My sister faced the quintessential millennial crisis — her smartphone failed to function. Much to my surprise she spent 20 minutes extensively researching and comparing products online before heading out to a brick-and-mortar store.

There she spent exactly two-and-a-half minutes to get the ‘touch and feel’ of the phone she wanted.

Now here’s the twist. Even though my sister went to the store, she didn’t buy the phone there.

An e-commerce store was offering a great discount on the same phone. The sales staff informed her that the offer was only available online. So my sister bought the phone online and waited for three days to get it. The phone makers had merely built a wall of hassle around her.

She would have much preferred to buy the phone from the store, at the price it was offered online.

What was missing here was a seamless shopping experience across online and offline channels by harnessing the power of omni-channel marketing.

If you take the dust off your old marketing textbooks, you will remember that all successful brands perpetrate the same message across mediums.

Well, with the advent of smartphones and the internet, this is harder than ever.

Consumer journeys have become shorter but complicated. Impulse buying is on the rise. And consumers now end up having different experiences online and offline.

Omni-channel marketing puts the consumer at the centre and gives her the convenience to decide when, where and how to shop.

So, both online and on-ground touchpoints become interlinked and whether the consumer buys online or offline, they have the same experience.

Five rules to follow Here are five ways to create the right omni-channel experience for your customers:

Start by defining your consumers: Smart omni-channel marketing is about understanding your consumer’s taste, preferences and matching products according to their requirements and convenience.

For example, Sephora’s Color IQ service uses a mobile device to accurately detect skin shade and make in-store purchase suggestions.

Similarly, L’Oreal Makeup Genius is a mobile app which allows consumers to upload their picture and virtually try make-up looks, receive suggestions and purchase products for these looks.

This helped L’Oreal bring its in-store customer experience online.

Offer a personalised and convenient experience: Brands that follow an integrated approach and offer customised solutions based on real-time information, interests and consumer data are bound to command greater loyalty.

Consider Myntra, for example — through its app, it informs me about new trends and even makes recommendations based on my past purchases.

Follow an Integrated Approach: Adidas recently announced that it would let its shoppers order products online from Adidas’ standalone stores. Revenues would be split between the e-commerce partner and the franchisee from where the order has been placed. Their clear omni-channel strategy that allows revenue sharing will have a strong impact on delivering a cohesive brand experience to consumers.

Unify online and offline selling: Brand outlets can offer clear comparisons in stores between different models, the same way an online retailer like Flipkart does. They could even allow offline exchange for products bought online.

A sales rep with a tablet could make a better pitch and even solve service queries faster.

My sister would have had a favourable experience if the store had been equipped with Wi-Fi kiosks, user and staff tablets which would allow her to compare prices and products.

The sales staff could have closed the sale by making recommendations and assuring her a quality product and superior after-sales service.

Keep innovating: Brands need to study consumer behaviour and leverage new and emerging technology to engage with them in this fast moving environment.

Inspired by the insight that consumers prefer shopping with friends and family in stores and don’t enjoy the same companionship when they shop online, Flipkart launched a new chat feature called Ping.

Built within the Flipkart app, this feature allows users to talk to their friends and share product images while shopping.

Today’s ever connected multi-device world is waiting with bated breath for brands to adopt an omni-channel strategy. Brands that blur the lines between offline and online channels will be truly successful.

Mitali Balani is Account Executive, Razorfish India

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