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80% of shoppers are more likely to do business with a retailer who offers them easy and flexible interaction across all channels by means of Multi-Channel Integration. At the same time, 70% of all retailers find cross-channel customers more profitable because they spend more - Recent NCR Poll
Multi-Channel Customer Management covers the design, deployment, coordination, and evaluation of channels through which enterprises and customers interact, with the goal of enhancing customer value through effective customer acquisition, retention, and development. An enterprise comes across the following prominent challenges when it comes to designing a multi-channel framework for customer management :
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3. Channel Evaluation
When the firm has gathered data and obtained an understanding of the consumer decision process, it can evaluate channel performance. The key questions in this step include the following: What is the contribution of an additional channel to the firm? If the firm were to add a channel, what impact would it have on sales and profits? What is the contribution of each existing channel? This input can be difficult to assess when the contribution of a channel emerges during the search phase and the company lacks an integrated database of search and purchase across customers. What channels synergise best with others? The full impact of the firms set of channels should be more than the sum of the parts, and synergies should exist, but which are the best?
5. Organisation Structure and Cross Channel co-ordination According to US online marketers surveyed in June by an interactive marketing agency Zeta Interactive, their organisational structure was the top problem, suggesting many companies are still keeping marketing activities soloed rather than working to coordinate them. Technology and the problems of working with multiple vendors and agencies were also an issue, along with a simple lack of cross-channel expertise.
While most marketers know the benefits of channel integration, the limitations of a soloed organisation are currently the primary reason for companies not integrating their marketing efforts. Its tough for managers to co-ordinate the objectives, design, and deployment of channels. The dilemma is the degree of channel co-ordination that can range from complete separation to full co-ordination.
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6. Current Technology
Investment and extensive usage of technology is another major factor, which impacts multi-channel integration, as many enterprises have already invested profoundly in technologies that support separate systems. To connect all of them would mean implementing integration at the enterprise level, which might demand a technology change that involves a major cost.
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Approach
A growing segment of customers, today demands lower prices, higher quality, better selection, and round-the-clock access. They expect to reach organisations (banks, retailers etc.) through all possible channels. Organisations by now have inferred the need for customer communication via multiple channels and realised the necessity of reaching customers via multiple channels. But the challenge lies in setting up a centralised environment to develop, execute and monitor campaigns across multiple channels which will allow them to achieve better visibility into effectiveness of marketing spend. As mentioned earlier in the document, websites, email, direct mail, text messaging, and call centres are all key elements to an integrated marketing program, but a coordinated multi-channel program takes it to the next level by incorporating data and new marketing technology for better response rates.
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Direct Mail E-Messaging Mobile Devices
Outbound channels
Offer Management
Budgeting
Branches/ Stores
Contact Centers
Integrate Inbound and Outbound Marketing Programs Marketers know they need to execute multi-channel programs to reach their target audience with a tailored message at the right time using the right media. Their biggest challenge to all but the simplest of programs is architecting and executing in a manner that minimises the cost and complexities that are inherent when you deploy with varied work flows, multiple data processes and vendors for each channel. - Philip Chischportich, CEO of Conversen, a leading multi-channel technology firm.
