A Google survey showed that three out of four consumers who found useful information about stores through an online search are more likely to go to the physical store.
The same study revealed that 71% of consumers who used their smartphones to research something they wanted to buy said the device became an important part of the shopping experience. This is just one of the reasons why building a presence across all platforms is key.
That said, get ready to elevate 2024 updated greenland business email list your business' potential! Understand the differences between a multichannel and omnichannel strategy . Find out what's best for your business to attract more customers and increase its average sale value. Learn how to make your business multiplatform or manage integrated channels to improve your customers' experience.
What is omnichannel?
The word omnichannel comes from the union of two other terms, the prefix “omni”, which comes from Latin and means “all” and “channel”. Therefore, the meaning of omnichannel would be something like “all channels”.
Having an omnichannel business means offering your consumer the same quality of online and offline sales experience, but in an integrated way. Think of physical stores and e-commerce not as competitors, but as complements.
The concept of omnichannel is an evolution of multichannel. We will see their differences below.
Omnichannel x multichannel
As we explained, according to its definition, an omnichannel business integrates the different commercial fronts – physical and digital platforms – so that the consumer receives a more complete experience. The multichannel strategy , on the other hand, is based on the assumption that a company offers multiple purchasing channels (such as a website, store, applications, among others), but they are not necessarily connected.
Unlike omnichannel, multichannel ends up generating competition between the purchasing channels of the same business, not integration.
The benefits of being omnichannel
A survey conducted by Forbes magazine published in 2016 showed that being omnichannel is no longer a trend but a reality. Conducted in the United Kingdom, the survey presents very interesting data:
Yes, that’s right: 65% of consumers who purchased online but chose to pick up their products in a physical store purchased other items at the time of pickup. Being omnichannel can increase your chances of interacting with the same customer and, consequently, sales per unique customer.
Omnichannel in practice
If you are unsure whether to offer a multichannel or omnichannel service, the truth is that an omnichannel strategy is what we recommend implementing in your business. But how do you do it?
To start, you need to unite the online and offline areas. Logistics needs to have the same system, as if it served a single store. In this way, it will be possible, for example, for a customer to make a purchase on your website and pick up or exchange the product in a physical store.
Good inventory management in stores will also be necessary. It must be agile, so that products are well distributed throughout the chain of stores, including online. Management of systems must be unified and allow the sales team to access all the necessary information, such as prices and inventory in real time, to work on the necessary movements.
