Omnichannel Shopping Explained – Leverage Your Buying Cycle
Welcome back, drivers! In this month’s blog, we’ll talk about digital trends and how you can leverage your omnichannel to drive traffic and sales to your business. But before we accelerate into the nitty-gritty, we’re going to hit the brakes for a second and discuss what exactly the omnichannel is and how businesses can use it to really increase the consumer journey.
Alright Then. What Is The Omnichannel?
Omnichannel is not a new term but its implementation has become increasingly popular over the last couple of years. With Covid-19 changing the way we shop, the use of the omnichannel has skyrocketed, with consumers valuing quality and ease over traditional shopping methods. But what exactly is the omnichannel you ask? Well, allow us to fill you in.
The omnichannel refers to a consumer journey that is seamless and effortless. It’s a comprehensive shopping experience that integrates various shopping modes to help make the consumer journey as easy and convenient as possible. But didn’t you just describe multi-channel? No. No, we did not. It might be a little confusing at first but we’re going to break it down for you:
Multi-channel refers to the use of various shopping modes to make a purchase;
Omnichannel, on the other hand, allows buyers to begin their shopping journey using one mode and complete it using another. Still confused? Watch the video below to help gain a better understanding of omnichannel versus multi-channel.
And How Do I Use It To My Advantage?
Now we’re all on the same page, let’s talk about how you can take industry trends to leverage your omnichannel and increase sales.
Understand consumer expectations. If you want to drive your omnichannel to success, it’s important to understand what it is consumers really want out of your business. It is also worthwhile to find out what they expect out of their shopping experience. This can look like everything from click and collect to applying promotion codes at the checkout. Researching shopping trends, target audiences, and the competition will help you figure out exactly what your average consumer is after.
Upsell on all platforms. You know when you’re shopping at a brick and mortar store and before you finalise the purchase the cashier asks if you’re like to add something extra to your cart? Well, this is a technique you can also use on the omnichannel. What’s great about this is you can tailor each upsell to the consumer’s needs. ‘Oh, I can see you’ve added rollerskates to your cart, why not add these elbow pads, too.’ Taking advantage of this can help increase sales and shows each consumer you understand what they’re after and can tailor to their needs.
Blasts. Maybe you’re short on supply and want to inform your customers of such. Or perhaps your state has flooded, (Queensland we’re looking at you) and you’ve had to temporarily close your store. Using the omnichannel to send out any blasts to your customers is not only efficient, but it shows you value them. Additionally, sending out information that consumers need to know will prevent any nasty surprises in the future. You know, ordering stock when it’s actually unavailable, overpromising on pick-up times, or requesting coffee online when the store’s closed. Getting on top of all your blasts early means you can prevent conflict and upset in the future.
Provide promotions. ‘SHOP ONLINE FOR IN-STORE PICKUP AND RECEIVE 25% OFF YOUR PURCHASE!’ How good does that sound? Offering promotions this way means you can actively encourage consumers to use the omnichannel. Plus, because it’s so easy, they’ll probably continue to shop that way again and again.
Ensure the experience is the same all around. You want to focus on your branding across the omnichannel. Your consumers want to know that whether they are shopping online, in-store or even over the phone the experience is the same. This could be something as simple as logos, slogans and colour schemes. You want to be recognisable no matter where consumers find you.
Got Any Tips For Getting Ahead Of The Competition?
So now you know how to take advantage of the omnichannel, here are some tips for helping you overtake the competition.
Google Ads. Not having Google Ads is like being stuck going around a roundabout but never actually getting to turn off. So you just keep going around and around while everyone else passes you by. Then you run out of fuel, stuck forever while everyone else is already at their destination. Alright, maybe we’re being a bit dramatic, but you really are doing your business a disservice if you aren’t paying for Google ads. See, what Google Ads does is expand your business’ reach. But more than that, it advertises to consumers precisely when they are in the market for whatever it is you’re selling/promoting. It can help to raise awareness, sell goods and services and bring in more traffic to your website or store. Ask our team about how we can help you get your Google Ads up and running.
Google My Business. Google My Business helps put your company on the map, literally. It is a digital phonebook that gives consumers all the information they need, including reviews and photos. ‘What does that have to do with the omnichannel?’ I hear you chime in from the backseat. Well, only everything. It gives customers a way to not only identify you but it is one comprehensive place that lets them know all of the ways to shop or contact you. Right from your website, to your brick and mortar store, and even your social media pages Google My Business is a free and effective technique for getting ahead of the competition.
