Shopping has traversed a long road – from traditional brick and mortar retail, to door to door marketing, and finally the superiority of e-commerce.
Nevertheless, shopping as we know it is witnessing another substantial change, with the emergence of Omnichannel customer experience. With the proliferation of multiple channels of interaction like mobile, social media, chat, instant messaging, app feedback, email, and others – the relevance of Omnichannel has increased manifold.
Customers want a seamless experience during the entire buyer journey, from searching for a product to eventually buying it. They can choose to search for a product/service online and end up buying that particular item at a physical store, or vice versa. Either way, they want the same standard in customer experience across all channels.
This is why Omnichannel amounts to much more than just a buzzword in present times. It is that one infallible way to provide unique customer service and elevate their experience.
To explain our stand on the aforesaid subject, we have brought together 5 videos that best explain how now more than ever – Omnichannel is rejigging shopping as we know it.
1. Do Omnichannel the Macy’s Way
One of the world’s oldest and leading retail chains – Macy’s, has taken the evolution of Omnichannel customer experience rather sincerely. This video by Google Small Business explains how the 150-year-old department store has adapted its team structure, inventory and marketing to delight its modern core audience – female shoppers within the age bracket of 25-54. According to Macy’s Group VP, Jennifer Kasper, the brand is indifferent to whether a customer converts a purchase in the store or online, they just want them to shop with Macy’s.
2. The Store of the Future
Electric Runway released this video last year to elucidate how retailers are innovating rich customer experiences to integrate digital touchpoints at every step of a purchase. It shows why ‘The Story of the Future’ is an immersive Omnichannel retail experience that combines the high-touch benefits of brick-and-mortar with the high-tech features of online shopping. Moreover, it gives and insight into where and how the customer of tomorrow will shop. So, whether an individual is at the store to make a purchase or just look for options, the store displays an array of immersive techniques like digital product information, inventory check, and a lot others.
3. Omnichannel Customer Experience for Business Agility
Andy Baer from Salesforce talks about the swift change in customer preferences and that they look for a seamless experience at everywhere they do business with, be it Apple, Amazon, or Netflix. Customers want instant access to the latest available offerings through any channel, the ability to personalize those offerings to their preferences, and the instant gratification of getting what they bought at the point of sale. In this video, Salesforce and Accenture’s executives share where the industry is headed.
4. Enhancing Omnichannel Retailing
Today’s consumers want to seamlessly shop whenever and wherever they are, and that is exactly what Cognizant is trying to convey in this video. In order to meet these demands, retailers must bring the physical and digital shopping worlds into one Omnichannel experience. The video discusses various techniques like mobile alerts, information tags, digital associates, social buzz, virtual dressing room, and others to enhance the customer experience.
5. Analysis and Use of Data
This video from IBM converses how retailers can create an Omnichannel shopping experience, using data collected and analyzed from mobile apps, social media and in-store technologies. Moreover, it explains that WiFi can be used to track and collect data about user’s devices, and thereafter this data can be analyzed to reveal trends and patterns.
