Omni Channel: A strategy brands can’t afford to miss!We are living in a digital age when the purchase decision of buying a product starts long before the user enters the store. With the advent of technology, the audience now has multiple ways to get information about the product which also increases the number of touch points for the brands to cover. A sports shoes intender for example would begin searching about his favourite pair on his laptop, can try those out in a nearby brick and mortar store and end up buying it from the brand’s app on his smartphone. Keeping a user’s journey smooth across various channels and devices, is thus the most important thing that all brand managers should start looking at without further ado.

With digital marketing being the buzz word since many years now, most brand managers tend to have a strategy for digital which may be very different from what the brand would be planning to do on-ground. This comes from the notion that the user perception or expectation from the brand differs on internet and on ground when he is out shopping. But we forget that in the end a customer intends to buy from the brand through an easy and happy shopping experience. This experience spreads over various devices and channels these days. Developing strategies for digital, radio, retail outlet etc. can’t be done in silos now. This is where Omni-channel strategy comes into picture.

The front runners in this race to be Omni-channel competent are retail giants, “I want us to stop talking about digital and physical retail as if they’re two separate things,” Doug McMillon, CEO, Walmart told 14,000 attendees of company’s annual meeting recently. “The customer doesn’t think of it that way, and we can’t either.”

Omni-channel strategy is here to stay and change the face of brand management which by large has been done separately for separate channels now. The need of the hour is to consolidate objectives and start investing in technologies and resources which would help build a sound base for brands’ marketing mix. J.C. Penney Co. Inc. recently roped in two top executives to lead its Omni channel efforts. Retail giants are seen jumping on the band wagon early since for them the results of Omni-channel marketing can be seen instantly owning to their customers’ purchase cycles being short. Also, there are plethora of options these days for retail outlets each one fighting for a bigger pie of customer’s disposable income.

Brand managers should also understand that Omni-channel experience isn’t a one-time model which they can buy once and be done with it. It is a concept that changes the way the game is played. It changes the focus from affecting short term purchase of a buyer to long term satisfaction of a customer. Some key things to be kept in mind for all marketers are:

1. Omni-channel is a concept which will form the base of the brand management strategy. It should be in the DNA of the marketing plans rather than coming later in the picture.

2. It requires resources like technology and manpower having expertise in laying down the plan for Omni channel. Brands should start investing on these immediately since it is a long process, starting any day after today is too late.

3. Have a single view of the customer from top and then dive deep in enhancing his experience when he is on mobile, tablet, laptop or in your showroom.

4. The communication on each device and channel should talk to each other. A customer shouldn’t feel that a brand’s way of reaching out to him was different on its website and different when he enters the store in a mall.