Automation. Why waste time and resources doing things manually? Automation does the job for you so you can focus on the things that matter. Automation on the omnichannel can be something as simple as notifying customers when a product has sold out. Or, it might look like an auto-fill option for returning customers. Additionally, you can tailor automation to the individual, displaying ads that reflect their personal interests and buying habits. The options are endless, really, and automation helps you to work smarter. Not harder.
Understand sales trends. What good is the omnichannel without an audience to use it? To get ahead of the competition here, you’ll have to go back to basics. Research up-to-date sales trends and advertise your products/services accordingly. We also encourage you to look at your own data. When do people shop online versus how often are they in the store? Who is your target audience and what makes them use your goods/services? When you understand industry trends, you can then work on tailoring the omnichannel to consumers’ needs and expectations.
Make The Most Out Of Digital Trends With The Specialists At Get More Traffic
Is your website a highway at peak hour? Because boy, you’ll be getting a lot of traffic with the help of our digital marketing experts. We’re passionate about helping businesses all over Australia harness the power of digital marketing to take their sales to the next level. If you’re ready to give traffic to your website the green light and learn how to increase sales using your omnichannel, contact the team at Get More Traffic today!
Why It’s Important to Link to and From Your Small Business Website
One of the biggest concerns of any small business owner is how to attract more customers, especially in this increasingly online world. Of course, having a website has proven to be able to help bring in more customers and sales to local businesses. But you also have to make sure that your website is optimised for on-page SEO so that search engines can find and rank your page.
One way to increase your traffic and conversions for your website is to work to get high-quality links. And in this post, we’ll be discussing why that’s important, and a few small steps on how to go about acquiring those links.
Linking Good Sources Increases Credibility
Reputation is key in building up your small business. You want to be an authority in your industry, someone knowledgeable and of good repute. And one way to showcase your authority is by showing your audience that you’ve done your research.
Linking to high-quality and credible sources is a good way to gain customers’ trust. Always link back to your sources and don’t worry about whether you’ll lose traffic because of it. Linking to other websites actually increases your authority and your credibility, because it shows your readers and customers that you’re not just making stuff up.
One way to avoid losing that traffic to your website, or minimising your bounce rate, is to make sure that all the links you put in are opened in a “New Tab”. This means that every time a reader clicks on one of your sources, the link opens in a new tab, making it easier for the reader to go back to read the rest of your article.
Linking Encourages Sharing
Linking to other sites, especially your sources, actually helps bring attention to your own. Website owners will usually link back to you, which then allows you to leverage off of their audience and traffic.
Make sure to communicate with the sites that you’re linking to. Send them a quick message that you found their article helpful and linked back to them on one of your own pages. This is the best way to encourage them to share your post as well.
Linking Increases Your Network
By continuously linking to high authority websites, you’re not only building your own reputation, but also creating a network of relationships with other sites, bloggers, and editors. For example, reaching out to influencers and building a steady relationship with them helps both parties.
Of course, not every attempt to connect will end with you being able to establish a working relationship with these site owners. But as long as you keep at it, you’ll surely continue to build up your audience.
Make Sure You Get Quality Backlinks
Not every link back to your website is a healthy one. Backlinks from websites that are not related to your content, for example, do little to help your SEO and rankings. In fact, they might even be hurting it.
Always do due diligence researching the websites that you link to, as well as those that link back to you. Make sure their content is relevant to your topic and that your target audiences are similar. Most of all, make sure that those sites don’t contain:
- Harsh and violent language
- Gambling or pornographic ads or content
- Politically and religiously charged content
The last thing you want is for these factors to become an issue for your customers, or a reason for them to not engage with your business.
If you want to audit the backlinks that you’re receiving from other websites, one tool that’s helpful is Monitor Backlinks. This tool helps notify you each time your website is linked to by another, giving you a chance to evaluate those links before they can cause any potential harm.
Of course, all this takes work and time away from other tasks that might be pressing for your business. Thankfully, our agents are among the best at SEO and can help you get on track and stay on track in driving organic traffic to your website. Interested? Give us a call and one of our agents will get back to you with ideas on how we can help your business take that giant leap to the next level.
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