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Frictionless B2CIroning out the rough spots in a marketing world full of wrinkles.

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IntroductionContinuous. Effortless. Uneventful. Smooth. These are all synonyms for the word “frictionless.” They all mean pretty much the same thing as it relates to a cross-channel B2C marketing experience—a smoother ride for your customers.

In other words your customers want, demand and quite frankly expect a cross-channel experience where they receive essentially the same message across all of those same channels.

In the recently-released Modern Marketing Essentials Guide to Cross-Channel Marketing, we talk about how the customer experience is broken and why it is broken—far too many customers are subjected to a fragmented or non-integrated experience across all channels.

Rest assured, the experience is in fact broken and it is broken whether you fall on the B2C or B2B side of the aisle.

In this particular guide, we’ll discuss some ways to remove any friction B2C marketers may be having as it relates to delivering a cross-channel marketing experience.

For you B2B marketers out there, you will want to check out Frictionless B2B. Clever title, huh?

Ok enough levity. Let’s iron out some best practices on delivering on the frictionless marketing experience promise when it comes to marketing automation, content marketing, social media and data management.

B2C

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THE STATE OF CROSS-CHANNEL B2C: A confused state of affairs. A snapshot of today’s B2C audience experience.

9:20 AM

A customer of Brand X receives an email which contains content related to a new sale.

10:12 AM Customer receives an SMS message which contains content related to a completely different sale.

1:04 PM Customer decides to make a purchase via the path to purchase in the original email.

3:31 PM Customer sees a display ad for the exact item they just purchased a few hours prior.

“In dialogue with buyers, (modern marketers) give them exactly what they need at each stage of the purchase journey, personalized to their preferences. They give the buyers nothing that would waste their time.” (Forrester Research—Why You Need to Be a Modern Marketer 2014)

A bigger picture of the problem.

• 78% of customers don’t receive a consistent experience across all channels. (Accenture)

• 96% of buyers receive irrelevant ads or promotions (Janrain and Integrated Marketing Survey 2013)

• 74% of customers are frustrated that web content doesn’t map to their interest (Nielson)

$$$$

AT THE END OF THE DAY

94% of customers have discontinued communications with a company because they receive irrelevant promotions and messages. (Blue Research)

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SO WHAT’S THE PROBLEM? Poor Integration = Channel Frustration Lack of engagement coordination can trip everything up.

And according to Forrester: “Even within marketing, silos inhibit coordination, resulting in less-than-ideal customer experiences.” (Why You Need to Be a Modern Marketer 2014).

Without a coordinated, cross-departmental, cross-channel fix, marketers can suffer:

• Loss of customer interest.

• Lost of customer loyalty.

• Confusion and mistrust.

• Loss of market share

Regardless of channel, consumers and prospects have more refined appetites for marketing and higher expectations. They expect and desire more than a generic product experience—they want to feel an affinity for their investment and attraction to a brand.

THE SOLUTION: The Frictionless Customer Journey No more bumps, detours, or hiccups.

According to research by Deloitte, “ideal customers” spend 2x as much as regular customers, and carry a 5x greater lifetime value because they drive a modern word-of-mouth strategy for your company, service or brand. Those ideal customers are ones that:

• Can confidently get valuable, consistent information from you at any time

• Welcome new developments communicated to them

• Gladly share successes with peers

• Feel a part of a greater community around your products and services

89% of marketing teams have internal divisions between channels. (Janrain Survey 2014)

70% of marketers say they lack a consistent or integrated content strategy. (Altimiter Group)

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End-to-End Customer Experience and Marketer Experience Powered by the Oracle Marketing Cloud

SOME PROOF: Real successes from real global companies Lane Bryant

The clear need was to increase the number of people who earned Real Woman Dollars (a cash back program), how to message that it is time to redeem Real Woman Dollars, and what to message to those who did not earn. Utilizing a two-phase segment an orchestrated approach with email and display retargeting to alert both customers and prospects that the time was now for them earn Real Women Dollars.

CHECK OUT

CHECK OUT

REGISTRATION

ELLIE JONESCHICAGO

FEMALE: 35LOCATION: CHICAGOPURCHASE HISTORY: HANDBAGS

Drives advocacyOrchestrates SMS based onpreference stated by Mark

Marketer positionswindbreaker in blog post

Matches 3rd party data with 1st party data, identifying as Mark Jones

Marketer orchestrates thankyou note after purchase

Listens to spike in SFmarathon conversations and

publishes Facebook post

Entices customer to registerand share preferences

Collects anonymous behaviordata about customer

Delivers ad to customerusing display partner

Marketer creates audience profile

Products Legend

BlueKai DMP Cross-Channel Marketing Social Marketing Content Marketing

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The results: Display ads return up to 28:1 ROI online. In-store redemptions increase about 5% to the group that see the display ads vs. the group that we cannot send display ads. The email open rates increase 13% for the start of the Real Woman Dollar redemption period to 40% increase on the last day of redemption. Conversion rates increase about 1.5X at the start and climb to 3X on the last day.

With over 750 stores, Lane Bryant is the most recognized name in plus-size clothing for women, and their emphasis on fashion and fit—not merely size—makes them a style leader.

Tivoli Gardens

When Tivoli Gardens launched its cross-channel strategy, the digital channels were not aligned but scattered across different platforms. The challenge was to make the experience seamless for the customer no matter which touch point the customer would initiate the dialogue in. All channels were integrated—including search engine marketing, display advertising, email marketing, visits to their both their “regular” site and their mobile site and app, as well as kiosks.

The results: The customer gets a better trip to Tivoli Gardens. It has become easier to search for information and plan a visit, regardless of whether they do so at home or during your visit, e.g. with help of the app. The customer gets more out of the things that interest them most. It allows them to get updates on what is going on in the Gardens. For annual cardholders, it means that they can get more out of their Annual Cards, and for all visitors that means an opportunity, e.g., to receive interest-specific recommendations and offers by email. The customer gets a better service experience: e.g. both online purchase and self-service kiosks provide easier access and less queuing.

Tivoli Gardens is one of the most popular seasonal theme parks in the world and the most visited theme park in Scandinavia. It offers fun and engaging rollercoaster rides as well as cultural events and concerts such as Tivoli Gardens Festival. It even has its own symphonic orchestra and unique Pantomime Theatre.

And finally, some wisdom from a B2C powerhouse: Nordstrom

“Companies were in control up until 2000. But now the customer is in the driver’s seat. If you embrace that, you will thrive. If not, then by 2020, you will not survive.” —Jamie Nordstrom

Nordstrom is focused on providing a consistent customer experience wherever customers go, engaging in personalized conversation across channels, and recognizing them when they’re in store. They have personalized stylists for frequent customers, and they have invested in things like Mobile POS to shorten lines for their customers. They accept they’re no longer in control, and that acceptance ensures they are never out of touch with their needs. Rather than being reactive, they are being proactive. They are creating a digital dialogue.

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