Why Multichannel Strategies Are No Longer A Choice… And The Steps To Implement and Execute Them

Multichannel marketing refers to the practice of utilizing multiple marketing channels and touchpoints to reach and engage with your target audience. It involves integrating and coordinating various offline and online channels, such as print media, television, radio, websites, social media, email marketing, mobile apps, and more. Multichannel marketing aims to create a cohesive and consistent customer experience across these different channels, allowing businesses to interact with customers in a way that aligns with their preferences and behavior.

The multichannel marketing industry is projected to experience a significant growth rate of 22.30% by 2030, reaching a market value of $28.6 billion. This growth is primarily driven by the increasing consumer reliance on mobile devices for making purchases from brands.

Market Research Future

Each channel is a unique communication and engagement platform in multichannel marketing, contributing to and amplifying the overall marketing strategy. Businesses strategically combine different channels rather than relying on a single channel to maximize their reach, engagement, and conversion opportunities.

Here are some key aspects of multichannel marketing:

• Channel Selection: Businesses select the most relevant channels for their target audience and that align with their marketing objectives. This could include a combination of traditional and digital media based on the preferences and behavior of their customers.
• Consistent Branding: Multichannel marketing involves maintaining consistent branding across all channels. This includes consistent messaging, design elements, tone of voice, and brand identity. Brand consistency helps to reinforce recognition and build trust among customers.
• Customer Journey Integration: Multichannel marketing aims to create a seamless customer journey across different touchpoints. It involves understanding the customer’s path from awareness to purchase and beyond – ensuring each channel provides relevant and consistent messaging and experiences at each stage.
• Data Integration and Analysis: Multichannel marketing requires collecting and integrating data from different channels. This data is analyzed to gain insights into customer behavior, preferences, and interactions across various touchpoints. These insights help optimize marketing strategies, personalize communications, and improve overall performance.
• Cross-Channel Coordination: Multichannel marketing involves coordinating efforts and messaging across different channels. It ensures consistency in the brand’s communication and that customers receive a cohesive experience regardless of the channel they engage with.

Businesses leveraging multiple channels can adapt to these changes, engage customers at different touchpoints, and meet their evolving expectations.

How Does Multichannel Marketing Differ From Omnichannel Marketing?

Omnichannel marketing takes a more integrated and customer-centric approach. It focuses on creating a seamless and unified customer experience across all channels and touchpoints. In an omnichannel strategy, the channels are interconnected, and there is a high level of coordination and consistency.

The emphasis is on delivering a cohesive and personalized experience, regardless of the channel a customer uses. Customer data and preferences are shared across channels, allowing for a smooth transition and continuity in the customer journey.

The goal is to provide a seamless experience where customers can start an interaction on one channel and seamlessly continue it on another without disruptions.

Buying Behavior Requires Multichannel Marketing

Buying behavior has evolved significantly in recent years, driven by advancements in technology and changes in consumer expectations. These changes have necessitated the adoption of multichannel marketing strategies.

72% of consumers express a preference for engaging with businesses through multiple marketing channels.

SailThru

Here are some ways in which buying behavior has changed, leading to the need for multichannel marketing:

• Increased Digital Engagement: With the rise of the internet and smartphones, consumers are more digitally connected than ever before. They research products and services online, read reviews, compare prices, and seek recommendations from peers through social media and online communities. Multichannel marketing allows businesses to leverage these digital touchpoints and engage with consumers throughout their online journey.
• Channel Proliferation: There has been a proliferation of channels and platforms through which consumers can interact with brands. Traditional channels like print media, television, and radio are now supplemented by digital channels such as websites, social media platforms, mobile apps, email, and messaging apps. Multichannel marketing helps businesses establish a presence across these diverse channels to reach customers wherever they are.
• Shift in Customer Expectations: Consumers now expect a seamless, integrated experience across channels. They want consistent interactions with a brand, whether browsing a website, visiting a physical store, or engaging on social media. Multichannel marketing enables businesses to meet these expectations and provide a cohesive customer experience across different touchpoints.
• Nonlinear Customer Journeys: Traditional linear customer journeys have become less common, where consumers followed a linear path from awareness to consideration and then to purchase. Customers now take non-linear, unpredictable paths as they research, evaluate, and make purchasing decisions. They may start their journey on one channel, switch to another, and revisit previous channels multiple times. Multichannel marketing allows businesses to be present at various stages of the customer journey, ensuring they remain on the customer’s radar throughout the process.
• Personalization and Customization: Consumers increasingly expect personalized and tailored experiences. They respond positively to marketing messages relevant to their needs, preferences, and behaviors. Multichannel marketing enables businesses to collect data from different channels and use it to deliver personalized content, offers, and recommendations, enhancing the overall customer experience and increasing the likelihood of conversion.
• Integration of Online and Offline Experiences: The boundaries between online and offline experiences have blurred. Customers often use their smartphones while shopping in physical stores to compare prices, read reviews, and seek recommendations. They may also research products online and make purchases in-store or vice versa. Multichannel marketing facilitates the integration of online and offline channels, allowing businesses to provide a seamless experience across both realms.

