What is omnichannel marketing, and how does it differ from multichannel marketing? Multichannel marketing has been a staple in the marketing world for quite some time now: companies use newsletters, social media channels, press releases and media, search engine advertising, blogs, websites, and other online and offline experiences.
What has changed, or has anything changed at all?
From multichannel to omnichannel marketing
So, what exactly is omnichannel marketing? In simple terms, omnichannel refers to a strategy that aims to seamlessly integrate all your company’s different channels, allowing your customers to move effortlessly and consistently between platforms without losing any information.
For example, a customer can switch from mobile to desktop without losing the items in their shopping cart.
Omnichannel marketing differs from traditional multichannel thinking by ensuring that all channels communicate with each other more effectively. It maps out all the touchpoints where the customer interacts with your company and unifies the messages and user experience across them.
Picture: Liana's services offer a solution for almost every digital channel.
Seamless communication is the key to omnichannel success
To achieve seamless communication, efficient information flow between different channels is crucial. Sales, marketing, and customer service must always be aware of the customer’s history. This allows for personalized communication, and the insights gained from analytics can be transferred to other channels.
Tracking communication effectively provides valuable data on what the customer is interested in and which channels lead to a purchase or contact.
Bringing omnichannel marketing to life
Omnichannel marketing can be summarized into three key points:
Let’s take a closer look at these key points.
Omnichannel touchpoints
When defining omnichannel thinking within a company, the first step is to map out where the company's various touchpoints are. Depending on the company, these are typically found in the following places:
- Websites (desktop and mobile)
- Media (press releases or interviews)
- E-commerce
- Social media and its interactions
- Customer service and support (phone, email, chat, and offline support)
- Inbound and outbound calls
- Trade shows, webinars, and seminars
- Contact persons and account managers
- Physical stores
Creating a cohesive omnichannel customer journey
After mapping out the touchpoints, it’s time to identify and model the customer journeys. This involves analyzing where and how customers eventually become buyers.
For example, social media often serves to spark initial interest, so the key is to convert that interest into a website visit or a newsletter subscription.
Marketing must continuously monitor the different stages of the customer journey and assign an appropriate role to each channel.
For instance, a brochure or guide ordered through a social media campaign can trigger an automated drip campaign. The subscriber then receives the content via a newsletter, accompanied by related content. Eventually, the customer is led to the website, where they can find more information and an easy way to make a purchase or request further contact.
In terms of upselling and cross-selling, it’s essential to link online and offline experiences. A company running both a physical store and an e-commerce platform should leverage the purchase data from both to market future offers, promo codes, or new products in a personalized way.
Synchronization between channels
When each touchpoint and channel is actively measured, the customer’s journey toward making a purchase generates several data points that can be used to improve communication and marketing. The insights from analytics can also be transferred to sales or a CRM system.
At its best, the salesperson will have significant information about the customer’s needs before the first phone call or email. This enhances the interaction between the customer and the company. To ensure a seamless customer experience, you should at least consider the following:
- Ensure that customer service is consistent and of high quality across phone, website, and chat channels.
- Make sure your website works well on all devices, providing a great online experience. A large portion of newsletters is now opened on mobile devices, so check that your email marketing tool ensures mobile-friendly emails before sending.
- Ensure that customers who purchase in a physical store can easily find your e-commerce platform, and vice versa. Show your store’s inventory in your online store by integrating the point-of-sale system with the website, keeping it reliable and up-to-date in real time.
- Ensure that sales and marketing communicate effectively and speak the same language.
- Always add a link to the next touchpoint within each channel – for example, allowing users to subscribe to the newsletter from social media and then link from the newsletter to the website.
- Make sure your sales team reads the marketing content you produce and is aware of ongoing campaigns and potential price changes.
The role of technology in building an omnichannel experience
In comprehensive, user-data-driven communication, modern, easily integrated software that works well together is crucial. Content must be delivered across different channels with a consistent technical appearance, both on browsers and mobile. It’s also essential that customer interactions flow effortlessly between systems through integrations.
To ensure effective tracking and agile development of communications, marketing technologies should be managed by marketing and communications teams rather than the IT department. This is why the role of a technical partner becomes even more critical. The best results are achieved through flexible collaboration, where users are trained and supported even after implementation.
Liana’s Tools for Effortless Omnichannel Marketing
Liana’s tools support your customers throughout their journey. Our newsletter tool LianaMailer, marketing automation tool LianaAutomation, e-commerce platform LianaCommerce and website solution LianaCMS integrate seamlessly to create a smooth customer experience, making omnichannel marketing effortless.
If you want to hear more about our services and how to create even more high-quality customer experiences with technology, don't hesitate to contact us.
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