How to Increase the Sales of Your Online Store with Omnichannel Marketing
Omnichannel marketing (also referred to as cross-channel marketing) is focused on providing the same, consistent personal customers with a consistent experience across different channels, including the in-store customer experience for bricks and mortar stores.
Utilizing an omnichannel advertising method, your company can put ads on the shelves of customers for merchandise that is relevant to their preferences and purchasing history and shorten business to business sales processes. Connecting prospective customers to relevant products and services will increase the chances of conversion and increases the efficiency of advertising expenditure.
What distinguishes omnichannel advertising than multichannel advertising?
There's a good chance you're already utilizing multiple channels to promote your business. If you're still dependent on one channel the first thing to do will be to begin using multiple channels.
Multichannel marketing differs from an omnichannel strategy in the manner that your channels are integrated and collaborate to provide a consistent and seamless experience, no matter where a person is on the buyer's journey.
In multichannel marketing, every channel may be functioning independent of each other. There could be a distinct marketing department to manage each channel, and then calculate the ROIs of each separately. Some campaigns may be less connected campaigns, each having their individual customer experience. The customer can engage in all of these channels and be treated as if it's the first time they've ever interacted with your company.
In contrast Omnichannel marketing is the integration and blend of your marketing strategies across various channels to provide an enhanced customer experience.
Through a well-planned omnichannel approach one can expect that a client who starts their journey as a buyer through an PPC ad, but doesn't buy anything after visiting your store online, will be engaged by other channels depending the initial interaction, and they will experience the same experience.
This could include seeing advertisements on social media or display which are pertinent to a new customer, getting send them push notifications whenever they return to your website, specific advertisements in video, or store promotions that are relevant to customers.
Most of us have experienced instances of marketing that was omnichannel in the form of.
If you decide to select a social network ad, then sign up to receive a coupon from the website of the retailer through a pop-up. If you do not buy the item, you may receive an email from the abandoned cart offering a sale or look at ads that advertise the product on other digital channels.
If you buy something then you'll probably receive an email with suggestions for related products and get future sale announcements. You may even get a postcard or catalog with a message inviting shoppers to purchase an item in the store purchase if the store has brick and mortar locations.
That is an omnichannel experience. It can involve a blend of offline and online marketing, and it involves multiple touchpoints.
Do you think it's too complex? But the good news is that you don't need to shell out a large sum of budget or hire a large team to develop a slim and yet efficient multichannel marketing plan to promote your shop.
Omnichannel marketing has many benefits for both customers and businesses
Omnichannel strategies for marketing provides a number of advantages over multichannel marketingto your business as well as for your clients. Here are the main ones:
It's more cost efficient
Business owners will benefit from marketing across multiple channels saves money as it's more efficient. Instead of creating individual marketing campaigns that include email, social media, direct mail as well as PPC, you could design a single one that you can use it across your various digital and offline channels.
But more than just another campaign, you'll be employing adaptive marketing automation, which reacts based on how existing or potential customers react to your campaign.
Instead of having to keep making new offers An omnichannel strategy seeks to create an array of possible offers depending on the situation.
Imagine two potential customers who get the same advertisement. One buys and your marketing automation sends the buyer a special first-time purchase deal, with the intention of becoming a regular buyer.
The other person doesn't buy yet, however their actions indicate that they have a lot of interest. They receive marketing messages that attempt to get them to revisit and make a purchase.
There is no need to develop the omnichannel marketing tools once the automation system will use these tools depending on the place a user is on their journey to becoming a customer. It's a bit of work to set up however once the system is in operation the omnichannel approach is a major time-saver.
This results in improved customer service
If your customer is comfortable, and not like an unknown person the tools you use to automate marketing connect with where they are in the buyer's journey. An omnichannel experience is better and more efficient and aligns with expectations of the customer.
This saves the customer time, helps them make quicker decisions and also reduces the amount of confusion.
It allows you to offer superior customer service.
When customers need help, an omnichannel approach enables your customer service staff to get more information about the person they are dealing with so that they do not have to speak with them just like the rest of us. It allows them to get up speed faster, not waste the time of starting at the beginning, and can have the most relevant and insightful dialogue.
What is the best way to develop your Omnichannel Marketing Strategy
This is a step-bystep guide to developing an omnichannel strategy for marketing which won't cost you a dime.
Incorporate one channel at a moment
It's impossible to begin doing everything all at once And thankfully, you don't need to. Omnichannel marketing is the process of reaching the people you want to reach through a consistent messaging in multiple places.
Beginning with your top channel and identify your first channel that you would like it to integrate with. As you add more channels, you should acquire the necessary marketing automation tools you need to help the CRM software (CRM) software communicate with your various online and offline channels, including a brick and mortar shop.