What Channels Are Involved In Multichannel Marketing?

Businesses have various channels based on their target audience, industry, and marketing objectives.

On average, marketers utilize approximately 3 to 4 marketing channels. Research indicates that 52% of marketers specifically employ 3 to 4 marketing channels in their strategies. Many companies even expand their efforts to incorporate up to eight channels within their multi-channel campaigns. It is worth noting that a broader range of channels utilized can result in higher return on investment (ROI) and a broader reach to potential customers.

Here are some of the most common channels used in multichannel marketing:

• Websites: A business’s website is a central hub for information, product/service details, and online transactions. It is often the starting point for customers to learn about a brand and purchase.
• Social Media: Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube offer opportunities for businesses to engage with their audience, share content, run ad campaigns, and build brand awareness.
• Email Marketing: Email remains a powerful channel for communication and nurturing customer relationships. It allows businesses to send targeted messages, promotions, newsletters, and personalized offers directly to subscribers’ inboxes.
• Search Engine Marketing (SEM): SEM involves paid advertising on search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo. It enables businesses to display ads to users who search for specific keywords, driving targeted traffic to their website.
• Content Marketing: Content marketing involves creating and distributing valuable and relevant content such as blog posts, articles, videos, infographics, and podcasts. It helps businesses establish thought leadership, attract and engage their target audience, and drive organic traffic to their website through search engine optimization (SEO).
• Mobile Marketing: Mobile marketing has become essential with the increasing use of smartphones. It includes mobile apps, SMS marketing, push notifications, and advertising to reach customers on their mobile devices.
• Print Media: Traditional print media channels like newspapers, magazines, brochures, and direct mail are still used in multichannel marketing. They can be effective for targeted local marketing or reaching specific demographics.
• Television and Radio: Television and radio advertising are effective for reaching a wide audience, especially for businesses with larger marketing budgets. They can create brand awareness and drive mass-market campaigns.
• Events and Sponsorships: Participating in industry events, trade shows, conferences, and sponsorships allow businesses to engage with their target audience in person, showcase their products/services, and build relationships.
• Retail Stores: The in-store experience is an important channel for businesses with physical retail locations. It provides opportunities for personalized customer interactions, product demonstrations, and immediate purchases.

An effective multichannel marketing strategy will combine channels that align with the target audience’s media consumption habits and provide a cohesive and integrated customer experience across all touchpoints.

What Are The Benefits of Multichannel Marketing?

Multichannel marketing is critical to maximizing success because it allows businesses to reach and engage with their target audience through various channels and touchpoints. Here are some reasons why multichannel marketing is important:

• Expanded Reach: By utilizing multiple channels such as social media, email marketing, search engine marketing, print media, and more, businesses can reach a wider audience. Each channel has its unique user base, and by using multiple channels, you can increase your brand’s visibility and connect with different segments of your target market.
• Diversified Engagement: People prefer to consume content and interact with brands through different channels. Some may prefer email newsletters, while others prefer social media platforms or physical mail. Multichannel marketing ensures that you cater to your audience’s preferences and provide them with various options to engage with your brand.
• Increased Brand Consistency: Multichannel marketing allows you to maintain consistent branding across different channels. Consistency in messaging, design, and tone helps reinforce your brand identity and creates a cohesive experience for your audience. This consistency builds trust, brand recognition, and loyalty among your customers.
• Repurposed Assets: Multichannel marketing enables marketing teams to maximize content and asset utilization by repurposing them across different channels. This approach ensures consistency in messaging, saves time and resources, reaches a broader audience, and reinforces the brand’s identity and recognition.
• Enhanced Customer Experience: With multichannel marketing, you can provide a seamless and integrated customer experience. Customers can interact with your brand across different channels, and their journey remains consistent and connected. For example, a customer may discover your brand on social media, visit your website, receive personalized emails, and eventually make a purchase. Multichannel marketing ensures smooth transitions between these touchpoints and enhances the customer experience.
• Improved Conversion Rates: Being present on multiple channels increases the likelihood of reaching potential customers at different stages of the buying cycle. Some customers may be ready to purchase immediately, while others may need more time and nurturing. Multichannel marketing allows you to provide the right information, at the right time, on the right channel, increasing the chances of converting prospects into customers.
• Data-driven Insights: Multichannel marketing provides valuable data and insights about customer behavior, preferences, and engagement across different channels. Analyzing this data allows you to optimize your marketing strategies, refine your targeting, and allocate resources more effectively. This data-driven approach helps you make informed decisions and maximize the impact of your marketing efforts.

