Omnichannel marketing has become increasingly important as the number of touchpoints between customers and businesses has increased. This marketing approach is multipronged, combining a combination of channels to build momentum toward conversions.
When properly executed, omnichannel marketing enhances the prospect experience to the point that he or she is convinced that the value offering is worth the cost. Let’s look at the benefits and strategies of this unique marketing approach.
Omnichannel Marketing is Effective for Every Business
The beauty of omnichannel marketing lies in its diversity. This marketing approach constitutes a form of marketing asset allocation in which companies diversify advertising dollars across a wide array of mediums to maximize engagement, reinforce that engagement, and boost sales.
As an example, omnichannel marketing includes social media campaigns. Interaction with social media content influences subsequent touchpoints, building momentum toward sales. Those exposed to social media content are more inclined to sign up for an email list that transmits an ongoing stream of information about the value offering.
Moreover, those exposed to social media and online advertising are also more inclined to purchase a value offering after subsequent exposure to other forms of advertising including offline ads such as billboards, TV advertisements, radio ads, and more. Such an approach is centered on customers, presenting them with a wide array of information about the company’s products, services, and overarching brand.
Brand Unity Across All Channels
Omnichannel marketing is most effective when the information presented to viewing audiences is uniform across all channels. The alignment of a company’s voice, font, colors, logo, and more across those contact points strengthens the message even more. When properly executed, such brand reinforcement steers prospects toward the finish line of conversion.
When brainstorming omnichannel marketing content, consider the customer journey in its entirety. Explore the prospect’s psychology from the point of initial awareness up until the point of conversion.
Review all potential touchpoints, strategizing the best ways to present information across those touchpoints. Keep in mind that it is the subtleties of social media content, pay-per-click ads, email newsletters, and other marketing touchpoints that build momentum toward actual sales.
Why Omnichannel Marketing Works
The omnichannel approach provides an invaluable opportunity to analyze important customer data. Seize the opportunity to collect prospect and paying customer data through mobile apps, email lists, social media, loyalty programs, and more. Even point-of-sale (PoS) systems provide data for analysis. Continue to track the audience information across all platforms, both online and offline, and you’ll obtain a better understanding of your audience.
Data capture and analysis provide a comprehensive view of the buyer journey from beginning until end. The ongoing effort to better understand customers’ behaviors, motivations, needs, interests, and other details makes it easier to present them with convincing marketing materials across multiple channels.
Target Customers on a Multitude of Channels
The omnichannel approach sets the stage for data collection for a more in-depth understanding of prospects and existing customers. Proactively segment the audience using data and you’ll enjoy the opportunity to better target those inclined to pay for your value offering. The overarching aim is to better design marketing efforts directly addressing the audience’s nuanced interests and demographics.
As an example, consider a prospect who visits your homepage or an individual product page and then digresses toward other web pages. Such an individual demonstrated interest in the value offering yet did not convert into a paying customer.
The presentation of a strategic remarketing ad to such an individual paves a path toward eventual conversion. Strategic targeting integrates information plucked from online visitor activity including pages visited to carefully tailor subsequent ad presentations to maximize the chances of conversion.
Omnichannel Marketing is Surprisingly Economical
There is a common misconception that diversifying marketing efforts across the majority of the marketing spectrum is cost-prohibitive. In reality, omnichannel marketing is more affordable than most think. Strategically allocate your marketing budget across a wide array of channels, be patient and the investment will pay dividends as time progresses.
As long as your marketing team makes a consistent effort to analyze the performance of your message across a plethora of channels, the ensuing improvements will steer prospects toward conversion in due time. Such analysis consists of a detailed review of marketing material performance on individual channels followed by appropriate adjustments.
Emphasize Brand Visibility for Reinforcement
What is out of sight is also out of mind. This adage holds true in the context of omnichannel marketing. A business that puts its marketing eggs in a single basket or only a couple of baskets will minimize awareness of its value offering.
Alternatively, a business that fully embraces omnichannel marketing spreads its message across a variety of touchpoints, maximizing views through extensive exposure. Such a multipronged approach broadens customer interactions to the point that those efforts compound one another, nudging targets toward eventual conversion.