Customers as we speak anticipate customized service on each channel the place they join with companies. To present this, companies want a centralized information hub that helps each workforce perceive the buyer journey throughout channels.
This is what an omnichannel communication technique gives—and email is a vital element.
Email permits you to ship customized communication straight to clients’ inboxes, enhancing your omnichannel strategy. So how do you take advantage of this channel?
This submit will go over how to use email advertising and marketing as a part of your omnichannel technique. But first, let’s talk about what omnichannel means and why it issues.
What is omnichannel engagement?
Omnichannel buyer engagement implies that each channel you utilize to talk with clients is linked, with information flowing forwards and backwards, so you’ll be able to present a constant expertise.
While typically used interchangeably with multichannel, the time period omnichannel doesn’t imply the identical factor. A multichannel strategy makes use of varied channels to join with clients, however these aren’t linked. This means staff can’t simply entry buyer information or the context of earlier interactions to present a customized expertise—like they’ll with an omnichannel strategy.
With an omnichannel communication technique, companies can seamlessly join with clients throughout channels together with:
- Live chat
- Phone
- SMS/MMS
- Video
- And extra
Most importantly, these channels combine with the enterprise’ buyer relationship administration software program (CRM) and/or buyer information platform (CDP). This permits brokers, entrepreneurs, and different staff to entry real-time information and change between channels with out shedding context, enabling a seamless buyer expertise.
Why is omnichannel essential?
Omnichannel communication breaks down information silos between totally different groups and channels, giving staff quick access to real-time buyer information to present a customized expertise each time.
Personalization is vital as a result of it straight ties to return on funding. In Twilio Segment’s State of Personalization Report, 49% of customers stated they’re seemingly to turn into repeat clients after a customized purchasing expertise. Plus, 1 in 3 customers stated they’ll store once more with a model that gives an excellent expertise, even when there are cheaper and extra handy choices obtainable.
On the opposite hand, 62% of customers say a model will lose their loyalty if it gives an impersonalized expertise. So an absence of personalization might finally damage a enterprise’ backside line.
Want to study extra concerning the significance of an omnichannel communication technique and the way to obtain it? Download The Ultimate Guide to Omnichannel.
How to leverage email advertising and marketing for omnichannel engagement
Email continues to be one in all clients’ most well-liked communication channels. In reality, in our 2022 Global Messaging Engagement Report, 18% of respondents listed email in their prime 3 channels, and 77% stated they refresh their inboxes at the least as soon as a day, if no more.
Additionally, email is a permission-based channel, that means clients want to choose in to obtain your communications. So if you ship an email, you realize you’re concentrating on certified leads as a result of they’ve already expressed curiosity in your model by subscribing to your email checklist.
Let’s take a look at how one can leverage these advantages of email advertising and marketing to create omnichannel buyer engagement.
1. Gather and use buyer information
Email and information have a symbiotic relationship—every benefiting the opposite.
To start with, email is a good way to collect first-party information. For instance, when a consumer indicators up to your email checklist, you’ll be able to ask for just a few private particulars to begin constructing their profile. And as soon as they subscribe, you’ll be able to invite them to full their consumer profile or replace their email preferences, supplying you with extra information.
Then, you’ll be able to put this information (and different buyer information you collect throughout channels) to good use by personalizing emails. For instance, you’ll be able to tailor the email content material based mostly on merchandise the shopper seen in your web site, their location, demographic information, and extra.
So how do you take advantage of this relationship between email and information? An important begin is to combine your email service supplier with a CDP, like Segment, to facilitate the circulate of knowledge and permit workforce members to simply entry buyer profiles to create extremely customized email campaigns.
2. Send emails based mostly on conduct on different channels
Having buyer information from all of your channels in a centralized place makes it simpler to ship automated emails triggered by clients’ actions on different channels. These automated emails may help increase buyer engagement and drive gross sales. For instance:
- When a buyer provides an merchandise to their cart and doesn’t try after a sure time, ship an deserted cart email to nudge them towards finishing the acquisition.
- When a consumer connects with customer support by way of webchat to resolve a problem, ship a follow-up email asking them to fee the service and share suggestions on the interplay.
- When a buyer makes a purchase order in your web site, comply with up with an email together with a reduction off their subsequent buy.
3. Invite recipients to join on different channels
If you’ve lately added new communication channels to your omnichannel technique, clients won’t concentrate on them. So benefit from the prevalence of email to invite subscribers to join with you in new methods with the next methods:
- Encourage clients to join email and SMS on the similar time to obtain a reduction. You can do that by updating your email sign-up type to embrace the choice to present a telephone quantity.
- Invite email subscribers to obtain your app to entry your rewards program and different perks.
- Include a hyperlink to dwell chat in your emails, so recipients who want well timed help can simply get in contact together with your buyer assist workforce.
Example of an omnichannel expertise
Wonder what omnichannel buyer engagement appears like in follow? Let’s take a look at an instance of my latest journey with Domino’s.
First, I positioned an order on the enterprise’ web site, coming into my email tackle and telephone quantity after I checked out. Next, the corporate despatched me an email with my order particulars, together with a hyperlink to monitor the progress of my order in actual time on its web site.
Then, when the supply driver was shut to my constructing, they known as me to let me know they’d be there quickly. Finally, just a few days after my order, the enterprise despatched me a advertising and marketing email with a coupon for my subsequent order. (Bonus: the email included a fascinating GIF.)
Across all these touchpoints (internet, telephone, and email), Domino’s maintained the context of my interactions, making the expertise seamless for me as a buyer. Plus, the corporate leveraged email advertising and marketing to encourage me to make one other buy, nudging me towards the retention part of the buyer journey.
Get began with omnichannel email advertising and marketing from Twilio SendGrid
Creating an omnichannel communication technique requires just a few instruments working collectively seamlessly, so staff can personalize each interplay. Twilio has you lined with all of the instruments you want, together with:
- Twilio SendGrid: Create and ship partaking, customized emails you’ll be able to belief will attain the inbox.
- Twilio Segment: Unify buyer information throughout channels to create an entire view of their journey.
- Twilio APIs: Engage clients on their most well-liked platforms, together with SMS, webchat, voice, video, and extra.
Ready to present omnichannel buyer engagement? Learn extra about how to use these instruments collectively in The Ultimate Guide to Omnichannel. Then, attempt SendGrid free of charge to begin sending customized emails.