Omnichannel: definition and advice for a winning e-commerce strategy

More and more, communication channels are multiplying. In the complete guide to increasing sales on your website you were able to see that omnichannel has become a flagship strategy to respond to this change. In this important shift, you must first understand the challenges, the steps and the different strategies in order to build your own marketing strategy. 

Omnichannel: Definition and advice for a winning e-commerce strategy

Definition 

Omnichannel, cross-channel, multichannel, what exactly are we talking about? These are concepts that can be ranked gradually: multichannel, cross-channel and omnichannel. With the emergence and widespread adoption of digital marketing, integrating new channels into the marketing strategy is essential. The idea is therefore to use them by organizing them with one another. 

There are many channels: 

• Social media
• SMS
• VMS 
• Web 
• Showcase website 
• Physical store 
• Emails 
• Support / Telephone assistance
• Mail 
• Web notification
• Mobile notification

Multichannel 

This marketing strategy takes into account the multiplication of communication channels. The goal is to vary the touchpoints with prospects. 

Thus, online and offline channels are combined to communicate with prospects and customers. This can be summed up in a very widespread practice: online and in-store sales. This makes it possible to open up to a wider customer base.  

Cross-channel 

Cross-channel is a strategy that organizes communication channels among themselves to optimize touchpoints between the brand and contacts. It is actually the continuation of multichannel. The channels are interconnected in this strategy. 

Omnichannel 

Omnichannel is the ultimate strategy, which takes into account the different channels, organizes them and aims to improve the customer experience across these channels. The idea is to organize communications to send the right message through the right channel! 

The advantages of an omnichannel strategy 

For a good omnichannel strategy, the database is a key point. It is essential to gather the collected information in the same place to make the best use of it. 

Brand credibility 

By being very present and diversifying media, the brand gains visibility. First, your brand is regularly exposed to your prospects. Then, throughout the buying journey, answers to frequently asked questions can be provided via different channels. You thus offer convincing credibility. 

Customer relationship

Building an omnichannel customer journey builds a lasting and solid customer relationship. Why? First, because customer service is the basis of a strong relationship between a brand and its customers. Then because personalization is a key to satisfying customers, and omnichannel is a way to personalize your communications. This personalization, if successful, also leads to customer loyalty. 

Profitability 

By multiplying touchpoints, improving customer relationships and customer loyalty, you increase purchase opportunities. Indeed, major sites such as Amazon have opened physical stores based on this observation: the more touchpoints you have, the more you increase your chances of selling. Conversely, the health crisis has multiplied e-commerce sites, which must then work with the physical store without these activities being parallel and, consequently, never intersecting. It is this combination that makes it possible to increase your profitability. 

Implementation 

To implement this omnichannel strategy, it is necessary to understand it well, then ask the right questions: where are your prospects? On which channels can you meet them? What information do your prospects need? Here are the essential steps for a successful omnichannel strategy. 

Understand your customers 

Indeed, it is by understanding your prospects’ expectations that you can communicate with them in the best way. Then, you need to get to know them: collect information, track their searches on your site, for example. This way, you will know what answers to provide to your prospects and when. 

Define your channels 

Where can you find your prospects? On which social network(s)?  This question is essential for finding the best place to communicate with your prospects according to the stages and the questions. Thus, you can set up an e-commerce site, open accounts on certain social networks, etc. 

Speak with one voice 

Speaking to your prospects through different channels is good, but you still need to maintain a consistent message.  

You build a solid and assertive image if your tone and your message are uniform. However, you must be careful not to repeat yourself in personalized messages. 

Build a lasting relationship 

The observation is simple: you have a better chance of selling to your customers than to a prospect. To increase your revenue, focus on your existing customers by building loyalty. To do this, you need to build a lasting relationship of trust through different channels! 

Which channel for which use 

• Social media

Social media brings together several platforms. The best known, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, TikTok, have different audiences. You therefore need to find the right network for your target audience. 

Target audience : Highly evolving and different depending on the networks. Rather B2C (except LinkedIn), mostly young 

Key figure : 75% of the French population had a social network in 2021 

Use : To create and maintain a brand image and a community around your brand, social media is the ideal channel! 

• SMS 

SMS is often forgotten in marketing strategies. Yet it delivers very good results. 

Target audience : The limitation here will be phone numbers and your contacts’ consent. Used more in B2C or internal communication. 

Key figure : 98% of SMS messages are opened, click-through rates reach 36% 

Use : SMS messages are read very quickly (95% are read within 3 minutes). They are therefore the best way to communicate at the right time. For example, when your customer has an appointment with you, you can remind them a few hours beforehand with the appointment address.

• VMS

Voice Message Service is a channel that is still little known. These are voice messages left on your contacts’ voicemail. This provides a more human touch, without the timing constraint of a call. 

Target audience : as with SMS, the target audience is broad. 

Use :  It is the channel for inviting people to an event or tracking a parcel, for example. It ensures better attention than an SMS 

• Showcase website 

Today, almost all companies have a website. The main thing is to integrate it into your marketing strategy 

Target audience : Qualified prospects, customers 

Key figure : Blogs have 63% more influence than magazines

Use : The website has a major role in qualifying your leads. It is there to provide all the information necessary for the purchase decision, from the explanatory article to pricing and contact information with you. 

• Physical store 

Target audience : limited by location

Key figure : No figure here, but one piece of information: giants such as Amazon are opening physical stores. 

Use : The goal is to support the brand image by creating an ambiance, an atmosphere. Friendliness and advice are necessary. 

• Emails 

Email, the best-known of channels, is very versatile and widely used. 

Target audience : In B2B as in B2C, email is widely used! 

Key figure : The number of emails sent in 2022 is estimated at 4.3 billion 

Use : To nurture your prospects and help them improve their knowledge thanks to your content, email is the ideal channel. 

• Support / Telephone assistance

Target audience : Your customers 

Key figure : 60% of people want an immediate response by phone when they contact customer support 

Use : Listening to your customers, responding to their needs by humanizing the relationship, that is the goal of phone support! This time, your customers take the first step, it is up to you to make it count. 

• Mail 

Target audience : Very broad, on this channel, prior authorization is not necessary! 

Key figure : 30% of internet users downloaded an Ad Blocker, software that blocks unwanted emails and advertisements, compared with 17% who put a No Junk Mail sticker on their mailbox. 

Use : Since direct mail gets a very good open rate, it is the right place to promote a special offer, for example. 

• Web notification

Target audience : Very broad because it does not require personal information

Use : This message, which opens automatically, is the ideal place to address your prospect’s issue. This allows users, for example, to receive job offers  

• Mobile notification 

Target audience : For anyone who has and uses a smartphone, because it requires an application 

Key figures : 9% of users increase traffic to the site thanks to mobile notifications 

Use : For live news, it is the perfect technology! 

As you will have understood, using different channels is essential for your marketing strategy. However, it is not a miracle recipe. The organization and strategy you put in place to connect these channels are paramount to increasing your revenue. By following these few steps, you have every chance on your side!