Three More Key Multichannel Trends and Issues
If you want to become a true multichannel marketing master, you should be on top of these three, in addition to the seven we outline in the main article.
8. Customer service and fulfillment are to the multichannel business model. At one point in direct marketing history, it was thought that fulfillment was important, but wouldn’t set one apart from competitors. During the pure-play Internet heyday of the ’90s, it was actually amusing to watch Web sellers struggle with fulfillment.
Today, top business and consumer catalogers such as Quill, Lands’ End, Drs. Foster & Smith and Internet-only companies like Zappos.com, have raised the bar. This means that if you expect to compete in the multichannel arena, you’ll have to pay closer attention to your customer service and fulfillment.
Smart marketers track every aspect of telephone, Web and mail orders, as well as inquiries (the front-end of fulfillment). They similarly measure the length of time to pick/pack and ship every order, while gauging the level of returns, exchanges and complaints of customers (the back-end of fulfillment). Good benchmarks are available by which to measure one’s business and the better multichannel companies apply these metrics to their operations.
9. Define and manage your business financial model. There’s no one single financial model for every multichannel marketer. Every business has its unique product and margin mix, as well as a specialized technique for acquiring new customers and communicating with existing ones. What’s more, most have an exclusive fulfillment system and a different set of overhead costs.
When we look at the vast differences between a retail store business model (with high fixed costs and lower variable costs) and direct marketing (with lower fixed costs and much higher variable costs), it’s easy to see how different multichannel companies’ financials can be.
Define what your firm’s business model looks like based on each channel in which you are selling. Strive to meet or exceed that financial ideal. Too often direct marketers fail to have a “financial standard” or model by which to compare themselves. This doesn’t mean that each channel should stand alone as a separate business unit or “silo,” however. Smart multichannel marketers realize that one channel may generate a sale while a different channel closes it.
10. Create cross-channel sales. It’s no secret that the more channels consumers shop with your company, the greater annual spending and the greater customer loyalty to your company. It’s also not surprising that successful multichannel companies work their tails off at referring customers to their various channels. We offer several suggestions on how you can do this:
l Your URL should be prominently displayed throughout your catalog and on every other promotion, public relations release or customer communication.
l Include a list of retail locations in your catalog or reference a “store locator” on your Web site where customers can find a nearby store.
l Cross reference your catalog and store locations on your Web site and in your e-mail communications.
l Distribute catalogs in your stores and prominently display catalog requests on your Web site.
l Brainstorm with your staff on ways to engage customers in more than one selling channel.
l Create special offers, clearance sales and broader merchandise offerings by specialized channel to peak customers’ interests.
l Use every imaginative trick in your book to help you create sales in multiple channels. — BN/GH
