Customer journeys are no longer linear. Instead, consumers bounce between channels, frequently engaging with multiple touchpoints at the same time, while still expecting a seamless experience.
At the same time, the proliferation of media channels has made it hard for marketers to reach a sizeable proportion of their target audience through any one channel. The result is that an omnichannel approach is now pivotal to any marketing, not just retail media.
This argument was the core of our Chief Commercial Officer Lee LeFeuvre’s talk at Retail Media Summit UK. He defined current approaches to marketing as:
Multichannel marketing – maximises the number of channels used, but they’re not connected;
Cross-channel marketing – bridges the journey between various channels by connecting them;
Omnichannel marketing – creates a seamless journey across all channels by interconnecting them.
He suggested that most marketers are still thinking multichannel, some are doing cross-channel, and only a few are constantly delivering omnichannel marketing. We know here at SMG that omnichannel strategies drive an 80% higher rate of incremental store visits, and that omnichannel shoppers have a 30% higher lifetime value than those that shop using only one channel.
“So if brands and retailers get this right, not only will it deliver a better experience for their customers, but it will also translate into better business results as well.”
There are three steps retailers need to take to deliver an omnichannel experience for their customers:
1. They need to carefully develop a diverse media proposition. Diversified media allows brands to reach customers where they are, across more channels, while also collecting data about them to form the basis of a better experience later on their journey. But it means not being afraid to trial emerging ideas and approaches, for example member- pricing or in-store digital screens.
2. They need to create a single point of contact for brands. It’s becoming much harder for brands to traverse this very complicated ecosystem. They need ease of access into every opportunity, and one comprehensive view of their campaigns. Instead of having to deal with multiple teams across the retailer’s organisation, brands need a single point of contact. One approach for retailers is to partner with an independent media agency to create a single ‘front door’ to the retailer’s RMN. Think Threefold for the Co-Op/Very, Boots Media Group, or Morrisons Media Group.
3. Media planning needs to be objective-led and customer-centric. Marketing strategy remains the same; reaching the right customer with the right message using the right media. Only the execution has changed. Messages need to be tailored across the path to purchase. At the start, higher dwell-time media gives more time to introduce consumers to the brand. At point-of-sale, where time is limited, messages need to be more templated, and to focus on the benefits of the product itself.
Register your interest for next years Retail Media Summit UK
This year Retail Media Summit UK, or as we like to call it “The Retail Media event of the year”, brought together a room full of cross-atlantic industry professionals to delve deeper into the value of retail media for both retailers & brands. Both the UK and US markets were represented by true experts, giving everyone an opportunity to learn from the challenges and opportunities the other is facing.
We’re incredibly excited to be once again co-hosting next year's Summit with the Path to Purchase Institute (P2PI), the leading publication in the United States that offers consumer product marketing executives and brand managers a holistic, 360-degree view of the shopper journey.
Don't miss out on the opportunity to be part of this dynamic community shaping the future of retail media. Register your interest today to stay informed and join us as we continue to unlock the potential of retail media together.