Omnichannel customers drive more value

Research indicates that the more channels customers use to engage with a brand, the more money they’re likely to spend. 

That sounds great, but many retailers still struggle to become truly omnichannel because of internal disconnects between their physical and e-commerce channels. 

But don’t worry. It can be done. And done very successfully. 

To illustrate how businesses can overcome these challenges, let’s look at SPORTMASTER and what they’ve done by going omnichannel with our platform. 

Omnichannel marketing automation and the risk of internal disconnect

Despite having an e-commerce presence in addition to a physical store, many retailers view channels like email, SMS and paid media as competitors rather than complementary. 

Unfortunately, this leads to significant losses. According to studies, retailers risk losing up to 45% of a customer’s total value if their channels don’t work together. 

So what’s causing this disconnect?

One significant obstacle is a fear of cannibalization, where e-commerce sales are perceived as stealing revenue from the physical store. 

For instance, SPORTMASTER’s staff initially had a reluctance towards e-commerce activities because they saw it as taking away from physical store sales. It sounds crazy when you say it out loud. But this mindset exists in a lot of brick-and-mortar stores but is counterproductive to achieving the goal of an omnichannel approach that prioritises a customer-centric experience.

Getting staff on board

To address the disconnect, SPORTMASTER changed its incitement structure and introduced a regional division of customers to regulate how online sales were attributed to the physical stores. 

They also worked to make it clear to their entire organisation that an omnichannel approach is essential to increasing customer value. 

By communicating the correlation between the increased customer value and omnichannel to their team, everyone became focused on delivering a customer-centric experience. 

SPORTMASTER also made sales associates essential agents in motivating customers to sign up for the customer club, a valuable tool for communicating with customers.

Merging the online and physical shopping experience 

SPORTMASTER’s business model effectively combines e-commerce and physical stores to create a seamless experience. They’ve found that customers who buy online and offline spend more than those who only use one channel. 

As a result, the company has made it a significant part of its strategy and tactics to stimulate customers to shop across channels. One way SPORTMASTER accomplishes this is by offering customers the option to shop in their webshop while in the physical shop. 

If an item isn’t available at the store, customers can check if the item is available in a nearby shop, have it transferred from one shop to another for pick-up, or buy it online and have it delivered. 

This concept, known as “endless aisles”, enables customers to switch channels frictionlessly, ultimately completing the sale.

Tactics for increasing omnichannel customers

That’s great for SPORTMASTER, but what about your business? How can you take their success and make it work for your brand? 

To effectively leverage the value of the omnichannel customer, businesses should encourage customers to join their customer clubs, regardless of whether their first purchase is online or offline. 

Additionally, businesses must focus on stimulating channel crossover, which can be achieved through personalised win-back offers when customers haven’t purchased for a specific period. Other tactics for increasing omnichannel customers include offering online vouchers to retail customers and event invitations to online customers.

The benefits of an omnichannel approach to customer engagement are clear, with customers who engage across multiple channels spending more money with brands. 

However, achieving true omnichannel success requires breaking down silos between physical and digital channels and ensuring that your omnichannel marketing automation tools are free of bias. 

By adopting a customer-centric approach and taking measures to ensure that all channels are working together, businesses can increase their revenue and build stronger relationships with their customers.

Want to hear more about how SPORTMASTER does it? And how you can replicate their success for your brand? Contact us here for a free demo to learn more.