Although an omnichannel strategy is built on a multichannel foundation, it has significant differences in customer experience, goals, and implementation.
An omnichannel strategy is customer-focused, while a multichannel strategy is more product-focused.
An omnichannel strategy revolves around identifying all touchpoints between a customer and a brand and finding ways to enhance the experience or strengthen the connection during those moments. In contrast, a multichannel strategy seeks ways to showcase products to a broader audience, focusing more on getting customers online than on improving the customer experience.
Omnichannel integrates all channels, while multichannel does not.
An omnichannel strategy typically describes how physical stores and a company’s online operations work together. A multichannel strategy, on the other hand, refers to a business with physical and online stores where operations are divided into separate channels rather than integrated.
Multichannel strategies use various channels to send the same or unrelated content to customers, while omnichannel builds interactions across channels to advance the customer journey.
An omnichannel approach creates new customer experiences, while a multichannel approach limits the customer experience to the capabilities of individual channels.
Using different channel capabilities together enables brands to create unique and memorable customer experiences that would not be possible through a single channel.
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Examples of Omnichannel and Multichannel Strategies
There are countless ways to execute an omnichannel or multichannel strategy. Both are built on a foundation of well-organized product data, but an omnichannel approach includes more personalized marketing efforts or requires more complex data synchronization than a siloed multichannel setup.
Take a look at the examples below to see how businesses leverage these models.
- Omnichannel: Online product data displayed in physical stores.
Brick-and-mortar stores can use in-store kiosks to display online inventory, such as luxury models or items not available in that location. Retailers can also showcase a popular product as a base model, helping customers understand it and imagine it in their homes, then offer it for online purchase with fulfillment options like in-store pickup or home delivery.
Omnichannel retailers can also provide product reviews on shelves or displays. Review displays may include basic information like star ratings and review counts or detailed insights such as a featured customer testimonial. These displays link to online sources, ensuring up-to-date information as new reviews are added.
- Omnichannel: Combining the convenience of online shopping with in-store availability.
“Click and collect” allows customers to shop online and pick up purchased items from a local store. For instance, the widely popular BOPIS (Buy Online, Pickup in Store) model lets customers visit a nearby store’s website, check product availability, make an online purchase, and pick up their order within hours. BOPIS gained popularity during the pandemic.
Another model, “curbside pickup,” operates similarly to BOPIS but enables customers to remain in their vehicles while picking up orders. Additionally, BOPIS enhances the online shopping experience by eliminating concerns about returning packages to sellers. Customers can return items to a physical location, receive a refund, and complete the return process in-store. As a bonus, customers might continue shopping while in the store.
- Multichannel: A brand sells products on its website and distributes them to retailers.
This is a common multichannel approach, using advertising, marketplaces, direct sales, and wholesale to reach as many customers as possible. Each channel represents a different aspect of the business, with the primary goal being to make sales on each platform.
For this model to succeed, a robust customer experience across all channels is essential to avoid any liabilities affecting the business’s reputation.
Advertising plays a critical role here. Optimizing product listing ads and campaigns helps drive customers to the brand’s website, where they can become more familiar with its stance, appearance, and promotions. Keeping advertisements updated ensures customers find what they are looking for while maintaining seller privileges.
A multichannel retailer specializing in this approach can distribute product data across multiple advertising channels and marketplaces, streamline the order fulfillment process, and continue scaling sustainably.
When Should You Choose an Omnichannel or Multichannel Strategy?
Choosing the right strategy and implementing it effectively and consistently is crucial for retailers to succeed.
- When should you choose an omnichannel strategy?
An omnichannel strategy relies on a strong multichannel backbone. Without a seamless and consistent approach to multichannel operations, customers at the center of an omnichannel approach may face negative experiences. For example, consider a customer who buys a product online, goes to the store to pick it up, and finds out the inventory displayed online was inaccurate and their order has been canceled without notification. If systems don’t operate cohesively, they fail to work together.
Developing an omnichannel approach requires significant investment and ongoing maintenance. Businesses lacking sufficient in-house resources must invest in the right technology solution.
- When should you choose a multichannel strategy?
Companies seeking to reach more customers can list successful products in more places. Before deciding which channels to advertise or sell on, it’s a good idea to research whether the products are accepted on the channel, whether they will be profitable considering fees for each channel, and whether there is demand for the products. Thus, multichannel is a good option for businesses not ready to invest in an omnichannel strategy.
Contact us today for solutions that will help you rediscover your customer journey and combine your digital and physical commerce channels into a seamless multichannel commerce strategy.
