Only 7 per cent of brands surveyed have an omnichannel model

In the Global State of Customer Experience 2019 report, CX Network surveyed 220 CX practitioners on their current stage of channel integration, only 7 per cent could say they provide an omnichannel model.

It is apparent that brands are struggling to make headway in implementing omnichannel models. Major challenges include fragmented silos with competing goals and metrics, omnichannel revenue management and distinguishing between multichannel and omnichannel. At the same time, customers have increased their expectations for a buying journey to feature integrated crosschannel experiences.

On site at the Omnichannel Exec Forum, Swave Szymczyk, director of digital aarketing at Adidas (retail) discussed the power of omnichannel and customer centricity and being aware of how you are interacting with consumers in different environment. He said: “Each customer is going to experience a campaign or experience the brand in many different ways.

“Everyone knows the adage: ‘Give the consumer what they want, when they want’. The reality is that consumer takes it when they want it. So you have to serve it up on an easy enough platform for them to take what they want, when they want.”

Watch: How to crack the omnichannel marketing challenge

Businesses must press on in this journey, as omnichannel customers are thought to have more lifetime value than single channel customers.

It is promising that the brands surveyed are planning to improve in this area. When asked about their future commitments, 34 per cent hoped to have an omnichannel model in place the next year. But, given the slow pace of complex omnichannel implementation, it will be interesting to see if the surveyed companies are able to fulfill this commitment in next year’s report. If brands are to succeed, they must have clear goals and expectations. 

Check out the agedna for the CX Network Omnichannel forum 2020

On the topic of omnichannel expectations, Marion Humeau, global head of customer experience and digital innovation at Groupe Renault said: "The customers want to have clear answers for their questions, for this we need to have dynamic content, dynamic pricing, offers and etc. Artificial intelligence systems can anticipate and automate the response needed.

“Then it’s a question of emotion. Why should the customer pay €25,000 for a car? Well they need to be engaged and really buy into the investment. For this we have the personalization challenge and how to strengthen engagement at each step instead of just focusing on the transaction – whether they bought or not. It’s taking things that step further to see how much engagement was built, to boost loyalty.”

Read: Your guide to getting started with omnichannel marketing

Be sure to read the full report for more insight on top trends, challenges and solutions including the removal of data silos and building a customer-first culture.

Or watch the video below for a rundown of key insights