. It’s a strategy that businesses adopt to improve user experience and increase revenue. The idea is to create and serve multiple points of contact with clients. Creating a seamless connection between all those channels is the ultimate goal. All channels must be synched to cooperate rather than operate parallel to each other. They are seamlessly connected. This gives customers more flexibility and convenience. Omni channel marketing brings wider audience, higher customer satisfaction and more sales.
Omni Channel for seamless shopping experience
The ultimate idea behind omni channel marketing is to make shopper’s experience as easy as possible. This translates into consistent engagement no matter where or how shoppers interact with your brand. Integration is a key. Without it, this wouldn’t be omni channel, but simple multiple channel.
Omni channel example
What do we mean by seamless? Here is an example of a typical shoppers experience:
Your first encounter with a beautiful pair of shoes is on Instagram. You spot it on a post by your favourite Influencer. You search the brand and you start following them. After a while, for that same pair of shoes, you see a billboard announcing a sale. You go on the website to check it out. The price is discounted as the billboard promises and you are delighted. Your best practice for buying shoes is to try them first. So you check out the store closest to you on Google maps. While on the website, by checking availability, you make sure that the store you plan to visit has your shoe size. The next day you go and buy the pair of shoes that’s been on your mind for days.
Why adopt this strategy?
- Brands that adopt omni channel marketing strategy experience 90% higher customer retention rate
- 19% higher customer engagement rate
- 13% higher average order value comparing to brands using single-channel marketing
- Consumers purchase 250% more often when interacting on 3 different channels.
Stepping into modern customers’ shoes
To clarify, customers don’t just shop in-store. Even when they are in a store. They check alternatives with your competitors. They compare prices and choose the best option out there. Purchasing decision making is not that simple anymore. With all that offering, people want to be sure they are making the right choice. They check out online reviews, opinions of others on social media and compare prices of the same product on various platforms. As a result, if you are not available everywhere, you limit your exposure. This lack of presence contributes to hesitation about making the purchase.
The era of digital technology and social media brought a huge change in the retail environment. The wide use of mobile devices brings new opportunities when it comes to marketing and strategy. It’s no secret that consumers use physical stores to check out products. But at the same time they are actively searching for more elaborate information and reviews on their phone. And, of course, looking for better prices.
Certainly, omni channel is the perfect blend of traditional and innovative. An omni channel retailer keeps traditional advertising methods. That would be department stores, billboards, magazine ads, etc. But they also seamlessly incorporate innovative interactive channels. Such as social media, e-commerce store, email blasts, Yelp and more.
How to build omni channel strategy?
Needless to say, the process of building this strategy is massive and long. So we decided to outline the basics here. We will get more in depth about on this topic in a future post dedicated to omni channel strategy.
With today’s possibilities, omni channel strategy could include hundreds of channels. Therefore, it’s important to select the channels most relevant for your brand. Let’s face it, we can’t have presence everywhere. Simply, some platforms are not for everyone. If you sell unique fashion accessories, Etsy sounds like a great option, but GitHub doesn’t fit you at all. Once you select the channels you’d like to include in your omni channel strategy, make sure to have in mind the next steps as well.
- Create a map of your customers journey through all channels
- Connect all channels as strongly as possible
- Build a mobile friendly website
- Have a strong online presence across multiple social media platforms
- Create shoppable posts wherever possible
- Publish well designed content that’s relevant for each platform
- Pay attention to audience segmentation
- Invest in cross-channel customer care
- Ensure consistent information and product range everywhere
- Avoid mismatch of availability, prices, special offers
- Make sure that all channels compliment each other and build a vibrant seamless shopping journey
Multi channel vs Omni channel
Most businesses relied on multi channel strategy until now. The had various channels to connect with consumers. To name a few – physical stores, TV commercials, billboard advertisements. But those channels were not synched with each other. Meaning, if you saw a cute dress on a billboard, that didn’t mean you could find it in the store. That created frustration among customers. They didn’t receive the customer experience they were looking for.
Omni channel, on the other hand, ensures smooth customer experience across all channels. The shopping journey is easy and there’s seamless connection between all channels of communication. That cute dress on the billboard – you can also see it on Instagram in different colors; you can order it on the website with a few clicks; and if you happen to pass by a store – you can try it on.
