As a small business owner, you might have a mix of channels you sell through, some online and some offline. Your online presence might include having an ecommerce store with Shopify, or selling through marketplaces like eBay, Etsy or Amazon. In the physical world, you might own your own boutique retail store, or maybe you go to a few trade shows, sell through craft fairs and maybe sometimes you get a booth at a farmer's market.
However, one thing that's been missing for smaller retailers was the ability to bring everything together into a single omni-channel retail strategy. Rightfully so, given the technology up until now was privy only to household brands who could afford it.
Despite that, things are beginning to change and the same integrated technology is now more accessible than ever to smaller merchants. For example, today a Shopify merchant can have a single dashboard for their inventory, sales, and customer information, while simultaneously being able to sell online, offline, and quite literally anywhere in between.
It's also why teaching merchants about omnichannel retailing and marketing is so important to us.
💡 Interested in omnichannel? You might also enjoy our predictions for the future of omnichannel retail in 6 Omnichannel Trends to Look for in 2021.
That's why I've curated 10 presentations from Slideshare to deepen your understanding of omnichannel vs. multichannel and how larger brands are leveraging their omnipresence to meet their customer's needs and how you can start thinking about doing the same.
Let's get started.
1. Profit Distribution in Omni-Channel Retail
Key Insights:
- The customer journey today is dynamic, accessible, and continuous. In other words, it's non-stop.
- The digital customer is using the SOcial LOcal MObile (SOLOMO) Interaction daily
- Merchandising needs to be infused with customer advocacy
2. 2013 Omni-Channel Insight Report
Key Insights:
- Customer experience accounts for 47% of customer loyalty
- Smartphones influenced $159 billion in U.S. store sales in 2012
- 8 in 10 smartphone shoppers use mobile in-store to help with shopping
3. Creating a Great Customer Experience Any Place
Key Insights:
- 33% of shoppers use smartphones to look for sales and specials
- 31% of shoppers compare prices on Amazon using their smartphone
- 24% of shoppers scouted prices for products on a retailer's mobile site
4. Omni-Channel Marketing - Bridging the Gap between Insight and Execution
Key Insights:
- Only 18% of marketers have a single (integrated) view of the customer
- By 2015, a company's digital strategy will influence at least 80% of a consumer's discretionary spending
- 85% of marketers report challenges with calculating Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI)
5. Retail Industry Analysis 2013
Key Insights:
- Online retail has a growth rate of 28% year-over-year
- By 2016, online sales will make up half of total retail sales
- Mobile purchases are at 5% of total online sales
Learn more: 10 omnichannel examples
6. Conquering the Omni-channel Arena
Key Insights:
- Retailers want a "single customer interaction platform" but have almost no idea how to get there
- Creating a single brand identity across channels is the most important goals for retailers
- Retailers should designate a single owner of the customer experience journey
7. The Future of Retail
Key Insights
- In the future of ecommerce, digital information will influence more than 50% of our purchases
- Retailers can create value by integrating retail channels with social media, online, and mobile channels
- Omni-channel shoppers spend 50% more than single channel shoppers
8. 12 Big Trends Changing Retail Marketing Today
Key Insights
- Human connections are the only real metric for building institutional trust
- Better storytelling is the secret weapon for when products are easily replicated
- The best value from digital tactics comes by educating instead of trying to have a "dialogue"
9. The Future of Retail Marketing
Key Insights:
- 77% of consumers prefer email for permission-based promotional messaging
- 39% of retailers used in-store signage to convert customers to digital
- 44% of retailers do email acquisition at point-of-purchase
10. Recasting the Retail Store in Today's Omni-channel World
Key Insights:
- The majority of consumer shopping time is still spent in store at 61%
- Consumers spend more money when shopping in brick-and-mortar stores
- There are multiple ways to research, verify, and purchase products
Hopefully, after a few of these presentations you have a better understanding through the stats and insights presented about the behaviours of your customers and how you can leverage the omni-channel advantage Shopify offers to your advantage.
Happy omni-channel selling!
