Marketing Channel Strategy
research, purchase, communicate, engage with, and
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consume the brand —across online, mobile, social, and offline physical channels. In an omni-channel world, channel arrangements help customers move seamlessly and however they choose, across multiple channels during a purchase transaction. 31 As another key distinction, the concept of “consumer engagement” is central to omni-channel approaches; they explicitly seek customer experience and engage- ment through efforts that rely on social media, email, web links, mobile platforms, store visits, promotional efforts, and so on. In this sense, an omni-channel strat- egy incorporates various channels of communication, in addition to channels for the physical transfer of goods. 32 Noting these differences, we also highlight several trends that are driving the shift. Trend 1: Channel Participants Operate in a Connected World Nearly 90 percent of Americans are online, more than three-quarters own a smart- phone, nearly three-quarters have access to broadband services at home, and 70 percent of consumers use social media. 33 The ubiquity and universality of Internet access have vastly influenced people’s shopping behavior. According to a Google Consumer Barometer report, 52 percent of U.S. consumers research home furnish- ings online prior to purchase; the incidence is even greater in Thailand, where 78 percent of shoppers do likewise. 34 This survey further revealed that across a range of 20 product categories, 35 percent of U.S. consumers sought advice through their smartphones prior to purchase, and 36 percent engaged in online comparison shop- ping. A high level of interconnectivity means that consumers freely move across different channels, depending on their preferences at the time. Trend 2: Cross-Channel Shopping Consumers use their mobile phones in stores to check and compare prices, brands, or products; they also might check out product reviews online and ask friends on social media for advice. 35 The resulting showrooming phenomenon means that many consumers visit physical stores to inspect and try products but choose to The OmnI-ChAnnel eCOsysTem 15 make purchases online. Such activities can lead to conflict among upstream chan- nel members, though, because one actor is paying all the costs of informing the customer, while another one enjoys the benefits of the sale. Thus they have to devise equitable compensation systems when one channel functions as a showroom for another channel. Perhaps the most common type of cross-channel shopping behavior is webrooming, such that consumers research products online before pur- chasing them offline. 36 Warby Parker and Bonobos are pioneers in the online arena that now operate physical showrooms too. Trend 3: Altered Shopping Norms The physical storefront continues to evolve; some retail futurists predict that stores may become simply pared-down showrooms, with the mobile phone functioning as the store of the future. 37 The prediction has some reasonable support. Consider how product review sites have altered basic pricing rules. In a world devoid of prod- uct reviews, consumers tended to use price as a heuristic, often buying mid-priced items but bypassing the most and least expensive items. But today, consumers are more willing to buy the lowest-priced item in a product line, if the reviews are good. 38 The proliferation of social media sites also means that the power, reach, and frequency of word-of-mouth and shared reviews have increased manyfold. Not only do consumers share information and offer recommendations, as well as seek out information and advice from others to inform their own purchase decisions, but they also can engage with brands and become brand advocates. Marketers can- not control what consumers say, yet they can harness the power of social media as a platform for co-creating experiences and engaging with consumers. Channel managers should be mindful of privacy issues while they develop strategies to per- sonalize their communications. A true omni-channel strategy integrates channels of communication as a key part of the channel system. Trend 4: Move to Services The intangible nature of services creates challenges for marketing channels, in terms of both governance and management. 39 In service channels, the focus is not on taking title and inventorying but rather on creating customer engagement and cus- tomer value. This focus provides opportunities for customization and co-creation. As we have noted, online channels also totally disrupted service industries such as travel and financial services, leading to the disappearance of many intermediar- ies. The ability to remove or circumvent well-entrenched intermediaries from the marketing channel and its value chain is tải về 5.39 Mb. Chia sẻ với bạn bè của bạn:
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