Insights, Products
What is omnichannel customer service? Benefits, strategy, and examples
Insights, Products
Share to
What if we told you that customer service could be your company’s greatest asset? That’s right – could be.
Most customers dread calling a 1-800 number, navigating automated menus, waiting on hold, and getting transferred from agent to agent. Even if they get the help they need, they’ll often feel drained. It doesn’t have to be this way!
In the era of digital customer engagement, there’s an unbeatable strategy for wowing customers, improving relationships, and boosting brand loyalty: omnichannel customer service.
But what exactly is omnichannel customer service? How can you transform your operations with an integrated network of communication channels and use them to make your customer experience stand out above the rest? Let’s find out!
Omnichannel customer service uses cloud technology to connect customers with support through a network of digital channels like messaging, email, voice calls, video chat, live chat, chatbots, knowledge bases, and more. It also takes into account when customers might interact with a brand in-person like in a retail store. This enables convenient, two-way communication between customers and brands.
This customer-centric approach ensures customers have a seamless experience across digital and physical communication channels, no matter where their interaction starts or ends. For example, a customer with a rental car issue might text the rental car company. In an omnichannel approach, the rental car company responds to their message in real-time, then calls the customer to get more details and send help. From social media, to phone calls, to SMS/MMS updates, customer service agents are aware of the customer’s entire chat history across channels, so they never have to repeat themselves. The issue is resolved quickly, leaving the customer satisfied and trusting the company for future rentals.
It’s easy to see the value in this experience. So, how do you create similar experiences for your own customers?
Well, you probably already have plans for responding to customers on social media, in your contact center, and through text and email. So, does that mean you’re operating an omnichannel customer service strategy?
Not quite, unless these channels are already interconnected. Let’s explore the difference between a multichannel customer support strategy and an omnichannel one.
You might be asking yourself, “isn’t “omnichannel” just a fancy word for multiple communication mediums?” And the answer is, not exactly.
There’s omnichannel and then there’s multichannel customer service. They’re similar, but different, concepts. And they provide your customers with unique customer experiences:
Here’s a short chart comparing the differences between omnichannel vs multichannel customer service experience.
| Omnichannel customer service | Multichannel customer service | |
| Definition | Integrated network of channels that work together as one system. | Multiple independent channels that don’t necessarily work together. |
| Focus | Consistent, seamless experience across all channels. | Varied experiences as customers switch between each channel. |
| Goal | Keep customers happy by ensuring continuity and context in service. Speedy resolution. | Provide multiple options for customers to interact with customer service teams. |
In essence, an omnichannel customer support experience combines all channels for quick issue resolution, while a multichannel support strategy allows customers to reach out and contact you on separate channels.
In business, true win-win scenarios are rare. How often do two parties benefit equally from a transaction? In the case of omnichannel customer service, the answer is: all the time.
Here are a few benefits of an omnichannel customer service experience:
Does it all sound too good to be true? It’s not – and it’s probably more within reach than you think! Let’s dive into how you can create a winning omnichannel customer service strategy.
Trust is everything in business. Unsurprisingly, 87% of customers avoid buying from brands they don’t trust.
When you treat all your customers the same, they lose trust. Why stick with a business that doesn’t recognize your needs when you can go to a competitor who does?
Our 2024 survey, The art and heart of meaningful customer connections, highlights the top three dealbreakers for consumers regarding communications:
Clearly, personalized, secure communication is key for people to trust your brand. An omnichannel customer service strategy can help you provide this by offering consistent interactions across all channels. This way, you’re not only meeting customer needs – you’re incentivizing them to come back and boosting customer retention.
Let’s look at a few tips that will help you create an omnichannel customer service strategy that helps meet customer demands and build trust.
The customer journey doesn’t end at the point of sale. Your customer service strategy should go beyond purchases and customer support to cover the entire customer lifecycle. This way, you’re enhancing overall customer satisfaction and incentivizing loyalty!
To truly ensure you’re providing the best customer service, you’ll need to build in customer feedback mechanisms. You should be encouraging customers to regularly share their experiences to help guide how you can refine your omnichannel strategy.