Make sure you are targeting your marketing messages
Targeting your ads to audience groups that are most likely to purchase your product is a crucial aspect of developing a good multichannel marketing strategy.
Marketing should be a priority throughout the entire customers' journey
The journey of a customer begins at the point that a customer first comes across your business and ends in lifetime loyalty. Here are the five phases of the customer lifecycle and a few popular strategies for reaching shoppers at each stage with multichannel marketing strategies.
1. Reach
Here, a shopper is looking for a specific product or solution to a issue. This is the perfect opportunity to let that shopper aware of your company. A customer may be comparing the products they are buying, reading reviews or simply seeking out information on whether a particular product is the right fit to them.
2. Acquisition
It happens when a person visits your website, registers for your newsletter, interacts with your chatbot, reaches at your business via either email or phone or goes to a brick and mortar store. They haven't made a purchase however, they're checking your company out and collecting further information.
When you are in the phase of acquisition during the acquisition phase, you are able to keep collecting data from customers in order to start delivering an omnichannel experience for each segment of your target audience.
3. Conversion
When someone buys while shopping online or makes an in-store purchase They've "converted" to becoming your customers. A seamless customer experience can let them feel respected and known. This may involve emails, push notifications, or other opportunities to shop in store when you own a physical store.
4. Retention
In addition to delivering a better return on investment, but having regular customers helps build brand loyalty -- and your loyal customers are your most loyal customers through their feedback and talking to their family and friends about your services.
In this stage of the customer journey, you should use your customer database that is growing to enhance the conversion experience. It is possible to market your customers using follow-up emails with other product recommendations or discounts that are relevant to their shopping history, ask them for reviews or a feedback survey, offer an incentive program for loyalty, or provide excellent customer support.
5. Loyalty
Satisfaction with the customer is a key factor in loyalty. You can't simply set it and forget it.
Choose which marketing platforms will work best for your omnichannel strategy
If you're on a small budget it is possible to be selective about which marketing channels to concentrate on in the process of creating your omnichannel marketing plan. Select low-cost advertising methods first before moving on to more expensive advertising options as your budget grows.
It is the goal to create several touch points across various channels that deliver a consistent customer experience.
Marketing methods that are low-cost are:
Organic search
Then, use the customer information you collect from Google Analytics and other marketing tools to boost your omnichannel marketing efforts.
Google Shopping
Email marketing
With services like MailPoet which you can use to create a welcome series of emails for new customers, recommendation for products based upon previous purchases, abandoned cart emails for those who abandoned items in their carts announcements about sales, and more multichannel marketing strategies.
Rewards programs
Customers can be notified of an omnichannel campaign tailored to them, even across different channels and across multiple devices. Imagine a reward member receiving an ad on display that informs their how many points they have and suggests ways to use them. It's an example for an omnichannel experience.
Customer service
Every touchpoint with customers is a marketing opportunity. Instead of looking at the customer experience as just a matter of addressing questions and complaints take it in the context of an opportunity to create loyal fans.
By implementing an omnichannel strategy for marketing that includes customer service, your team will be able to see an individual customer's past purchasing and engagement along with previous interactions with your staff. When you use this to its fullest potential it will allow you to provide an unmatched experience, regardless of the customers' preferred method of service, be it text messages, chatbots or phone or email, or in-store at a brick and mortar location.
Utilizing a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool like Jetpack CRM helps facilitate customer service and make it effortless. Install your support portal, keep track of the status of tickets and more in your shop. There's no need to log to a CRM website from a third party for managing your customersthe ability to do this is all from within the WordPress administration section.
Organic social media
It's not easy to get organic attention on social media with the many voices that compete, but there are several options to advertising that is free and very efficient. You can:
- Make a Facebook page for your business
- Engage and post frequently on your various social media platforms
- Create an AMA on Reddit with the Ask Me Anything subreddit
Higher-cost marketing methods are:
Paid search
If you want to show your website above natural search results, or get immediate traffic, while improving your SEO, then paid advertisements for search are the best way to go. It is also important to ensure that your product's landing page is responsive to mobile devices, loads fast and is consistent with the message of your ad copy.
With remarketing tools, paid search can become a valuable source of customer data you can use in implementing your omnichannel marketing strategy.
Paid Google Shopping
Display ads
Ads on social media
Engaging with people who are who are on social media can be a fantastic method to attract new customers since they are able to immediately share your ad with their contacts. Market to them by demographic data, perceived interest, preferences of customers as well as by uploading a customer email list to create a lookalike audience comprised of individuals with similar profiles to your current client base. You can also implement an omnichannel strategy for marketing using social media when you have integrated the channels you use with your CRM.
