3 Quick Wins for Multi-Channel Retail Challenges (Part 1) -

For retailers, it has always been important to engage customers and prospects through personalized communications that help them make buying decisions—without chasing them away. But to be successful in a landscape where data is everywhere—from Point-of-Sale (POS) to email, Twitter, and Foursquare—you might be struggling to connect the dots and communicate with each of your customers as individuals.

This week I’ll be sharing three quick wins you can implement today to solve the interactive marketing challenges that have traditionally left retailers puzzled.

Challenge #1: No common view of the customer

Quick Win #1: Turn multi-channel woes into engaging, cross-channel content

With customer information pouring in from multiple channels—like in-store, mobile, and web data— it’s obvious that you need a better way to connect with your customers. But when customers are continuously jumping from channel to channel—and you’re struggling to unsilo yours—worries about ROI continue to haunt you.

Sure, consumers are abuzz about your brand on various social networks. But none of those conversations are tied back to their customer profile or the experiences they’ve had at POS. If you’re still relying on massive spreadsheets, analytics teams, and pure gut instinct, it’s time to unsilo that information and get a single view of all consumer activity.

The multi-channel data you gather doesn’t have to be a burden. Use it to your advantage by employing cross-channel marketing solutions to bring all your data together—whether from POS experiences, online surveys, or consumer interactions within social networks like Twitter. This makes it possible to see each customer with a 360-degree view, connecting all their brand interactions in one convenient location. Plus, leveraging more than one channel at a time makes it easier to acquire new customers.

Looking for more insight into retail challenges and how to solve them? Check out our SUBSCRIBERS, FANS, & FOLLOWERS report Retail Touchpoints Exposed and the companion piece, Retail Touchpoints Optimized.

And don't forget to check back for Part 2 and Part 3 of this series!