Consumers don’t just touch and try products before they make a purchase. They learn about products from many platforms, including Google searches, social media, videos, mobile apps, company websites, and in-store experiences.
Having multiple channels to interact with customers is now the norm for businesses. In fact, customers who interact with your business through more than one touchpoint – e.g. social media, company website and physical store – are more likely to convert and become repeat customers.
Connecting all these touchpoints to create an omnichannel customer experience can improve a customer’s interaction with your organization and increase sales, so let’s take a look at what an omnichannel experience is and how you can create one.
Let’s take a look at what goes into creating an omnichannel customer experience and how it can help you boost sales and increase customer retention.
Businesses that create omnichannel customer experiences treat customer interactions in multiple channels (e.g. social media, smartphone, email, Whatsapp, Webchat) as part of one unified customer journey.
To put it simply, the omnichannel approach enables customers to begin their experience with your brand in one channel and continue it on another channel seamlessly.
Kinsta reports the following channels are commonly used by U.S. entrepreneurs to sell products and services:
- Brick-and-mortar shop (56%)
- Social media (40% Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, but Facebook alone is 25%)
- Website (34%)
- Pop-up shops, markets, and events (26%)
- Amazon (16%)
- Others (22%; includes Etsy, Alibaba, eBay)
The omnichannel approach aligns multiple channels to offer streamlined Marketing and shopping experiences effortlessly.
Ultimately, this makes the buyer journey a lot easier for both staff and shoppers. Not only does it boost the efficiency of customer service agents but it also improves customer retention and brand loyalty.
