How to Create an Omnichannel Experience and Why It Matters

The marketing rule of seven suggests that consumers need to interact with a brand at seven different touch points before they convert to a customer. While this concept is still widely accepted in the e-commerce marketing industry, it actually dates back to the 1930s.

The world has changed quite a bit since then. In the age of digital consumerism, the world is more connected than ever. There are more and more ways for brands and customers to interact, as well as millions of businesses competing for consumer attention.

With that in mind, it’s no wonder that Google found the average consumer journey now involves anywhere between 20 to 500 or more touch points. 

Unsurprisingly, a lot of these touchpoints are online. Yet, while luxury shoppers do like to research products online, they still place a lot of value on the in-store experience. 64% of consumers say they enjoy a hybrid shopping experience where they buy products both on and offline.

That’s why having a strong omnichannel experience is crucial to a luxury brand’s success. Data analysis of 130,000 Omnisend campaigns found that marketers who promoted a campaign through three or more channels achieved a 494% higher average order value than those who only used one. 

So, what exactly is an omnichannel experience and how can you create one for your brand? Let’s take a closer look. 

What Is Omnichannel Marketing?

Omnichannel marketing is about creating an integrated marketing experience across all channels. It provides a more cohesive customer experience, regardless of how or where a customer interacts with the brand.

For instance, if a customer added an item to their cart but didn’t check out, they might receive an ad for that specific item on another channel a few days later. That’s an example of omnichannel marketing in action. 

The goal is to provide customers with a consistent and personalized experience, whether they shop through a website, mobile app, physical store, or social media.

Why is Omnichannel Marketing Important?

Using omnichannel marketing is an important part of a luxury brand’s strategy because it enables a greater audience reach. By having a strong presence on multiple channels, brands can connect with customers wherever and however the customer prefers to engage. 

It’s difficult to predict when a customer will decide to purchase. By being active in several marketing channels, brands can ensure they’re ready and waiting to capture those sales at the right time. 

Luxury shoppers have high expectations when it comes to their shopping experiences. Omnichannel marketing serves the customer by making it easier to find them and providing a seamless customer journey, increasing customer satisfaction and loyalty. 

Why Luxury Brands Benefit From Omnichannel Rather Than Multi-channel Marketing

Omnichannel marketing is not to be confused with multichannel marketing. While multichannel marketing puts a greater emphasis on engaging customers across various platforms, omnichannel marketing takes it a step further by prioritizing the overall customer experience. For luxury brands — which often emphasize exclusivity and personalization — the latter is critical. 

This is supported by Merkle’s Experience Impact report which found that 66% of customers care more about the shopping experience than the price. It’s so important across all brand channels that 52% of customers would stop shopping on a brand’s website due to a poor site experience. 

Examples of Omnichannel Experience

Luxury brands like Nike and Sephora have set the bar high with their omnichannel strategies. 

Nike’s brand experience extends throughout each marketing channel it uses — which is a fair few. Beyond the expected channels, such as its website, social media pages, email marketing, SMS marketing, and so on, Nike also uses platforms that offer unique content, discounts, and community interactions. For example, its SNKRS and Run Club apps create premium experiences that engage customers in their daily lives. 

Sephora also leverages omnichannel marketing effectively, offering rich, personalized customer experiences. This includes in-app messaging, customized push notifications, and facilitating one-to-one beauty consultations. The brand also sets the benchmark for digitizing the in-store experience with technology that enables staff to access customer favorites and recommend more products they may like. It’s proven to be worth the investment, with customers who visited the Sephora website within 24 hours of visiting a store found to be three times more likely to buy something.  

How to Create an Omnichannel Experience

Now that we know the importance and advantages of omnichannel marketing, let’s explore how to create one. For luxury brands, this requires careful planning and execution. Here's a step-by-step guide:

1. GET TO KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE

As with any marketing strategy, knowing your audience is vital. You need to understand their wants and needs, not only on a broader scale but on an individual one too. This will differ greatly between your customer segments, including age, gender, region, and more. 

It’s important to know which channels your target customers use, whether it’s SMS over email marketing, YouTube over Instagram, and so on. This way, you can make sure to prioritize the places they hang out, both online and offline. 

2. MAP YOUR CUSTOMER JOURNEY

Once you know where your customers are coming from, you’ll need to map out their journey from first interaction through to making a purchase. With this map, it will be easier to see where you can use omnichannel marketing and enhance the user experience. 

For instance, if you see a lot of people dropping off at a specific point along the conversion funnel, such as the checkout point, you can add improvements to prevent this. One idea would be to add authentic customer reviews to reduce checkout hesitation and drive up sales. 

3. INTEGRATE ALL CHANNELS SEAMLESSLY

For a truly great customer experience, your channels should be integrated — including both the online and offline touchpoints. This means providing a uniform customer experience across all of your channels and an effortless flow between them. 

It can be helpful to use marketing tools that track this flow and see how your customers move along it. 

4. FUSE ONLINE & OFFLINE

So, how does this work specifically for online and offline? It’s all about bridging the gap between them — particularly considering that 70% of smartphone users who shop in-store use their phones to research products while shopping.

Luxury brands should consider using innovative technologies, such as AR or VR, in-store kiosks, or mobile apps that enhance the in-store experience. They could even use QR codes on clothing tags that allow customers to read product reviews or impact ratings. 

5. USE OMNICHANNEL SUPPORT SERVICES

No matter which channel your customer is using, they should have the option to receive support. This involves allowing them to communicate with an agent — or in some cases, a bot — to receive immediate answers to their questions. 

On the brand’s website, this could encompass a live web chat, an in-depth FAQ page that covers the most popular questions asked, as well as educational and SEO-led blog content for more in-depth answers. 

6. TRACK & MEASURE PERFORMANCE

To continuously measure how your omnichannel marketing strategy is performing, you need to set some key performance indicators (KPIs). With the same tools that track your user flow, you can collect data on customer interactions, sales, and feedback to make data-driven improvements.

We Can Help With Your Omnichannel Experience

At Block & Tam, we understand that data is at the heart of an effective omnichannel experience. We specialize in creating touch points through SEO, social media, and paid advertising that resonate with your luxury brand's audience.

Using our proprietary technology, we can craft dashboards that are personalized to your brand, helping you make data-driven strategic decisions using high-quality, tailored data. With the help of our expert team, you can execute a superior omnichannel marketing strategy.

To learn more, get in touch with one of our specialists today!