3 Elements Of Omnichannel Success

E-commerce has seen a huge development in the last couple of years pushed by the global pandemic that hit us un 2020. It was a necessity for retailers to restructure, adapt and evolve. Today 73% of Shoppers use multiple channels before making a purchase and there is a 190% increase in revenue for brands that multiple channels over those that sell on a single channel. Customers are on all channels and different devices, brands have to meet them there. This is core of omnichannel retailing.

The competition and big multinationals are on all sales and marketing channels as well, so just being there doesn’t equal sales. A multi channel presence increases the possibility of a sale but the odds may not always be in your favor. Omnichannel is achieved when the channels are integrated and the customer’s experience is seamless across all channels. This means a consumer has the same shopping experience on you site, socials or advertising and any movement on their shopping journey will feel smooth and uninterrupted. 

 

1. THE CHANNELS

Companies don’t need to be everywhere to achieve successful Omnichannel retailing, they only need to be where their customers are. This allows brands to be a click away from their target audience thereby increasing their reach. Determining these channels is the first step towards Omnichannel success. To identify the channels to be on is to identify where their customers are, how they learn about a brand and where they buy products. Today there is no such thing as channel loyalty, everyone is pretty much everywhere. Their shopping journey is often non linear because of this. A brand can be discovered through an Instagram ad which could lead to browsing on the website and eventually checkout on Amazon.

These are the main channels for retail that are readily available on e-commerce platforms such as Shopify.

COMMERCE CHANNELS

• Social channels: Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest 
• Messaging channels: Messenger, Shopify chat, and Apple Business Chat 
• Marketplaces: Amazon, eBay, and many more region specific stores  
• Offline: Retail locations

MARKETING CHANNELS

• Free/paid advertising: Google Shopping, Microsoft advertising, Facebook ads, and more
• Email marketing: Klaviyo, Seguno, Omnisend, and more

Omnichannel presence can be different things from a product post on social media to automated messaging to personalized emails to digital advertising. Marketing channels are just as important as the sales channels, they allow brands to build awareness and relationships with customers. It may sound rather basic but make sure to pinpoint the marketing sales channels that produce the highest traffic and sales. This will lead to a more efficient marketing strategy and budget. Google Analytics is one of the tools that will gives insight on the customer shopping journey.

2. MARKETING

Personalized marketing is the foundation of Omnichannel marketing. Having an online presence isn’t enough to stand out anymore. Brands need to stand out on the different channels at different stages of the shopping journey. This isn’t easy to unpack as it involves a multitude of possibilities. For instance a new visitor should not be received the same incentive as a returning customer or the message sent at checkout cannot be the same message sent for an abandoned cart. Visitors and customers have to receive the right communication at the right time for it to be relevant.

Collecting emails is key to better understanding your customers which will allow you to improve your communication with them. A solid database will allow you to automate marketing - ads, emails, pop ups, and messages. With Omnichannel marketing the action of a visitor triggers a series of marketing events. 

Omnisend reported that Omnichannel campaigns that use at least 3 marketing channels versus single channel campaigns are more relevant and efficient. They earned:

• 18.96% engagement rate
• 287% higher purchase rate
• 13% more spend rate
• 90% customer retention

 

3. OPERATIONS 

Omnichannel retail means companies are serving orders from online and in store orders as well as from social media orders. This raises a big challenge in inventory management and order fulfillment. A centralized backend that provides real time, multi location inventory management can save you from unwanted costs due to inventory shortages and fulfillment errors. Efficient operations in retail means a company knows how much stock they have and where the stock is located. Just as an offline customer shops at a store closest to them, an online order should be fulfilled from a location closest to the customer. 

Successful omnichannel operations necessitates a solid tech stack to support it. A tech stack is the merging of all the apps, platforms, providers and more that allow a business to run efficiently. The right tech stack automates workflows, integrates apps and providers, reduces manual work, synchronizes inventory and minimizes costs. Two other important elements of a good tech tack are that should also allow a company to grow and scale operations easily, and it should suit the company’s system and culture.

 

Omnichannel success is not easy but working around these key elements is a good place to start. Investing time and money to get it right early will be well worth the effort.