Multi-Channel Enterprise

The rise of multi-channel retailing served as the "starting gun" for a highly competitive race, taking place over a difficult and rapidly changing course. Actually, retailers have been running in two races simultaneously. One race is with their competitors, both old and new. The second is an innovation race with their own customers-and the customers have been setting the pace so far.

In the new world of multi-channel retailing, consumers' increased knowledge, sophistication and expanded range of choices have created new challenges for retailers. This ramp-up in "customer power" has fed consumers' demand to purchase the exact product they want, precisely when they want it and through the channel they prefer. And far from slowing down, consumers continue to adopt new technologies at a pace that far outstrips most retailers' most ambitious plans.

The key to retailers' gaining ground in this innovation race has been, and continues to be, creating a seamless, positive customer experience in all channels. One of the first steps toward this goal for any retailer, large or small, is measurement. It's a truism of retailing that what can be measured will be managed, and that without measuring and evaluating the customer experience, it's impossible for retailers to improve.

But measurement itself has grown more complex even as it has become ever more crucial. Today's multi-channel shoppers are engaged in more complex buying cycles, as they navigate numerous opportunities to compare products, benefits, prices and service options. These customers refuse to abide by the arbitrary designation of channels, instead hopping between store and Web visits-both to retailers' Web sites and others'-using each channel to advance their goals.

While it's a given that multi-channel retailing is a challenging proposition, it also offers retailers enormous opportunities. Peaking same-store sales plague many retailers, and enhancing a growth strategy to include multi-channel sales should be the goal of every retailer. And when retailers can integrate their multi-channel operations effectively, they gain new ways to build loyalty among existing customers, along with the potential to attract new ones.

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