What is omnichannel and how to apply it in commerce
19.12.2022 11:10
Omnichannel is one of the marketing strategies that helps to improve the service without additional burden on employees. How is it effective for business?
About 10 years ago, people made purchases mostly in one place - for example, in an offline store or on the website. And each interaction of the same client with the company was considered new, that is, from the point of view of sales analysis, these were different buyers.
Now the situation has changed. The buyer, in addition to the offline store and the website, has other ways to contact the company: social networks, messengers, mobile applications, chatbots. And business has a need to combine data on all user actions at each stage of the sale into a single information system.
Gradually, such a direction as omnichannel marketing, or in other words - omnichannel customer service, emerged. It gave the customer the opportunity to choose and constantly change the channels of communication with the store depending on their needs at a particular time, and the business - to receive information about each contact with the buyer.
For example, a user through Google advertising got to the site to buy a battery-powered Christmas garland. Comparing the characteristics of the product, the customer had questions. He wrote to the online chat to the seller of the online store. Having received a response, the client decided to think a little and, as often happens, forgot both about the intention to buy and about the online store. Flipping through Instagram the next day, he saw an advertisement from the store where he received a consultation yesterday. On the page he found an LED garland with slightly different functions and ordered it directly. The manager called him to confirm the order. The conversation ended with the purchase.
At all these stages, the client can be in different "corners" of the company, contact with different consultants. But information about all contacts should be contained in one program, otherwise - the order may be duplicated, the buyer will have to repeat several times what exactly he needs, different managers accompanying the client will do the same work from the beginning, tell the same thing, because they will consider the same buyer as different customers.
What does omnichannel in trade consist of?
To build an omnichannel strategy, use the following tools:
- a website where you can see the range of goods and make a purchase immediately,
- buttons to go to social networks to view new products and subscribe to the brand,
- feedback on the website: online chat, "Call me back" button, feedback form,
- communication via messengers viber, telegram, whats up,
- phone number of the support service or contact person,
- email (yes, people still willingly write letters),
- delivery options by postal and courier services,
- various payment options: cash on delivery, bank terminal at the checkout, LiqPay and other payment systems, transfer to a current account,
- CRM, which collects and combines all information about the client - contact details, list of purchases, all contacts and agreements, reminders to call back, delivery address, special wishes of the client (for example, not to call, but to write only in the messenger).
How does omnichannel work in retail?
Omnichannel is primarily about automation, because without an information system it is impossible to bring together disparate information from different sources about different customers.
During the pandemic, store owners realized that they needed to implement trade automation to create an online store and cope with the influx of online orders.
Customers needed flexible online shopping options and refused to shop in stores that could not sell goods through the website, arrange delivery, or consult on Viber.
Users are very sensitive to bad experiences - for example, delayed parcel delivery, cancellation of certain items in the order or lack of convenient ways to make a purchase. They will not wait for you to change, but will go to another store where you are ready to adjust and quickly meet their needs.
Now, during the war, Ukrainian retailers are even more actively introducing automation and digitalization into the sales system to cope with the current difficulties and problems:
- organization of continuous sales and order processing,
- maintaining communication with customers during the working hours specified on the website,
- planning of production and orders for timely delivery of goods to the customer,
- work with orders and reservation of goods,
- reminding about the availability of goods,
- keeping promises and obligations.
Now there is no time to analyze the situation - you need a tool that can be deployed in one day and start using it right away, and it doesn't matter whether there is electricity and Internet or not.
Currently, the usual way of communicating with customers - consultations at the checkout in the store, "cold" calls, does not support a flexible omnichannel model when a customer buys goods anywhere.
Moreover, economic turmoil due to military aggression, the rise in the cost of goods, logistics services, inflation and labor shortages, rising maintenance costs - all this eventually reduces the profits of retailers.
There is a need to update omnichannel business models in the direction of saving resources, while leaving customers the convenience they need. How to achieve this balance?
The ideal omnichannel experience
Consumers in Ukraine are accustomed to service. Buyers want to have flexible ways to communicate with the seller - whether by phone or on Instagram, different ways to receive orders, know how much product is in stock, when it can be received if it is currently out of stock, what is the status of the parcel after it is processed, etc. Stores that provide such options get higher conversion rates.
The ability to make a promise and keep it is the way to customer loyalty and regular sales.
In order for stores to implement omnichannel, they need to synchronize all information about trade in a single system. For example, operations in the warehouse - registration of receipts, sales, returns, so that the customer always sees the latest information in the online store. In addition, the manager who runs Instagram and the manager who sells goods when receiving calls should see the same situation in all warehouses - where the product is, its current value, how much product is available, where and when the product can be sent, and if the product is not available, when it will arrive at the warehouse.
The seller must record any fact of customer consultation in social networks, messengers, by phone. The most reliable way to verify a client is to record his phone number in the CRM system, and record every contact for this client.
CRM, mandatory recording of contacts, a variety of sales channels and the ability to contact the seller anywhere are the main tools for implementing omnichannel in business.
The essence of flexible order management is to cover all contacts with customers. To bring profitability to a new level, you should use the capabilities of the accounting program to avoid shortages and create a stock of goods in the required quantity, as well as to predict customer demand in all sales channels, analyze orders and ensure the availability of current goods for both regular customers and new ones.
Opportunities and prospects of omnichannel
No communication channel by itself can provide quality work with customers at 100%, if you do not combine information into a single system. In addition to the above, omnichannel provides additional business opportunities:
Sales on marketplaces. In addition to the online store, you can register on the marketplace and sell goods there. You can synchronize sales on the Internet and in the store using the Torgsoft program. A single base will ensure the speed and convenience of order processing, support for displaying the current state of the warehouse on Internet sites, combining customer orders on different resources.
Logistics services. Depending on where the client is located, you can offer a convenient delivery method for this particular client. It is only necessary to analyze the situation: if the buyer is in your city - delivery by local courier will be convenient, if the client is far from the office of Nova Poshta or Ukrposhta, then you can offer him the Meest Express service, which brings parcels to almost every small village.
Automation of internal processes. Automation supports omnichannel, helps to maintain the number of employees with an ever-growing number of customers - relieves the burden on employees and improves their productivity.
Let's summarize. The most important function of omnichannel is the convenience of communication with the store, customer support at every step, support of single information "picture" for managers to increase the likelihood of purchase. After all, the easier and more pleasant the customer's contact with the company, the more often he will return to it.
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