Why Retailers Need to Focus on Omni-Channel Analysis

Blog Headline: Why Retailers Need to Focus on Omni-Channel Analysis

By: The Clarabridge Team

August 22, 2019

Clarabridge Analytics
Customer Journey
Digital Customer Service

Your customers carry around the most sophisticated omni-channel device in history in their pockets, and they don’t just use it to play Candy Crush. They use it to search for your retail business, shop, and interact with your company, and that’s why you need omni-channel analysis—to keep up with all the ways they’ll reach out to you and to provide them with a seamless customer experience.

Omni-channel analysis of digital touchpoints is more important than ever, as a retailer’s digital presence can have a significant impact on customer purchase behavior. In fact, Forrester predicts that digital touchpoints will influence 55% of total European retail sales by 2022.

Whether your customers are reaching out to you over social media, live chat, call centers, or online reviews, their opinions can lead to your insights. But they can only become insights if you can break down the silos between those data sources, and leverage omni-channel analysis to find their value.

Answer the Questions that Matter

Why do you need omni-channel analysis? For retailers, there are a few main advantages:

  1. Give corporate headquarters an overview of what is happening at satellite retail locations, while also providing individual store and department managers with specific, actionable feedback.
  2. Measure customer emotion, effort, and sentiment in connection to the UI and fulfillment process to make sure their online shopping a seamless experience.
  3. Identify self-service opportunities (like FAQs) to free up customer service calls for the more complex inquiries.
  4. Track the effectiveness of campaigns, promotions and discounts.
  5. Engage with customers in near real-time on social media or other digital channels, to help them solve problems and build communities.
  6. Offer point-of-sale and post-sale surveys to get feedback on what works, and what doesn’t.


Identify the Key Moments of Truth

Retailers should start by knowing what feedback data they want to analyze. To figure this out, look for the key moments of truth across the customer’s journey. Moments of truth are any pivotal moments in the customer’s search, purchase, and continuing relationship with a brand. If you know your brand’s important moments of truth, you’ll be able to answer questions about:

  1. Brand awareness: How do customers feel about your brand? Do you offer a positive image of your brand across the many channels your customers use?
  2. Online shopping: Is your website effortless and easy to use? Do shoppers feel secure making a purchase through it? Is it easy to see their activity and purchase history?
  3. In-store shopping: Are your retail locations clean, welcoming, and well-organized? Are your employees helpful and courteous? What kinds of emotions do customers experience in their interactions with your employees?
  4. Product offerings: Are your customers satisfied with your products? How do they feel about the quantity, quality, price and availability of your product?
  5. After-sales service: What are the main questions your call center employees answer? Are they meeting customers’ needs? How can call center agents become another force for brand identity and corporate growth?


Learn more about how you can better understand the customer behavior driving your business results in our upcoming webinar: Using Digital Conversations to Understand Your Customers’ Behavior.