The difference between multi channel and omni channel marketing is the level of message consistency. Omni channel makes sure to provide accurate and clear information. Because this brings customers closer to making a purchasing decision. It removes all obstacles that a client might encounter on their customer journey. Smooth journey converts with a higher rate. Shortly, that’s the main reason why today brands adopt a multi channel strategy.
Omni Channel Retailing
Omni channel retailing is definitely a buzz word you must have come across. Especially, since the pandemic started, massive number of brands dedicate their work to develop an omni channel strategy. Sales were always the focus of businesses. The commerce world is only getting bigger. When there is such big offering and competition, now the power belongs to customers. They have endless choices of products. Now they can be picky. Shopping is not only about the product. It’s a whole experience. That’s what omni channel retailing is all about. Creating the perfect and rich shopping experience.
What is omni channel retailing?
Also known as omni channel commerce, omni channel retailing is all about providing a seamless shopping experience for customers across many retail channels. With the possibility to sell on multiple platforms, the game is on. If before selling was only done in department stores, now brands can easily sell on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, on their website, on other brands’ websites, via Google Merchant, via Influencers, etc. The main focus is to sell seamlessly on all retail channels. This means no discrepancies of prices, descriptions, availability. The message is clear, synched and dedicated to provide a top-notch customer experience.
Omni channel retailing doesn’t mean you need to be everywhere. It means you need to be in all the places where your customers are. This is what sets apart exclusive brands on the market. Omni channel retailing provides customers a unified shopping experience across all channels and touch points.
How to establish your omni channel?
In the heard of a true and efficient omni channel is great organization. As this strategy is all about coherent information and approach, being organized is crucial. It requires a high level of efficient and fast communication between different channels.
- Internal organization – many businesses fail to achieve an omni channel because of internal power struggle and miscommunication. Make sure your internal organization is at a level that it could handle an omni channel. This is the solid base on which your strategy would depend
- Relevant channels – depending on your field and your audience, determine the channels that would be most beneficial for you. FInd out where your audience is. Then create a presence for your brand that resonates with them
- Coherence – relevant and updated information is a key. All channels must guide shoppers clearly and avoid misleading information. Synchronization between the channels is what this is all about.
- Analytics – as you’d have various channels and touch points with your customers, each separate channel needs to be analyzed and optimized. This is crucial for understanding good trends and taking advantage of them
- Strategic presence – ask yourself a few questions before taking a decision to act on any part of your omni channel plan . The answers would help you map out a strategy and help you look for results and progress later down the road.
- Why do I need to have an online presence on this specific channel?
- What results am I looking for?
- What does success look like?
- Shopper’s journey – map out the journey of your customers. The idea is to make is as flawless as possible so they’d easily make that purchasing decision
3 companies with flawless omni channel experience
Starbucks – let’s look at the reward programme of Starbucks. You get a rewards card that you could use anytime you make a purchase. To take this simple loyalty program to the next level, adding convenience makes a real difference. You can check and load your card from your smart phone, in-store, on the app or on the website. Every change to the card and the account is updated across all channels instantly. No discrepancies. This allows you to reload your card in the last minute before purchasing your morning coffee.
Disney – it’s no surprise that well known companies are navigating omni channel retailing the right way. Maybe that’s why they manage to be on top. Disney’s omni-channel experience starts with an attractive mobile-responsive website where you could book a trip. By using the My Disney Experience tool you can plan the trip you’ve booked on the website. You can decide where to have a meal and to arrange your Fast Pass. When you get to the park, using the mobile app makes it easy for you to find where are your favourite attractions. On the same app, you can see estimated wait time and plan your day in an optimal way.
Sephora – they went with the idea to connect their customers’ online orders to their in-store visits. Shoppers can use tablets in Sephora stores to see their own beauty bag account while shopping. That online account gives the option to customers to try on products virtually by using dedicated software. They can add products they want to the wish list. Thanks to the app, later on, when shoppers visit a Sephora store, they can purchase their wish list. The seamless connection of the Beauty Bag account to the in-store channel, lets customers track down products easily.
Start small and build up your omni channel
Omni channel is a concept that could work in any scale. If you are new to that, you can start small. You can establish an omni channel experience only for a particular product, service with a few channels. Once you have this shopping journey done right, you can add new channels and products. Building up slowly is easier and you also learn on the way.
