Developing the MultiChannel vision.
Channels to market have traditionally developed with separate growth profiles and separate management structures and as a result the core data that drives a true multi-channel strategy has been locked in a plethora of back-end systems, making it either too complex, too costly or just plain impossible to build a multichannel view of the business – until now.
There are three key drivers that have now made this a commercial reality: consumer demand for channel choice; the commercial risks of not understanding customers across all channels whilst competitors do; and the technical ability to achieve a multichannel platform for the first time; Consequently in 2008, 76% of FTSE 100 companies stated that they have a strategic goal to integrate their multi-channel data assets in order to understand buyer behaviour across multiple channels. The core drivers for developing a multichannel model are;
> Technology
Open Architecture
Providing data shared across different platforms and environments
Data Transfer Protocol
Allowing data to be passed between databases automatically, in order to create a common data store
Increased Data Processing speeds
Permitting systems to load, query and model large amounts of data in real-time
Reducing Memory and Storage Costs
Allowing an organisation’ data assets to be stored in a data mart for access by the business, rather than being held on backup tape.
Broadband Connectivity
50% of UK Homes now have high-speed broadband connectivity, allowing faster internet access and therefore allowing any organisation to provide a much richer online experience.
Sophisticated Data Modeling and Analytics Software
Having access to data and high-speed processing is irrelevant unless the data can be turned into actionable data discovery.
> Market Demand Drivers
Empowered consumers
Consumers today have more access to information pre-purchase than ever before. Whilst
85% of sales are still transacted offline, the online channel is increasingly significant in the purchasing process. It is estimated that 60% of purchases in the UK are now influenced directly by the online channel, with the figure rising in direct proportion to the cost of the product or service i.e. The more expensive the product or service, the more important the online channel becomes.
High Service Expectations
If a consumer has purchased from an organisation in the past, they will expect that organization to know them and the more frequently and the greater value that they spend, the more they expect that organisation to know their likes and dislikes. In the 1980’s and 1990’s this concept became known as “Customer Relationship Management” (CRM) and today, in the online era, the concept is known as personalization. Putting all the knowledge an organization has about an individual into one place and profiling that data against similar purchasers can become very powerful in matching service expectations.
High Convenience Expectations
Allowing customers to purchase online and collect in-store, purchase online and return in-store, or to redeem in-store coupons or loyalty card points online are all becoming expectations of consumers today. Similarly, consumers with a traditional high street bank current account, expect to access and administer this online.
Channel Blurring & Loyalty to Successful Multi-channel Brands
There is increasing evidence that consumers are blurring the traditional online, store and catalogue demarcations that separated brands and that they are now buying into brands themselves, becoming a consumer of a particular brand rather than a shopper in its stores,
a shopper online or catalogue purchaser This means that to win in the future, brands must understand and shape the business around this multi-channel loyalty.
> Commercial Drivers
Identifying and protecting “Multi-channel Super Consumers”
Within any multi-channel organisation data, an increasing number of customers can be identified who use multiple channels to make a purchase. These “multi-channel super consumers” are increasingly important as there is growing evidence that the more channels a consumer uses, the more they will spend with that organization. Multi-channel customers shop more frequently and now represent 40% of all consumers. Most business therefore understand that multi-channel “super shoppers” are critical to future success and are trying to do three things with them:
• Work out who they are within their own data and how to keep them
• Examine how to turn more of their existing customers into super shoppers
• Target competitors super shoppers and turn them into their own.
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