When we surveyed more than 500 consumers across the U.S. to learn about what they expect from branded communications, we found that 38% of consumers prefer working with customer service via messaging channels, while 29% prefer email.
This shows a trend for customers wanting faster, more accessible support across more than just messaging or email – instead, you should be focusing on an omnichannel support strategy that caters to diverse customer preferences.
If you’re unfamiliar, Communications Platform as a Service (CPaaS) combines communication tools with cloud technology. With CPaaS, all your customer conversation data flows through a central system, providing you with valuable insights into customer needs.
Integrating CPaaS with your CRM, call center, and other data platforms can help you:
Additionally, a CPaaS provider can also help you integrate a conversational AI chatbot into your customer service operations. Our 2024 survey found that 45% of consumers want to get questions answered by a chatbot, and 33% would use a chatbot to troubleshoot a problem. Chatbots not only cut costs, but can also help you answer FAQs, which directly addresses your customers’ preferences for self-service support interactions.
In recent years, B2B and B2C businesses alike have started implementing omnichannel customer service.
You’ve probably noticed how airlines like Delta and United are developing their own mobile personalized messaging campaigns to improve customer service. When you get a notification about a flight delay, a gate change, or a special offer based on your frequent flyer status – that’s omnichannel customer service in action!
Let’s look at how specific industries enhance customer service with omnichannel communications.
The rise of on-demand service apps has heightened customer expectations for convenience. Today, customers expect brands to offer similar easy access.
For example, the American Automobile Association (AAA) adapted its roadside assistance program to meet changing communication habits. Members were texting AAA’s 800-HELP line, but it was only set up for calls. In response, AAA made their toll-free number text-enabled to provide a web link for easier service requests.
This one change resulted in nearly 10,000 inbound text messages, an 8% conversion rate to service requests, and monthly savings of over $30,000. This shows how unified communication networks can benefit businesses and satisfy customers.
Nissan, one of the world’s largest car manufacturers, faced decreasing customer engagement with traditional channels like email, and maintaining strong customer relationships due to the lengthy five- to seven-year gap between car purchases.
To address these issues, Nissan Europe developed a mobile-first omnichannel strategy. They because the first automotive company in Europe to test Rich SMS messaging, which they used alongside mobile app notifications to send personalized messages like maintenance repairs, weather-related advice for driving, and information on new models available at nearby dealerships
“Depending on a customer’s preferred channel, who they are, and when they come back to the market, we try to strategically deliver relevant messaging based on their maintenance needs or even based on the weather forecast.”
– Claire Laurent, Senior Account Director at Publicis, Nissan’s marketing partner
Nissan’s innovative omnichannel approach spanned the entire customer journey – and the results speak volumes. They quadrupled customer engagement and saw an 80% conversion rate from new campaigns.
Going omnichannel can feel a bit overwhelming, especially if you have a complex product set that needs to be coordinated across multiple sales and support channels. Businesses face a few common challenges while implementing an omnichannel customer support strategy:
Omnichannel isn’t just for customer support. It means that whenever in their customer journey someone interacts with you, they can continue their conversation and build a relationship with your brand. The specifics of an omnichannel strategy might vary between industries and channels, but the core concept of providing a consistent customer experience remains the same.
Let’s look at a more specific example. Say that you’re an e-commerce company. Your customers can browse your products online, check availability in-store, and make purchases through their mobile phones seamlessly. When you launch a new product, you tell your most active subscribers via email, social media, RCS messaging, and ads. And if a customer buys the wrong product, they can chat with an automated chatbot via WhatsApp, which can escalate to a real human over the phone if needed.
As a customer, this kind of seamless experience is expected. And as a brand, these are practical examples of your omnichannel marketing, retail, and customer services strategies in action.
Now that we’ve covered the many benefits and applications of omnichannel customer service (can you tell we’re big fans?), you can put it to work for your business.
If you’re looking for more resources to help you learn more about omnichannel customer experience strategies, here are a few great places to start:
Or, if you’re ready to get started with your omnichannel strategy but don’t know where to begin, take our channel test to get personalized recommendations from our experts on the best channels for your needs. Or reach out to our team of experts to begin your omnichannel journey today!
Table of contents
