BrainTrust Query: The Value of the Cross Channel Segment
Through a special arrangement, presented here for discussion is a summary of a current article from Signal's blog.
Reaching the cross channel customer in a timely, relevant and often location-centric fashion has become the marketer's goal, and a smartphone is becoming the platform for making it happen. Mobile is often viewed as a stand-alone channel when, in fact, it is a platform offering a gateway to many channels. Text messaging, mobile email, the mobile web, applications, and social media are all finding homes on consumer handsets, collectively representing a challenge and opportunity for marketers.
The challenge is distinct from the one posed by multi-channel marketing, which arose once businesses could serve customers through different channels, each requiring unique marketing tactics. The opportunity is instead now to craft intelligent ways of marketing across channels in consideration of consumer preferences. The timing of marketing messages and the place where these messages are received are becoming equally as important considerations as targeting the right message to the right customer.
The beauty of technology-enabled cross channel marketing is that it accounts for all consumers, not just those with the latest iPhone or the more affluent. Customer communication preferences are at the heart of cross channel marketing. It isn't about any one approach, such as email or text messaging; rather it's about the way a consumer wants to participate in a digital business relationship.
This relationship is sealed via consumer permission, or "opting in." With both a customer's channel preferences and permission, response rates greatly exceed less considerate marketing approaches. This applies as much to text messaging programs as it does allowing an application to identify your location to inform a more relevant interaction or offer.
Forrester had the foresight to recognize this new category of marketing and give it a name: Cross Channel Campaign Management (CCCM). Quite a few email, CRM and marketing services vendors have seized upon this trend, extending their offerings to account for emerging channels like mobile and social media. Notably, Forrester finds no one vendor accounts for all the requirements of CCCM, and so buyers considering cross channel marketing will have to align themselves with the vendor who most closely meets the problem head on.
To that end, I think Forrester and other experts will be surprised when buyers align themselves not with the email, CRM and marketing services stalwarts moving into cross channel, but the mobile channel marketing specialists building intelligent ways of orchestrating promotions and offers across messaging, social, email and the web -- often informed with location.
Discussion Questions: Do you believe mobile devices will transform cross-channel shopping? What opportunities and challenges will be in front of retailers as more consumers adopt mobile technologies?