Facebook allows you to connect your store's catalog of products with Facebook and Instagram so you can ensure the same customer experience. You can also purchase ads directly through your dashboard.
Video advertisements
With the advent of online platforms like YouTube as well as more cost-effective video production equipment and editing software, video ads don't have to be out of reach for small businesses.
If you plan to incorporate videos as part of an omnichannel marketing strategy, make sure to create videos that are able to be utilized on multiple platforms. Repurpose clips for your blog, social media marketing as well as product pages in order for maximum benefit from these marketing assets.
While the most popular advertisement platform for video is YouTube, other options include:
- Platforms for social video, such as TikTok and Snapchat
- Video live streaming services including Twitch and Vimeo
- On-demand video streaming services like Amazon Prime and Hulu
Print advertisements
Depending on your demographic and your products Print advertising could be an excellent option to supplement your digital marketing efforts and blend your offline and online strategies for marketing. Think about putting an ad in a publication, mailing a printed catalog, sending postcards with special discounts, or employing front-door marketing techniques like door hangers and product samples.
Similar to digital marketing, you are able to monitor the results on your offline and in-store initiatives. Again -- omnichannel marketing relies on regular supply of exact information about customers that is tailored to every customer.
Here are the key online marketing tools to help with offline information collection as well as an omnichannel store experience
- QR codes with tracking hyperlinks. You can create special tracking-enabled links for QR codes. Include these codes on your printed marketing materials as well, so that when a client decides to use it in your store, you'll know precisely which piece of printed material influenced that customer to make the trip.
- Special landing page links. As a QR code alternative, you can build custom landing pages that include unique links and include the URL on your printed ads. Be sure to keep these URLs short since customers have to enter them into their browsers.
Create ad copy and artwork which can be utilized on multiple platforms
Omnichannel marketing is all about being consistent and efficient. Not only does crafting your videos, images, and ads with many uses in mind, but it also saves the cost of creative assets, it also provides a unified, branded customer experience for shoppers across all platforms.
It is important to shoot photographs and videos designed to be used on multiple advertising platforms. Different platforms employ different aspect ratios. So it is necessary to record as well as edit photos and videos with this in mind. Common aspect ratios include:
- Horizontal 16:9
- Square 1:1
- Vertical 4:5 and 2:3
- Full Portrait 9:16
Create your video and images at the highest resolution possible and export to smaller resolution versions.
Make use of your customer data
Reviewing the performance of your omnichannel marketing campaigns across all channels is essential. If you notice that an advertising campaign is underperforming, you may need to alter it before continuing to spend money on it. Looking at your analytics will help you understand what ads are performing and which ones aren't.
Google Analytics is probably the most complete tool to track activities on your website. You can look at the sources of referrals to determine the websites your users are coming from, get an idea of the effectiveness of search and display ad campaigns, as well as collect statistics on the characteristics of your site's visitors.
When you integrate this information with your CRM, your other marketing channels could make use of it to provide the same experience to your clients.
Let your marketing team be empowered
Through omnichannel marketing, you team will be able to increase their effectiveness by customizing strategies based on the behavior of customers.
And if you employ sales staff and sales teams, they'll be more successful in engaging with customers individually by having access to details of the previous purchase and interactions, email messages, clicks, shares, reviews, and other customer details that result from an multichannel customer experience.
Refresh your advertising strategy based on the KPIs. (KPIs)
After reviewing the performance of your multichannel marketing campaigns You can make changes to your plan. Most companies will find that ad campaigns that have low CPAs and high ROIs should be allocated additional advertising while campaigns with large CPAs and low ROIs should be discarded. There are other performance indicators that are important to your organization.
If your advertisements aren't generating direct sales, but they do coincide with increased organic search traffic or leads generated this could mean that your ad is very effective at reaching out to shoppers at the earlier phases of the buyer's journey.
Test turning certain low-performing ads off and on for a period of time in order to test if they've any impact on other measures.
In relation to loyalty and customer retention programs, if you find that not many customers take benefits of rewards points or aren't redeeming certain coupons, you might consider tweaking your offer or adjusting the number of points that are required to redeem. If one method in your omnichannel campaign is not performing, doesn't mean it shouldn't be improved to increase sales for your business.
Watch your business grow
When you make a smart choice when choosing your marketing tools and platforms, utilizing automation tools, crafting perpetually-green creative assets that can be reused, and constantly reviewing and revising your omnichannel marketing strategy according to your performance, you'll be able to see your revenue grow.
Just like any other thing that's worth doing, this will require time to improve. Beginning with only some channels for marketing then expanding upon the information you've gathered from prior efforts, you'll create an omnichannel strategy for long-term success that work to build revenue to your company.