Skip to main content

Multi-Channel communications: are they enough?



Multi-Channel communications: are they enough?
 
Do you use the multi-channel communications model? This approach toward communication with customers and prospects is very important, but are you recognizing the limitations that this model has for today’s digital users? This blog will outline what is meant by the term “multi-channel communications” and discuss the limitations of this model for encouraging effective and responsive communications with your customers.
 
Multi-channel communications means that you have more than one channel available for communications with your customers. At its root, it is a model that creates extra channels for customers to communicate with the organization so that they can meet you on the channel that is most convenient for them. For instance, you may have an 800 number that they can use to ask product questions or place an order. The multi-channel communications model develops when you add an online order form, or perhaps a chat box for questions. Today, the use of multi-communications is standard. Customers can communicate via chat box, text, voice, email, etc. The goal is to meet the customers where they are.
 
However, as it is commonly defined, that is as far as the multi-channel goes. Customers can meet you on several channels, but that doesn't mean there is any integration of the data communicated on each of the channels. In this older channel model, each of the channels are silos; it is this lack of integration that is the critical limitation of the multi channel model.
 
Today, organizations have to take the next step and integrate these different channels. Known as the omni-channel communications model, data is transferred or communicated among all of the channels in real-time. Instead of silos, the users experience a single roadway and it doesn't matter which lane they choose to use. The goal is that whenever a customer connects on any touchpoint, they pick up right where they left off at the last interaction. Ideally, the channels could be used simultaneously; for example, I talk to customer service while reviewing my order status online, or check my shopping cart for an in-stock size or color.
 
The multi-channel communication model was a necessary step in reaching customers where they were, but it no longer is sufficient. To learn more, contact a managed services provider to learn how you can fully integrate all of your channels, so you can meet the expectations of today’s customers.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Has Your Website Been Optimized for Mobile Users?

    Did you know that this year there will be more mobile web surfers than stationary ones? That means more prospects are accessing your business website more through their smart phones, tablets or other mobile devices than with a laptop or PC. If you thought you had time to make the switch this year, you may want to reconsider in light of new research. A recent study revealed that around 40% of prospects move on to a competitor if they have a poor mobile experience. How prepared is your business for this change? Well, if you are just starting out, the following checklist will help...   1. Make sure your mobile site is different from your regular website -  While you must stick to your branding standards, your mobile website should be simpler than your web version. The reason being is that complicated designs that load well and look good on computers are often distorted when accessed through a mobile device. Plus, mobile surfers don’t really have the time to sift through a lot of conte

Four ways unified communications can improve productivity Part II

Four ways unified communications can improve productivity Part II In our last blog we suggested that unified communications has value to an organization's efforts to increase productivity. It can facilitate smoother, more efficient collaboration in a 24/7 workspace. Unified communications can Improve the functionality of our 24/7 workplace - The reality of 24/7 availability has been around for a while, and learning to place constraints on that is for another e-guide. However, unified communications can play a role on the 24/7 expectation problem. For one thing, with a single portal to an individual’s multiple communication channels, an employee can more easily communicate across those channels that they are not available and therefore limit expectations for an immediate or timely response when that is not possible. Also, with a unified portal, responding to different channels in off times can be easier and therefore less time-intrusive. Improve client satisfaction - Nothin

The contact center and omni-channel communications

The contact center and omni-channel communications   We’ve talked in other blogs about the value of contact centers over traditional, one -  dimensional call centers, but we haven't talked yet about the need for contact centers to be designed on the omni-channel model. This blog explains what omni-channel means and why this is a critical part of the contact center design.   Omni-channel refers to a specific model of multi-channel communications. We already know a contact center makes use of many different modes of communications in order to best meet all of your customers wherever they choose to be. But we haven’t talked about the fact that contact centers need to be omni-channel. In the omni-channel model, all of the channels are integrated.  The idea here is to allow for cross channel “communication” so that the information and customer data that is accumulated on one channel is immediately communicated to all the other extant channels. The goal: whenever a customer connects on a