Overall, multichannel marketing is critical to maximize success because it enables businesses to reach a wider audience, engage with customers through their preferred channels, provide a consistent brand experience, improve conversion rates, and gain valuable insights for continuous improvement.

A Multichannel Customer Experience Example

A retail outlet, let’s call it Fashion Zone, launches a multichannel marketing campaign to promote its summer collection. The campaign is coordinated across four channels: social media, email marketing, the company website, and the in-store experience.

1. Social Media: Fashion Zone starts by creating visually appealing and engaging posts on platforms like Instagram and Facebook. They showcase their latest summer collection, featuring trendy outfits, accessories, and summer-themed visuals. The posts include call-to-actions (CTAs) such as Shop Now or Discover More that redirect users to the website or a dedicated landing page.
2. Email Marketing: Fashion Zone leverages its customer database to send targeted emails to subscribers. The emails highlight the summer collection, exclusive offers, and personalized recommendations based on each customer’s past purchases or browsing history. The emails also provide links to the website or special coupons for in-store use.
3. Website: Fashion Zone updates its website with a dedicated summer collection section. The website features high-quality product images, detailed descriptions, and easy navigation. Customers can browse and select their favorite items, add them to the shopping cart, and proceed to checkout. The website also includes a store locator to help customers find the nearest physical store.
4. In-store Experience: Fashion Zone seamlessly transitions from the digital channels to the in-store experience. They create a cohesive brand atmosphere by incorporating the summer collection’s visual elements and theme in-store. They display prominent signage, feature mannequins wearing key outfits from the collection, and offer special promotions exclusive to in-store shoppers. Staff members are trained to provide personalized assistance and recommendations based on customers’ online browsing history or wishlists.

Throughout the campaign, Fashion Zone collects customer data and preferences from the various channels. They use this information to enhance personalization efforts in future interactions and optimize the customer journey.

By coordinating the marketing campaign across these four channels and integrating the in-store experience, Fashion Zone creates a consistent and immersive customer experience. Customers are exposed to the summer collection through social media, email, and the website, allowing them to explore and purchase online. Simultaneously, the in-store experience provides an opportunity for customers to physically interact with the products, receive personalized assistance, and enjoy exclusive offers.

This multichannel approach allows Fashion Zone to engage customers at different touchpoints, cater to their preferences, and provide a seamless experience from digital discovery to in-store engagement. It maximizes the reach and impact of the marketing campaign while ensuring a cohesive customer experience throughout the journey.

The Challenges of Measuring Multichannel Effectiveness

Measuring and analyzing multichannel marketing effectiveness faces several challenges, mostly privacy and attribution.

Only 14% of organizations say they run coordinated marketing campaigns across all channels. 

Adobe

Which marketing channels or touchpoints contribute to customer conversions or desired actions? This is known as attribution, and the challenge lies in accurately attributing the impact of each channel in a multichannel campaign. It’s not easy to precisely measure the influence of each touchpoint due to complex customer journeys that often involve multiple interactions across channels. Last-click attribution, which gives credit to the final touchpoint before conversion, may not accurately represent the customer journey.

With the increasing focus on privacy and data protection, third-party (3P) cookies, used to track users across different websites, are facing restrictions and phasing out in many web browsers. This limitation makes tracking user behavior across channels, collecting data for improved personalization, and performing cross-channel attribution more difficult… all while buyers are expecting a better customer experience (CX).

Marketers globally have reached a consensus on a revamped definition of a multichannel marketing strategy, which emphasizes the re-engineering of businesses around the customer experience. They regard this approach as “the single most exciting digital opportunity” available in the current market.

