Customers expect experiences that seamlessly span the online and offline spheres. Here are various new and interesting ways to approach this opportunity.
As e-commerce becomes increasingly embedded in shopping culture, customers expect experiences that seamlessly span the online and offline spheres.
We know this. We’ve heard it all before. And we know retailers are probably sick of hearing about it.
And yet, knowing what customers want is easier than actually delivering on it.
Too often, online and IRL stores feel like completely separate entities – sharing logos and not much else. Any connections tend to benefit the business rather than the customer, leaving all manner of opportunities still untapped.
With so many not getting it right, there’s space here for retailers to stand out, and there are various new and interesting ways to approach the opportunity.
Rather than being separate sales channels, your e-commerce and in-store experiences should be intertwined, each growing and adapting to support the other.
The e-commerce experience should be present in-store, expanding and shifting as the store grows.
And that growth should be supported by online experiences, which will play a bigger role in the consumers’ journey before, during and after their visit to the physical store.
The two functions should effectively exist as one entity, stretching the other’s performance and (most importantly) making the customer’s journey easier.
Think about your website and other digital channels as additional floor space in your store; they increase your capacity to sell, and they’re open 24/7.
Of course, this also means a shift in the way retailers manage KPIs and incentives.
Online and in-store teams are typically, at best, connected by click-and-collect, availability tracking or shipping-from-store services.
At worst, they actively work against each other, competing for sales and focusing only on their own department's results. Once a customer is in-store or online, the incentive is to keep them there and to make the sale.
Through better use of data and customer information, brands can attribute sales in a more meaningful way, taking into account not only the sale, but every interaction and touchpoint along the way.
And by adjusting incentive models, salespeople can (and should) be rewarded for any interactions that influence a sale later on.
For many retailers, the missing link is a customer profile that actually works for customers, as well as for the brand.
These customer profiles will take some of the labour out of the shopping experience, helping customers pick up where they left off, wherever they left off, without having to orchestrate that themselves.
Most customer data platforms create a single view of the customer to personalise marketing and help sales teams sell.
They’re not, however, creating a single view of the brand or helping customers to shop.
For example, a customer browsing for sunglasses online might shortlist a few pairs, then visit a store to try them on, getting an idea of how they look, feel and fit. Later, they’ll revisit the online store to get a better idea of what they’re looking for and make a purchase.
The experience spans the online and physical stores, but the customer has to do the work of finding the sunnies they’re looking for in-store, and then again online.
Through an omnichannel customer profile, the salesperson in-store would be able to find the exact items shortlisted online. They can then collaborate with the customer in-store and digitally, recommending similar pairs and adjusting the customer’s online ‘favourites’ based on decisions made in-store.
When returning online, the customer’s legwork is already done for them, turning a decent customer experience into an exemplary one.
Omneo’s technology brings the digital and in-store experiences together.
The two channels are genuinely connected, growing together and incrementally, and leading to better outcomes for brands and for customers. Omneo helps your team members to sell, and helps your customers shop.
Here are just a few examples of how:
Customer profiles are often assumed to be used only by brands. Omneo creates profiles that are a shared resource, giving customers access to their own information, history, and data.
Team members and customers can collaborate on customer profiles, ensuring they’re accurate, truly personalised and genuinely useful in making purchasing decisions.
Lists
Omneo takes shortlisting further, allowing customers to create wishlists, gifting lists and more that can be shared with family and friends and used to support in-store shopping.
But while most list functions are used solely by customers, Omneo – again – allows for collaboration. Salespeople can create new lists or contribute to existing ones, helping to support the customers wherever they ultimately choose to shop.
Omneo redefines what it means to be an ‘active’ or ‘lapsed’ customer.
It provides a customer-centric view of all interactions between your teams and customers throughout their journey, gathering data from existing sources and platforms while also creating new reasons for customers to engage with your brand.
Each customer interaction poses an opportunity to set the stage for the next one. If valuable information isn’t captured, then that opportunity is lost, and what happens is effectively left to chance.
Tracking interactions through Omneo helps salespeople provide better experiences (and achieve more sales) over time, and helps customers shop with confidence, too.
The line between online and offline experiences is increasingly blurry, and consumers expect personalised services that effortlessly span both. Of course, that demand extends to the way people shop.
Ultimately, connecting online and offline experiences while keeping the customer’s needs front-of-mind can only be good for the bottom line.
Interested in how Omneo can help you deliver premium omnichannel customer experiences? Reach out to our team.
