Boost Long-Term Business Through Omnichannel Communication
Take a moment to count the number of communication channels you use every day.
Your list may include phone calls, text email, social media and direct message apps.
Odds are, you use more than one, and maybe even several. About 98% of Americans communicate through multiple channels every day (1). These days, no one uses just one method of communication, though many of us have preferences (for example, texting instead of phone calls).
Do you know who else uses multiple communication channels? Your customers.
As technology churns out more ways to communicate, businesses are increasingly challenged to be available on multiple channels and create a consistent experience on each. The good news is that you likely already have the digital tools you need to create a stellar communication strategy. Your next step is ensuring that you’re reaping the full potential of these tools by using them together. Multichannel communication is proven to increase sales opportunities by a major percentage – e-commerce brand Omnisend reports a 287% (2) higher purchase rate on strategies that incorporate three or more channels.
When you blend multiple communication channels into a streamlined campaign, this is called omnichannel communication.
Understanding Omnichannel Communication
Omnichannel communication is more than just offering multiple communication outlets to your customers – it means utilizing your channels as unified branded touchpoints that span across the full customer journey. In other words, no matter how shoppers engage with your dealership (phone, email, social media, website, etc.), they will enjoy a seamless and fulfilling experience with your team.
What is the mechanism behind omnichannel communication? It’s important to view your platforms as pieces of a bigger whole, sharing the purpose of propelling shoppers toward making a purchase. When a prospect contacts your dealership, regardless of which channel they use, they enter the sales funnel and may use several different channels to connect with your team along the way.
While dealerships make good effort to offer several channels to their customers, the lack of a unified brand standard causes many shoppers to have a fragmented experience. For example, a dealership may be excellent at following up on phone calls but is unresponsive on social media, or a sales rep exchanges multiple texts with a customer but when that customer visits the store, the staff on site have no record of the previous conversation.
Omnichannel communication creates a positive brand impression with your customers, which increases your sales opportunities. In fact, 80% of in-person shopping is influenced by omnichannel communication, as reported by Think with Google (3). Omnichannel communication allows shoppers to contact you through their preferred channels, which makes doing business with you very convenient. And no matter which channel(s) they use, they can enjoy a smooth, consistent shopping experience.
Ensuring Success with Your Omnichannel Communication
A successful omnichannel strategy requires consistency across your communication channels. Here are some tips to get you started:
Know what your shoppers want. Before you dive into creating multiple communication platforms, research the platforms that shoppers use the most (eg, email, text, Facebook, etc.) and prioritize them.
Focus on alignment. Create a sense of familiarity and consistency across every digital channel by instilling your brand guidelines in the design and copy.
Create customer service guidelines. Encourage your team to operate as a unit by establishing expectations to interact and follow up with customers.
Store customer data in one place. Driver data from each of your channels to a singular platform (such as your website) so that you can easily view a lead’s full buying journey and better understand their objectives and needs.
Analyze your data. Know how your omnichannel communication strategy is performing – track the outcome and ROI of every customer interaction.
Omnichannel communication is more than using multiple communication channels – it means streamlining the customer experience across all your channels. No matter when or where a shopper contacts your dealership, they will encounter a consistent experience and brand standard, which means they are free to use the channel of their liking and still enjoy stellar service. In essence, omnichannel communication brings greater trust in your dealership and more long-term business.
Want to keep learning about omnichannel platforms? Check out our blog on omnichannel digital touchpoints!
Are you interested in speaking with an expert about launching your omnichannel strategy? Contact Dealer Spike today!
(1) Forbes
(2) Omnisend
(3) 16 Best