Consumers Are Thinking Omnichannel—And Brands Should Too

Posted on by Beth Negus Viveiros

Does your brand think of itself as omnichannel? If it doesn't now, chances are it will soon.

"Omnichannel" was the buzzword of eTail Boston last month. Almost every speaker discussed how channel lines were increasingly blurring—customers are already at the point where they don't distinguish their experiences with a brand by a particular channel. Marketers need to catch up, and make their customer data accessible to every touchpoint a customer comes in contact with throughout the enterprise.

"Mobile is making channels completely irrelevant—if a customer is using your app while in your store, what channel is that?" says Lisa Gavales, CMO of Express. "So how then do you define channels? By how she paid? By where the item will ship from?"

John Peebles, vice president product development & innovation of Avis Budget Group, noted that for his brand, while the company's website and it's ease of function is important to a customer, it isn't the primary driver of satisfaction. "That's where they pick up or return their car, so we need a customer facing person to be able to leverage the data we have."

Likewise, for JetBlue, while the digital channel is where most of their sales occur, JetBlue's customers' "instore" experience really happens at the airport and inflight, notes Michael Stromer, vice president of customer connections marketing.

When Avis first launched its app, the app allowed the customer to make a reservation but they couldn't manage their rental experience through the app while on the road. "The customer had to remember their reservation number to use it," and that was a disconnect, says Peebles. "We need to be consistent no matter where you interact with us."

Similarly, Delta Air Lines redesigned its home page to highlight what matters most to travelers—booking a trip, checking in, confirming flight status. "Years ago, you could find these things on the site, but man, you had to be good," says Bob Kupbens, vice president, marketing and digital commerce. "We made them big and bold, and put things people wanted to use right in their face."

Mobile is critical for the travel industry, says JetBlue's Stromer. "We need to keep the customer front and center and don't force things. Technology won't always solve communications problems. Sometimes its just figuring out exactly what your customer's pain point really is—maybe they don't understand where to drop their bags."

The best way to do that isn't necessarily in the office, says Chris Ladd, executive vice president and chief digital officer of running shoe marketer Finish Line. "Your desk is a horrible place to get perspective. Get out and talk to your customers."

Finish Line's demographic is 18-29, and those customers live on their cellphones, Ladd says. "Eighty to ninety percent of our email interaction is on the cellphone, and [our customers] see the phone as a bridge between online and brick and mortar. Mobile sales conversion rates aren't there yet for the brand, which is focusing on mobile usability. "The onus is on all of us to keep testing and learning. Payment will change the game in the mobile space."
 

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