Econsultancy

The industry is responding to these challenges through technological advancements and innovative solutions. Here are some key developments:

• First-Party Data: Marketers prioritize collecting and utilizing first-party data directly from their customers or website visitors. First-party (1P) data allows for better personalization, targeting, and measurement within a multichannel context.
• Multi-Touch Attribution Models: Marketers are adopting multi-touch attribution models rather than relying solely on last-click attribution. These models consider various touchpoints throughout the customer journey and assign credit to each touchpoint based on its influence.
• Data Integration and Advanced Analytics: Integrating data from multiple channels and utilizing advanced analytics platforms helps marketers gain insights into cross-channel interactions and customer behavior. Machine learning (ML) algorithms and data-driven models assist in attributing conversions accurately and understanding the impact of each touchpoint.
• Privacy-Focused Measurement Solutions: As third-party cookies diminish, the industry is exploring privacy-focused measurement solutions. For example, federated learning, which trains models on decentralized data, and cohort-based targeting, which groups users based on similar interests instead of individual tracking, are gaining attention.
• Cross-Device Tracking: Marketers use cross-device tracking methods to identify and connect user behavior across multiple devices. This approach helps create a more holistic view of the customer journey and supports accurate attribution.
• Customer Data Platforms (CDPs): CDPs are emerging as central repositories that unify customer data from different channels. These platforms enable marketers to gather, analyze, and activate data to enhance personalization and optimize multichannel campaigns.

The industry is adapting to the challenges of attribution, third-party cookies, and other technological issues by leveraging advancements in data integration, analytics, privacy-focused solutions, and customer-centric technologies. By embracing these developments, marketers can gain a more comprehensive understanding of multichannel marketing performance, refine their strategies, and deliver enhanced customer experiences while respecting privacy concerns.

How To Implement a Multichannel Marketing Strategy

A multichannel marketing strategy is core to any companies digital transformation (DX) and should align with its overall implementation to improve automation internally, customer experience externally, and all the necessary analytics to measure your organization’s overall effectiveness.

Multichannel marketers achieve a remarkable ROI, with over 50% of them attaining exceptional results. Implementing a multichannel marketing strategy significantly increases the likelihood of your business reaching its financial targets.

Invesp

To implement a multichannel marketing strategy effectively, organizations can follow these steps:

1. Define Marketing Objectives: Clearly outline the marketing objectives and goals that align with the overall business strategy. This will provide direction for the multichannel marketing efforts.
2. Identify Target Audience: Understand the target audience’s preferences, behaviors, and demographics. This knowledge will help in selecting the most relevant channels for reaching and engaging with them.
3. Test and Evaluate Channels: Experiment with different marketing channels to determine which ones resonate most with the target audience. Conduct A/B testing or pilot campaigns to gauge the effectiveness of each channel in reaching marketing objectives.
4. Enable Self-Service: Offer self-service options across channels to empower customers to engage and transact independently. This includes features such as online ordering, self-checkout, and customer portals for account management.
5. Implement Analytics and Measurement: Set up robust analytics and tracking systems to measure and analyze the performance of each channel. This includes tracking website traffic, conversions, engagement metrics, and customer behavior across channels.
6. Listen to Customers and Survey: Gather feedback from customers to understand their needs, preferences, and pain points. Utilize surveys, focus groups, or social listening to gain insights that will help tailor the marketing strategy and improve customer experiences.
7. Connect with Actionable Feedback by Channel: Establish mechanisms to collect feedback specific to each channel. Use the feedback to identify areas for improvement, make necessary adjustments, and optimize channel-specific strategies.
8. Proactive Customer Engagement: Engage customers proactively across channels by delivering relevant and timely content, offers, and support. Anticipate customer needs and provide personalized experiences to drive engagement and loyalty.
9. Deploy Integrations and Measurement Strategies: Integrate marketing systems and platforms to streamline data flow and enable comprehensive cross-channel analysis. This integration enables a unified view of customer interactions and supports better decision-making.
10. Leverage Automation: Implement marketing automation tools to streamline processes and enable personalized, timely, and consistent messaging across channels. Automation can improve efficiency, enhance customer experiences, and enable effective lead nurturing.
11. Optimize Channel Mix: Continuously monitor and optimize the channel mix based on data-driven insights. Allocate resources to the most effective channels and adjust strategies based on performance and customer feedback.
12. Continuous Improvement: Regularly review and refine the multichannel marketing strategy based on performance metrics, customer feedback, and industry trends. Stay updated on emerging channels and technologies to adapt and innovate as needed.

By following these steps, organizations can successfully implement a multichannel marketing strategy that engages customers across various touchpoints, drives business objectives, and delivers enhanced customer experiences.

Multichannel Marketing Consulting and Execution

DK New Media can assist if your organization has struggled to implement multichannel marketing strategies. We’ve worked with enterprise organizations across industries (Fintech, Health, Education, Non-Profit, and more) and all technology stacks to help them digitally transform their companies, maximize their technology investment, and drive sales, retention, and customer value.

Our team of strategic leaders, development and integration experts, project managers, and other members have deployed successful multichannel strategies for hundreds of organizations. We can help transform your organization.