An omnichannel marketing and sales strategy connects all the pieces of a customer’s experience into a cohesive unit. An omnichannel strategy recognizes that customers will interact with a brand through a variety of channels, and then focuses on managing the customer experience within each of these channels so that the brand is clear and cohesive.
Implementing an omnichannel strategy could look like creating a cohesive experience when customers interact with your brand, whether on a mobile app, desktop site or in the store; cohesive branding and design can be used by leveraging technology to save customers' progress or preferences. A retail store utilizing an omnichannel strategy will allow customers to order, manage, and receive products in the store, on the app, and on the desktop.
Customers may prefer various types of communication that can be brought together with an omnichannel strategy. This includes reminders or paperwork, that can be sent over text or email. An outbound call center utilizing an omnichannel strategy will intentionally curate the customer experience within email, text, and call channels so that customers get a simple, branded experience from all methods of communication.
Regardless of your industry, there are a variety of benefits to an omnichannel strategy, but the bottom line is that an omnichannel strategy helps customers connect with your brand, leading them to be more engaged and more loyal. Some specific benefits of an omnichannel strategy include:
Expanded Customer Base: The ability to reach customers from a variety of channels and then utilize those channels to nurture customers through their journey. This results in you reaching a wide variety of relevant, prepared customers
Increased Revenue: Increase revenue as you nurture customers through each step of their buying journey. As customers interact with varied engagement opportunities, they’re more likely to make purchases. Additionally, as customers feel more connected throughout their journey, they are more likely to return.
Gain Customer Loyalty: Gain customer loyalty with nuanced, targeted messaging that reaches customers simultaneously from each channel. Cohesive, consistent messaging solidifies customers’ trust in the brand, and they will appreciate the cohesiveness between channels that allows them to efficiently accomplish the tasks.
Create a Strong Brand Identity: Create a strong brand identity by reinforcing and aligning customer-facing messaging throughout your entire organization. This facilitates trust and connection between each customer and the brand as customers feel they “get to know” the brand and understand the messaging being offered from a variety of channels.
Gather More Data: Collect data that may not be available from a single channel alone, and increase the power of your data as you consider the data from multiple channels. Gathering the data from several channels allows you to gain further insights that may not be visible elsewhere; you can optimize and improve customers’ experiences based on these insights. Optimize sales by making decisions based on this data.
Creating an omnichannel strategy requires coordinating many moving parts. There’s a variety of things you can do to create an omnichannel strategy. Here are a few suggestions of how your organization can begin implementing an omnichannel strategy, but there are many more ways you can work to reach your customers through a cohesive strategy.
Bridge the Gap Between Online and Offline
Connect the experiences that customers have in store with the experiences customers will have online. Offer in-store Wi-Fi in your physical retail location so that customers can compare products, shop for different styles/colors, and access loyalty programs online while they’re in your store. Offer free in-store pickup for orders placed online. Include a variety of online experiences throughout your physical store as well, allowing customers to learn more about products through QR codes or online connection touchpoints.
While it’s best illustrated in retail scenarios, bridging the gap between online and offline is important in other industries. Offering online connections to traditionally offline experiences can clearly differentiate your brand from competitors. For example, a call center that also sends follow-up texts on appointments scheduled over the phone, paired with an online portal is stronger than a solely offline experience.
Understand Your Customers
In order to connect your brand with your customers, you first need to understand them. Understanding which channels reach which customers are crucial in determining which content to push through which channels; it is important for determining channels that customers may interact with, but unexpected connections can also be a strong way to disrupt the barrage of advertising that consumers face.
You also need to understand the ways that customers react to and interact with your brand; your messaging gives you insight into what will resonate with customers so that you can strengthen the messaging through the channels your customers interact with.
While there are a lot of moving pieces surrounding creating an omnichannel strategy, it all comes down to building trust and connection with your customers. When you implement a cohesive strategy, customers are able to identify your brand and are more likely to resonate with repeated messaging and trust your brand.
Hiya can help you build trust with your customers by harmonizing your outbound calls with your other communication channels; by providing branded call, you are helping your customers identify who is calling and why. As your customers’ trust in your brand increases leading to more insightful data, you will be able to further optimize your sales performance. For more tips and tricks on how to improve your sales performance, download our ebook, Sales Call Metrics That Matter.