According to recent research, companies are already competing solely on customer experience. Consumer expectations set the bar for customer experiences which directly impact brand loyalty.
Therefore, understanding what your customers want is critical for creating meaningful brand connections. 90% of customers expect consistent brand interactions across channels. Similarly, loyal customers expect to be recognized for every action taken with a brand no matter what, how, or where.
How can brands ensure they are meeting customer expectations? Most brands are moving towards adopting an omnichannel loyalty approach. A successful omnichannel loyalty program will connect customers to a brand across all touchpoints. It will go beyond one-dimensional discounts, offering deeply personal and authentic customer experiences that will yield stronger engagement and higher spend among customers.
CrowdTwist client Zumiez knows. They were ranked #1 in the “Total Retail's Top 100 Omnichannel Retailers” report for 2017. Zumiez invests in its omnichannel strategy by putting the customer at the center, offering a loyalty program that provides members with the opportunity to earn points for activities across every channel, including in-store or online purchases, social media interactions, and live events and redeem them for exclusive rewards and one-of-a-kind experiences.
Connecting customers across the ecosystemIn addition to creating a seamless brand experience for customers, brands like Zumiez understand that this approach also offers a deeper understanding of the customer. Programs like this one enable marketers to gather crucial data to drive marketing performance.
An omnichannel strategy helps brands fit the data puzzle pieces together to form a 360° view of who their customers are. Brands with an omnichannel focus are consistently gathering data about their consumers across channels and platforms and analyzing data through sophisticated tactics like machine learning and predictive analytics. 77% of strong omnichannel companies store customer data across channels, compared to 48% for weak omnichannel companies. Through these methodologies, they are able to predict future behaviors and create marketing experiences that speak to their customers’ wants and needs.
Create relevant and personalized customer experiencesIn order to provide a personalized experience, brands should collect data from a range of sources and use it to serve customers with relevant content, communications, and even product recommendations.
Obtaining data about a customer can help you move the needle on a number of loyalty marketing initiatives. Additional data can give you an opportunity to acknowledge happy occasions with a free gift, such as bonus points, a sizeable discount, or free samples, and help you refine your marketing messages to better suit your audience. You can start rewarding members who are mothers for Mother’s Day, for birthdays, and for program join anniversaries, for example.
The Body Shop, for example, offers cash back to spend in-store during the birthday month for loyalty program members. This strategy creates positive feelings toward the brand and serves as a good incentive for customers to make a purchase.
As competition continues to grow, brands that are successful will be the ones that know who their customers are and are able to engage them across all channels seamlessly, to provide a memorable customer experience.
How do you create a seamless experience across multiple channels? You need to understand “Cross-Channel Fundamentals.”
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