Post on 27-Jan-2015
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3 WAYS TO CREATE AN EFFECTIVE OMNI-CHANNEL MARKETING STRATEGY The importance of establishing consistent
cross-channel brand and consumer identities
A WHITE PAPER BY GIGYA
© 2013 GIGYA ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. | 888-920-1702 | www.gigya.com | @gigya | blog.gigya.com
White Paper: 3 Ways to Create an Effective Omni-channel Marketing Strategy
The rise of mobile and social technologies has given way
to more potential touch points for brands to reach and
connect with consumers than ever before.
Last year, eMarketer reported that 45% of consumers prefer a combination of online,
mobile, and in-store shopping. Over the past year, this trend has only grown, forcing
marketers to consider how to leverage multiple marketing channels to effectively
reach and convert the always-on consumer. Modern customers want to check
inventory on your website, download coupons from your mobile app, visit your store
and then share their experience on your Twitter feed - and they expect to receive the
same level of experience and move seamlessly across each channel.
While marketers are recognizing the need to adopt an omni-channel strategy, many
are struggling to successfully connect with consumers across all available outlets
while still providing an aligned customer experience. In a recent survey by the Retail
Systems Research Institute, 40% of marketers reported the ability to “create a single
brand identity across all channels” as a significant opportunity to improve customer
satisfaction. 54% of marketers also revealed that the biggest inhibitor in establishing a
consistent cross-channel customer experience is not having a single view of
customers across channels.
This white paper examines three key ways to create a successful omni-channel
experience while establishing cohesive brand and consumer identities through the
following techniques:
Developing a mobile strategy
Streamlining physical and digital interactions
Socializing the customer experience
The Omni-Channel Challenge
45% of customers prefer an omni-channel shopping experience
45% of in-store consumers turn to social platforms on their mobile
devices to influence their buying decisions
54% cite not having a consolidated customer view across channels as
the biggest roadblock to a successful cross-channel experience
© 2013 GIGYA ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. | 888-920-1702 | www.gigya.com | @gigya | blog.gigya.com
White Paper: 3 Ways to Create an Effective Omni-channel Marketing Strategy
Developing a Mobile Strategy
For the first time in history, time spent on mobile devices will surpass time spent on
desktop in the United States this year (eMarketer, 2013). Consumers are now
demanding a way to instantly connect with their favorite brands via mobile. They
expect the same user experiences and capabilities they are accustomed to receiving
on desktop to translate to their mobile devices, and they are now carrying these
experiences with them everywhere they go.
This mobile revolution has opened a
new world of opportunity for brands
and marketers to connect with
current and prospective customers,
but many businesses are uncertain
how to leverage mobile as an
effective sales and marketing
channel. In most cases, it goes
beyond re-creating a desktop
experience for the iPhone or an
Android device – it’s about extending
and amplifying this experience in a
way that connects consumers
anytime, anywhere, and in the
context of their real-time activities.
The Key: Unlocking Identity
To successfully add mobile to your omni-channel mix, you have to first establish user
identity through social login. Social login allows users to log into and register for
websites through existing social accounts like Facebook, Twitter, or Yahoo. Not only is
this faster, easier and more convenient for users, but it also gives brands permission-
based access to valuable information in these users’ social profiles. With insights into
consumers’ locations, frequent check-ins, favorite movies and more, brands are able
to create more personalized mobile experiences, similar if not superior to those on
desktop.
© 2013 GIGYA ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. | 888-920-1702 | www.gigya.com | @gigya | blog.gigya.com
White Paper: 3 Ways to Create an Effective Omni-channel Marketing Strategy
Success Story
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is one example of a brand that is increasing customer
connectivity by implementing a unique mobile strategy with its airport simulation
game, Aviation Empire. Users can register and sign in to the game via social login. To
bridge mobile and physical experiences, Aviation Empire incorporates GPS technology
to reward players virtual game points for checking-in to airports in real life. Finally,
social game elements like a leaderboard displaying the top-ranked gamers and the
ability to share game activity across users’ social channels foster a highly interactive,
engaging multi-channel experience.
Increase Transparency with Permission-based
Did You Know?
72% of mobile users say it’s important that websites are mobile-friendly (Search Engine Watch)
© 2013 GIGYA ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. | 888-920-1702 | www.gigya.com | @gigya | blog.gigya.com
White Paper: 3 Ways to Create an Effective Omni-channel Marketing Strategy
Streamlining Physical and Digital Interactions Today’s consumers post pictures of their meals from inside restaurants, rate movies
from their theatre seats, and check-in at stores to download coupons on the spot.
Digital and physical interactions now happen in tandem, calling for brands to create a
unified experience that enables customers to move seamlessly between these two
realms. Thus, all digital channels need to share a joint, cohesive customer-centric
strategy that puts brand and consumer identity at the core of the experience.
Leveraging customer data and insights to personalize user experiences across
channels creates an authentic, immersive customer experience that is sure to
increase brand loyalty and lifetime customer value.
One example of a brand that has constructed an effective, unified physical and digital
experience is Victoria’s Secret. Victoria’s Secret Angel Card rewards program enables
shoppers to share and earn points by shopping in-store and online. Members receive
personalized e-mail alerts regarding special offers and promotions, get free gifts and
birthday presents, and gain access to special events and exclusive discounts. Card
holders also receive extra rewards for connecting their social profiles, effectively
uniting omni-channel experiences.
