Gone are the days when "multichannel" was enough. Today, customers expect "omnichannel." But what is the difference?
Multichannel vs. Omnichannel
Multichannel means you have a presence on many platforms (email, phone, chat), but they don't talk to each other. Omnichannel means they are integrated. A customer can start a conversation on a chatbot, escalate to a phone call, and the agent knows exactly what was said to the bot.
The Customer Expectation
Customers view your brand as a single entity. They don't care that "social media support" sits in the marketing department and "phone support" sits in operations. They expect a unified voice and a unified memory.
Implementing Omnichannel Successfully
- Unified CRM: A single source of truth for customer data is non-negotiable.
- Consistent Tone: Ensure your brand voice is the same on Twitter as it is in email.
- Channel Pivoting: Make it easy to switch channels. For example, allow a chat agent to initiate a voice call with one click if the issue becomes too complex to type out.
Omnichannel is the standard for modern customer service. It reduces friction and increases satisfaction.