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The challenges and complexity of multi-channel marketing can be overwhelming, but before organisations take to an approach, there are four key steps which prove useful in laying a strong foundation to the approach Select a multi-channel strategy that creates an advantage and benefit for your consumers, such as the ability to check the availability of an item prior to visiting the store. Define a Multi-Channel network architecture that clarifies channel roles and investment priorities from customer value-based perspective Manage customer experience seamlessly on a cross-channel basis and consistently deliver the brand promise Build capabilities needed to market a multi-channel enterprise this can be achieved by making sure that CRM capabilities enable multi-channel management
Search
Channel Ak
Purchase
Channel Ak
After Sales
Channel Ak
Post Evaluation
Problem Recognition
Channel Bk Channel Bk Channel Bk
Data
Channel Strategy Channel Coordination - Price, Production, Promotion - Design, Distribution, Service Resource Allocation - Channel selection - Investment
Channel Evaluation
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The above figure shows a framework that joins the customer's and the firm's decision processes. Step 1 - Customer progresses through need recognition, information search, purchase, and after-sales service. For example, a customer may realise he or she needs life insurance. The customer searches various channels for information about life insurance, decides on which channel to make the purchase, and then receives sales support (advice on increased coverage, etc.) via a particular channel. Step 2 - First, customer perceptions and preferences drive channel choices (e.g., the customer may prefer the Internet for search because it is easy to use). Step 3 - Second, the customer learns from and evaluates his or her experiences, which feed back into the perceptions and preferences that guide his or her next shopping task (e.g., the customer may learn that the Internet search did not answer all the important questions). Step 4 - Third, the customer chooses both channels (A or B) and firms (k), so from the customer's perspective, it's a two-dimensional choice. Typically, the management decision process starts with data generated by the customer decision process. These data are at the customer levelwhat channel(s) did the customer use for which purpose, and what did he or she purchase? Consistent with the emphasis on the customer, the firm's decision process is driven by such customerlevel data. After the data have been assembled, the firm evaluates its channels (Are they profitable? Are they serving the purposes for which they are designed?).With this knowledge in hand, the manager can specify a multichannel strategy (which channels to employ, how to design them, how to allocate resources across channels) and a marketing plan (pricing, assortment, service levels) for implementing the strategy.
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Based on the challenges mentioned in previous section and the framework presented in this section, organisations would want to follow an approach that covers the following -
Integration of customer data to create a Customer Data Integration (CDI) source, which would provide a single customer view resulting in prompt analysis of customer data.
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Understand customer behaviour based on customer data within CDI. Once organisations get handle over customer behaviour, the next step would be to determine customer's channel choice, there could be various variants like marketing efforts, channel attributes, social influence, situational influence etc. which determines his/her channel choice.
Once organisations get to know customer's choice of channel, it's important to evaluate the profit contribution by all the channels used.
Based on valuation, organisations would want to allocate resources like marketing spend and other resources to most valued channels, for e.g. if one particular channel valuation indicates that that channel to be the most preferred and most profit contributing for customer acquisition then allocate maximum resources to further increase the acquisition.
Organisations should look to entail channel co-ordination strategies by developing channel synergy based on aspects like customer segmentation and functions. For e.g. some customers might use Internet to search about a product while another customer might choose to use call centre services for product information. Organisations need to ensure that profit-driving factors like product rice need to be consistent across channels.
This is a generic approach, which can be utilised across verticals, but the degree of overcoming the challenges could be different for each vertical based on what all channels are applicable, customer segment, technology used and other factors.
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Benefits
With a Multi-Channel solution and framework is in place, organisations will realise the following benefits Unified view of customer across multiple channels Identification and capture of opportunities for increasing value per customer Streamlined cross-channel order fulfilments' through integration of all management systems involved Increased choice for customers in the way they can interact Ability to switch between the channels depending on customer preference and interaction type 360-degree view of customers and unlimited personalisation and targeted promotions through crosschannel customer data integration and analysis. Increase of efficiency through sharing of process, technology and information Increased customer loyalty through cross-channel loyalty programs, where customers can earn points or credit that can be accumulated and redeemed from any channel. 24 x 7 customer support by leveraging increased customer touch time across the multiple channels Consistent brand, product, price and promotional information across all channels Increased convenience and improved experience to customer Increased organisational flexibility Increased efficiency in exploiting customer data to identify customer needs
Bottomline
By now, we realise that a multi-channel framework helps achieve a unified view of the customer. This leads to better effectiveness and convenience for organisations in terms of capturing data coming via various channels. What next? The incoming information or data comprises of feedback, criticism and many individual views and thoughts all these demand attention and action post analysis. In the next and last part of the series, we will look at Customer Response Management, which is a key challenge in a multi-channel environment due to the diverse nature of channels. The stress will be on how channels integrate and how the response received from the customer is managed and exchanged by various channels to generate positive brand value and higher business returns.
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