© 2013 GIGYA ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. | 888-920-1702 | www.gigya.com | @gigya | blog.gigya.com
White Paper: 3 Ways to Create an Effective Omni-channel Marketing Strategy
The Key: Consumer Management
As consumers interact with brands across a wider breadth of channels, huge
quantities of structured data (e-mail addresses, birthdays, etc.) and unstructured data
(interests, hobbies, etc.) are created. Not only is it important to accurately capture all
of this “big data,” but it is also important to be able to filter through it and identify the
right kinds of insights to create relevant customer experiences across all channels.
This requires a sophisticated database that can reconcile and makes sense of both
structured and unstructured data simultaneously. Successful marketers are
leveraging connected consumer databases that allow them to construct and track
user identities across channels and create streamlined, specialized experiences both
digitally and in-store.
The Data Storage Difference
1) Cloud Storage for Elasticity and Scalability:
When it comes to storing big data, traditional IT infrastructures lack the elasticity
and scalability of cloud storage systems. Cloud storage models allow easy access
to data by multiple users and are equipped to handle massive amounts of
structured and unstructured data.
2) Centralized Storage for Unification:
Businesses with more than one web property or multiple locations for collecting
user data can easily access stored data by keeping it in a centralized location.
Unifying data in this way makes it easier to scale marketing efforts and reach the
right users with the right messages at the right times.
© 2013 GIGYA ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. | 888-920-1702 | www.gigya.com | @gigya | blog.gigya.com
White Paper: 3 Ways to Create an Effective Omni-channel Marketing Strategy
Socializing the Customer Experience
Thanks to the rise of social media, consumers are demanding a more direct,
instantaneous connection to brands, in real-time. They no longer respond to
traditional sales or marketing tactics - they want to have a two-way dialogue with their
favorite brands, and then share their experiences with their social circles, anytime and
anywhere.
Connecting with consumers via social channels enables brands to establish trust and
authentic relationships with them by effectively becoming a part of their social
community. This leads to increased brand awareness, conversion rates and brand
loyalty. In fact, a recent study by the IAB shows that 90% of consumers would
recommend a brand after interacting with it via social (IAB, 2013). Furthermore, 64%
of Twitter users and 51% of Facebook users are more likely to buy the products of
brands they follow online, and 50% of shoppers have made a purchase based on a
recommendation through a social media network (Business2Community, 2013).
The Key: Community Engagement
Adding social features like sharing, ratings and reviews, and comments to your
website allows customers to easily interact with your brand and seamlessly share
their actions and opinions with their networks. Generating an actively engaged user
community and fostering user-generated content boosts SEO and increases referral
traffic, time spent on site, and, ultimately, lifetime customer value.
As marketers learn more about customers through their interactions and social
profiles, they develop a crystal clear view into their social graphs, revealing their
demographics, opinions, likes, dislikes, and feelings. These kinds of insights enable
marketers to extend the social experience outside of social networks and personalize
both digital and physical realms to create an effective, targeted omni-channel
experience.
Did You Know?
40% of consumers buy more from retailers who personalize the shopping
experience across channels
(Internet Retailer)
© 2013 GIGYA ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. | 888-920-1702 | www.gigya.com | @gigya | blog.gigya.com
White Paper: 3 Ways to Create an Effective Omni-channel Marketing Strategy
To help you develop and maintain an effective omni-channel marketing strategy
centered around unique brand and consumer identities, we’ve outlined five steps to
success below:
1. Identify your cross-channel opportunities
2. Develop a cohesive customer-centric strategy that puts brand and
consumer identity at the core of the experience
3. Implement a robust database solution to capture and manage
structured and unstructured data across channels
4. Create a mobile experience that complements and amplifies your
desktop and in-store strategies
5. Start building community engagement by creating opportunities for
consumer interaction
About Gigya
Gigya helps clients build better customer relationships by turning unknown visitors
into known, loyal and engaged customers. With Gigya’s technology, businesses
increase registrations and identify customers across devices, consolidate data into
rich customer profiles, and provide better products and experiences through
integrations with leading marketing and service applications. More than 700 of the
world’s leading brands rely on Gigya to build identity-driven relationships and to
provide scalable, secure Customer Identity Management.
For more resources on establishing a culture of consumer trust, visit Gigya.com. To
get started right away, you can speak with a product expert by calling: 888-920-1702
Sources
- http://www.atelier.net/en/trends/articles/retailing-omni-channel-approach-central-strategies-2013_423523
- http://www.emarketer.com/Article/US-Time-Spent-on-Mobile-Overtake-Desktop/1010095
- http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2208496/72-of-Consumers-Want-Mobile-Friendly-Sites-Google-Research
- http://www.thedrum.com/news/2013/07/04/iab-study-finds-90-consumers-back-brands-after-interacting-social-media
- http://www.business2community.com/social-media/15-social-media-statistics-that-every-business-needs-to-know-0418173
- http://www.internetretailer.com/mobile/2013/03/21/shoppers-want-personal-touch