1. Unfortunately,whenitcomestoomni-channel,multi-device marketing,consumerstodayare wayahead
of mostmarketers.
What isOmni-ChannelMarketing?
Firstof all,whatisomni-channel marketing?The term“omni-channel”maybe amarketingbuzzword,
but itrefersto a significantshift:marketersnow needtoprovide aseamlessexperience,regardlessof
channel or device.Consumerscannowengage withacompanyin a physical store,onan online website
or mobile app,througha catalog,or throughsocial media.Theycanaccess productsand servicesby
callinga companyonthe phone,byusinganapp on theirmobile smartphone,orwithatablet,a laptop,
or a desktopcomputer.Eachpiece of the consumer’sexperienceshouldbe consistentand
complementary.
So whatdoesthat seamlessomni-channel experience actuallylooklike?Inthe wordsof JohnBowden,
SeniorVPof CustomerCare at Time Warner Cable:
“Multi-channel isanoperational view –how youallow the customertocomplete transactionsineach
channel.Omni-channel,however,isviewingthe experience throughthe eyesof yourcustomer,
orchestratingthe customerexperience acrossall channelssothatitis seamless,integrated,and
consistent.Omni-channel anticipatesthatcustomersmaystartin one channel andmove to anotheras
theyprogressto a resolution. Makingthese complex‘hand-offs’betweenchannelsmustbe fluidforthe
customer. Simplyput,omni-channelismulti-channel doneright!”
Readmore abouthowmarketersare connectingwithconsumersinanomni-channelworldinthe
MarketingTrendWatch: 2014 PlanningEdition.
Here are my sevenrecommendationsforanymarketerlookingtoimplementamore omni-channel,
multi-deviceperspective:
1. Walk inYour Customers’Shoes
Regularlyreviewthe experienceyourcustomersgothroughinorderto research,purchase,andconnect
withyourproducts.Test the experience byplacingorders,interactingviaall availablechannels,

2. submittingasupportcase,and more.If possible,these testsshouldbe performedbyexternal and
internal testers.Doeseveryone have adelightful experience?Are there anyunnecessarybarriers?
2. Measure Everything!
Data is everywhere (andapparentlyvery“big”these days),andmarketersare becomingincreasingly
savvyaboutthe bestwaysto leverage itwithoutbecominginvasive.JulieBernardof Macy’ssummed
thingsupat lastyear’sData DrivenMarketingconference:
“We can nowmeasure successintermsof the response of real people overtime,inadditionto
measuringindividual campaigns. We have enoughdataat the customerlevel tosee how she interacts
bothonline andinthe store,so we can tailormessagingandofferstoherappropriatelybychannel.We
strive tobalance the use of customerdata to informcontentrelevancywiththe use of consumer
insightstoensure thatthe relevancyiscoupledwithasense of discoveryandinspiration.”
3. SegmentYourAudience
Understandwhichdatapointsare useful toyou,andsegmentyouraudience accordingly.Whichdata
pointsactuallyhelpyoubetterunderstandyouraudience?Usingmarketingautomation,youcan
capture thisinformationtobuildveryrichprofilesaboutyourcustomersandthe customerjourney –
youcan evenpartnerwithcompanieslike Acxiomor DSPsto enhance yourdatawithmore intelligence.
Thiskindof richdata can be translatedintocustomeruse cases,andalsousedto buildbuyerpersonas.
For example,maleiOSuserswhoworkinthe techindustryandare betweenthe agesof 25 and 35 are
more likelytobuybasedontechnical specifications.If youdiscoveryouare marketingtothataudience,
youmighthighlighttechnical specsinyourlandingpagesandnurturingstrategy.
4. DevelopContent/MessagingthatAddressesUse CasesandBehaviors
Contentandmessagingiskey.If a customerhaspreviouslyengagedorpurchasedyourproduct,you
probablywantto considerthatinyour marketing.If acustomerhas put somethingintoacart, buthasn’t
yetpurchased,use yourcontentto reference thatintent.
In mysixthrecommendation,Idiscussthe greatcontentthatZapposcreatesto addressuse cases.I’ve
alsoreceivedemailsfromBonobosreferencingpreviouspurchases,andrecommendingcomplementary

3. products. Thistype of contentandmessaging makesconsumersfeel personallyspokento,andhelps
drive muchhigherengagement,loyalty,andpurchases.
Here’san email IreceivedfromBonobos,recommendingashirtto pair withjeansI’drecentlypurchased
throughthe site:
bonobosjeanstshirtrec
5. Don’t LimitUse Casesto Marketing/Sales
Considerhowlisteningandrespondingcanhelpyoursupportteam, productteam, merchandising
teams,andevenyourcustomerservice efforts.Inarecentarticle onDigiday.com, GM’sheadof global
social mediastrategywasquotedassaying:
“A lotof itis aboutbeingable toprovide a betterservice forourcustomers.If we can plugsocial intoall
the otherCRM [CustomerRelationshipManagement] datawe have,thenwe have afull portfolioonthe
customer.If we knowtheirVIN [Vehicle IdentificationNumber],if we know theirname,if we knowtheir
Twitterhandle,andwe knowwhethertheylike togoto the dealershiportheydon’tlike togothe
dealership,thishelpsustreatthemina waythat theywantto treated.”
6. “Listenand Respond”onPreferredChannels/Devices
Increasingly,peopleuse multiple devicesduringasingle transactional process.Make sure thatyou are
able to listenandrespondtothese interactions.Forexample,ane-commerce retailershouldstrive to
preserve itemsinacart across devices –if you add an itemtoyour mobile shoppingcart,itshouldstill
be in yourshoppingcart whenyouloginon your desktopcomputer.
Recently,Iaddeda pairof shoesfromZapposto myshoppingcart,usingmy mobile phone.Later,I
viewedthe same shoesonmylaptopat home,butdidn’tpurchase.Finally,onaweekendafternoon,I
got an email fromZapposwiththe subjectline “Yousnooze,YouLose”.Inside the email,the bigbold
headersaid“Don’tmiss out!” There wasan image of my shoppingcart,the shoes,anda brightorange
tag that said“Only1 LEFT!” Needlesstosay,Iboughtthe lastpairof shoes.Zapposhadjustmade my
buyingexperienceaseasyas takingcandyfroma baby.

4. I was inspiredto write thisblogpostafterhearingNeilMohan,Google’sVPof DisplayAdvertising,speak
at a recentconference.Neilsaid,“If you’re justfocusingonmobile,you’re solvingyesterday’s
problems.”Throughoutthe day,Neil explained,consumersare flitting backandforthamongmany
devices,fromsmartphonestodesktops,andfromlaptopstotabletstoTVs.“90% of consumersstart a
task onone device andfinishitonanother,”he noted.“Consumersare wayaheadof where advertisers
and publishersare.”
Here’sa chart from Telco2.0 Research,illustratingthe frequencyof multi-devicepathstopurchase:
telcomultipath
7. Start Today!
EventhoughI’ve quotedseveral mega-brands,platformslike Marketomake theseapproaches
accessible tocompaniesof all sizes.There’stoomuchat stake inyourbusinesstodelaytakingthatfirst
stepany longer.Consumersmaybe aheadof manymarketersnow,butthissoonwon’tbe the case.
Those marketerswhothrive will be the oneswhocandeliveronthe promise of a personal,omni-
channel experience.