Omnichannel – the phrase everyone throws around, the business model few know how to implement.
Confused? We’ve got your back. Here are 4 answers to questions too many executives are afraid to ask out loud.
Omnichannel customer service means providing customers with continuity across channels, so they can contact you whatever way is more comfortable, or choose to switch channels midway, and still get consistent service.
Some of the channels you can include in your omnichannel strategy: Phone, SMS, IVR, website chat, mobile app, bricks and mortar.
A study by CFI Group and eBay Enterprise found that 95% of customers use more than one way to contact customer service. They need you to be available in multiple platforms so they can resolve issues faster and easier.
How Can an Omnichannel Management Business Model Help Me Personalize Customer Experiences?
According to an IBM study, 48% of customers prefer personalized promotions. By serving customers in multiple channels, you learn about customer behavior in stores, on your website, on social media and while talking to a call center representative.
As you keep improving what you offer at each contact point, you’ll be able to automate personalized offers based on customer preferences.
Meanwhile, when you centralize data in the cloud, team members at every contact point can provide a seamless experience to customers who need support. They’ll know the customer’s purchase history, browsing preferences and the challenge she already shared with an employee from another department. They’ll quickly resolve the issue, so the customer can go on with her day, satisfied.
Am I Late to the Omnichannel Game?
While companies everywhere are opening more and more communication channels with customers, the surprising answer is no.
According to UX Magazine, only 20% of companies actually integrate communication across channels. The rest operate each channel separately. A customer service agent, for example, doesn’t know what happened with a customer in a store, when she used the company’s IVR or when she tweeted with the corporate account.
Quality customer service is emerging as the #1 unique selling proposition for companies, and fortunately, there’s still time to stand out by offering a true, seamless omnichannel alternative.
Why Should I Invest in Omnichannel Instead of Waiting for the Next Trend?
In a business world that evolves faster than ever, it’s hard to commit your resources to one trend.
We know it’s scary. But with almost all customers seeking service on more than one channel and 86% of contact centers providing service on multiple platforms, this isn’t a trend – it’s a customer-centric approach that isn’t going anywhere.
Yes, the specifics could change. Customers might prefer text over phone or Instagram over Twitter, but at the end of the day, they want to get personalized, efficient service no matter which contact point they use to approach you, and that’s only going to get more crucial as technology keeps giving them more options.
Would you like more expert advice on Omnichannel Customer Engagement?
[About the author]
Dylon Mills is the Director of Marketing Content Strategy & Development at Jacada. As such, Dylon’s main responsibilities are to strategize, create and deliver content for Jacada’s product portfolio that align with the global Go-To-Market strategy, corporate positioning, and marketing campaigns. Dylon’s prior work experience includes Product Management at one of the top Fortune 500 Technology companies, Symantec Corporation. Outside of work, Dylon enjoys problem-solving and any project that includes building/tinkering with tools. Dylon holds a BS Consumer Economics from the University of Georgia.