As a store owner, a BIG part of your revenue comes from repeat sales. But are you getting enough of them? If I was a Magic Genie in a bottle who granted you three retail wishes, you might wish for:
- A steady flow of customers who love your store and buy lots
- Consistent sales and traffic every day
- Total store loyalty – meaning customers spending ALL their dollars with you (might as well make it good, how often do you get a chance to wish on a Genie?!)
But… Since I’m NOT a Genie (sorry I really wish I was!), you’ll have to rely less on magic and more on strategic actions to accomplish these goals.
And in our ever-changing retail world, this means your marketing strategy can no longer be separated from your customer journey.
Marketing Strategy + Customer Journey = Repeat Sales
This could look something like this:
- Your ideal customer scrolls their Instagram™ feed and happens across one of your marketing posts showing off a beautiful sweater from your collection
- They tap the image and can instantly see size, color and price information along with a super compelling product description and a clear call to action (buy it now/add to cart)
- This sweater is just too perfect, so they add it to cart and check out, without ever leaving the app
- An email arrives in their inbox – matching the style (colors, fonts, logo, design) of the post and product page they just interacted with. The email thanks them for their order and assures them it’s been received and being processed. And of course if they have any questions about their order, contact information is readily available!
- Over the next couple of weeks, the customer gets a sequence of emails from you (or texts if they opted in), including complementary products to the sweater they purchased, your story, other ways to connect with you (rewards program? Other social media accounts?), and maybe some care tips for the sweater they’re excitedly waiting for. No matter which device they open these emails on, or which links they decide to click – they’ll immediately recognize that it’s YOU they’re interacting with.
Everything they are experiencing along their journey getting to know you, works seamlessly together.
This is what Omnichannel Marketing is all about.
Omnichannel Marketing
Omnichannel Marketing means providing your customers with a seamless, well integrated experience – across the many different channels and devices they use to interact with your business.
And the progression of technology has made it easier for independent retailers and small business owners to excel in it than ever before.
This doesn’t mean that you have to be on ALL social media platforms, or use ALL the newest tech in store or on your website, or post 20 times a day…
…But it DOES mean that you have to meet your ideal customer on the social media platforms THEY are spending time on…
…It also means you have a strategy for serving through your marketing efforts – this could be as simple as including a compelling call to action: “Tell me below which color and size you and I’ll set it aside for you!” or “Message for details and wear it this weekend!”
…And you must implement specific tech elements (an online shop, social media shops, texting software, a customer support bot – to name a few examples) needed to enhance your customer’s experience wherever they DO interact with you.
Omnichannel Marketing Assessment
To see where you are already excelling in your Omnichannel Marketing and which areas you should take action, take our quick assessment by answering yes or no to these questions:
- Can your customers choose to shop with you in ALL the following: Your physical store (if you have one), your social media channels, via text or messenger, through email and your website?
- Can they seamlessly combine any of the above shopping elements during the sales journey? (for example order on social media, and pick up in-store)?
- Is the experience consistently on brand no matter where they are in their customer journey (think colors, logo, language, images, signage, merchandising)?
- Is your messaging consistent and tailored to your ideal customer across all channels – online and in-store?
- Do your customers have access to information/education/support no matter which channel they are interacting with you on (for example FAQs, blog articles, video library, support bots etc.)?
Give yourself 1 point for every question you answered with a “Yes”. Give yourself 0 points for every question you answered with a “No”.
Score Assessment
0-1 You are in the early stages of setting up a consistent Omnichannel Marketing
strategy. This is great because it means you’re starting fresh and can be intentional with setting up the systems and strategies you’ll need for marketing success.
Start here: Read How Do I Get New Customers? to learn who YOU are and who your IDEAL customer is. This will then guide everything you do in your marketing. Then read Why are My Sales so Slow to set up a consistent marketing process. I’d also invite you to join us inside the RETAILMavens Coaching program where you’ll learn how to set up a marketing strategy that will cure slow sales!
2-3 Good job! You are well on your way to becoming an Omnichannel Marketer – Your efforts are already contributing to more profits and a more enjoyable customer experience!
Next Steps: Look at the questions you scored 0 on. Choose the one you feel would have the biggest impact on your current marketing strategy. Break it into manageable action steps and set a goal for when you’d like to have each step completed.
4-5 Congratulations! You are an Omnichannel Marketer! Your customers are enjoying an excellent experience no matter where they interact with your business. This is key to customer loyalty and repeat sales!
Next Steps: Keep up the good work! With these systems in place you can focus on optimizing and fine tuning the other areas of your store to make sure your flow of customers translate into growing sales. Join me for my free training How to Increase Sales So You Can Consistently Pay Yourself & Your Staff.
Remember that your Omnichannel Marketing Strategy score is fluid – it will change over time, especially if…
- Your ideal customer changes (this can happen if you change locations or open a new one, or change your product assortment)
- Your technology changes (new POS, new website host or email provider can change the experience and interactions between the different channels)
- You go through a rebranding (this means each channel has to be updated to match your ideal customer and the other channels they interact with)
Bookmark this page and leave a comment below with your score, so you can come back to reassess and make sure you are progressing towards your goal of achieving a steady flow of new customers who love and support your store, consistent sales and traffic and brand loyalty.
This is something we help our clients clarify and implement – if you feel overwhelmed, reach out and let us help you identify where to get started with the biggest impact.