oimi-channel
Omni-Channel 2012:
Cross-Channel Comes of Age
2012
Benchmark Report
Nikki Baird and Brian Kilcourse, Managing Partners
June 2012
i
Executive Summary
Since our first cross-channel benchmark in 2007, we’ve observed how retailers have moved from accepting the notion that establishing a selling channel in the “digital” domain is important, to realizing that the new selling channels need to have some level of integration to the legacy store channel, and now to an understanding that consumers routinely use more than one channel to execute a single transaction, and therefore all the selling channels need to work seamlessly together to support the company’s Brand. While it hasn’t been an easy journey for retailers to recognize the need for a brand-oriented strategy defined by customer insights, that day has come for most in the industry.
Retailers now know that increasingly, their cross-channel shoppers are just “shoppers”, and that their biggest challenge is in how to merge the digital and physical selling worlds into one compelling, seamless customer experience. Some key findings in the study that support this conclusion include:
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For the first time in our six studies, more retailers report that they operate online/eCommerce channels than they do traditional stores (92% vs. 89%)
100% of retailers believe that maintaining a single brand identity across all channels is important
While 100% of responding retailers believe that the customer shopping experience should be consolidated across all channels for a consistent experience, only 32% have achieved that goal
Retail Winners demonstrate a relentless focus on the customer: 100% of those retailers plan to consolidate the shopping experience, loyalty programs, and social and digital marketing across all channels
37% more Retail Winners believe that the Marketing function should drive the crosschannel strategy forward, than do other retailers
Not
Cross-Channel Comes of Age
2012
Benchmark Report
Nikki Baird and Brian Kilcourse, Managing Partners
June 2012
i
Executive Summary
Since our first cross-channel benchmark in 2007, we’ve observed how retailers have moved from accepting the notion that establishing a selling channel in the “digital” domain is important, to realizing that the new selling channels need to have some level of integration to the legacy store channel, and now to an understanding that consumers routinely use more than one channel to execute a single transaction, and therefore all the selling channels need to work seamlessly together to support the company’s Brand. While it hasn’t been an easy journey for retailers to recognize the need for a brand-oriented strategy defined by customer insights, that day has come for most in the industry.
Retailers now know that increasingly, their cross-channel shoppers are just “shoppers”, and that their biggest challenge is in how to merge the digital and physical selling worlds into one compelling, seamless customer experience. Some key findings in the study that support this conclusion include:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
For the first time in our six studies, more retailers report that they operate online/eCommerce channels than they do traditional stores (92% vs. 89%)
100% of retailers believe that maintaining a single brand identity across all channels is important
While 100% of responding retailers believe that the customer shopping experience should be consolidated across all channels for a consistent experience, only 32% have achieved that goal
Retail Winners demonstrate a relentless focus on the customer: 100% of those retailers plan to consolidate the shopping experience, loyalty programs, and social and digital marketing across all channels
37% more Retail Winners believe that the Marketing function should drive the crosschannel strategy forward, than do other retailers
Not