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Management
12 tips I
By Debra Ellis ntegrated marketing strategies
provide consistent messaging from every channel and corporate department. Moving from silo campaign management to a
consolidated programme requires careful planning, a committed team, and strategic execution.
Consumers want things to be easy. They want access to selection and delivery at their fingertips without regard to the details involved. For example, the ability to order online and pick up at the store simplifies customers’ lives but the logistics can be a nightmare for the company. How do you offer an accurate inventory count to the online shopper when people are walking around the store with items in their carts? If there is a data error or the demand exceeds expectations, the item purchased online may not be available when the customer arrives at the store.
Integration is a process, not a project. There isn’t a magical solution that provides an integrated end product that fits every company. The best integrated marketing strategies are the ones that work for your business and customers. They find the right balance between providing service and managing costs.
In simpler times, direct marketers didn’t have to worry about integration. Channels stood alone as self-contained units. The silo management was acceptable because consumers who crossed channels were rare. Most catalogue customers didn’t have access to a store so there wasn’t a need to provide an integrated shopping experience. Today, every person with a computer or smartphone has a store at his or her fingertips. Crossing channels is common. Integration has moved from optional to essential.
The journey from silo management where channels are competitive to integrated partnerships is not for the weak of heart. It requires redesigning the infrastructure so the parts work together. In some cases, it even requires reconfiguration of the compensation structure. People naturally resist change, making it hard to get things started. When change includes their pay, the resistance is almost impossible to overcome. A few years ago, a retailer added an online store to its direct marketing channel. The customer care team responsible for serving direct mail customers was expected to handle online issues. A few months after the launch of the ecommerce channel, order cancellations spiked. A review of the data revealed that the cancellation rate for telephone orders was consistent with historical results at 1 percent. Online orders
for integrating marketing channels …without breaking the bank
had a 30 percent cancellation rate. Digging deeper, we found that 98 percent of the customers with cancelled online orders placed an order for the same items via the call centre. It seemed odd until we connected the dots between compensation and cancellations. The customer care team responsible for taking telephone orders received a commission for every order they entered. Their income was reduced as people shifted from telephone orders to online. While the move benefited the company because it reduced processing costs, it also affected morale. Employees became less responsive to customer needs. When people called with questions about their online purchases, the orders were cancelled and reentered so the employee received commission for the sale. Restructuring the compensation process resolved the issue.
Integrating marketing channels is a companywide initiative. Every department and division has to be involved for a successful solution. The time spent planning on the front end provides a smooth transition on the back end. The first step is defining what your customers want and are willing to subsidise. If the final solution doesn’t match consumer needs, it won’t add value. If it isn’t cost effective, then it does irreparable harm to the company. The path towards integration begins with analysis of how people are using your available channels. Do catalogues drive online and store sales? Do online coupons appear frequently in the checkout line? What are the top ten complaints received in the customer care department? The answers to these questions provide insight into how people move from promotion to purchase. Next, design the path from silo management to integrated efficiency. Where do you start? What needs to be done first to prevent issues like the order cancellation example? Who needs to be involved? What are the roadblocks? Who leads the process? What are the costs? This stage begins with more questions than answers. When self- contained units are merged, everything has to be considered. This usually includes the consolidation of teams who have adversarial relationships, legacy systems with incompatible data structures, and geographical challenges. Once the path is defined, identify the things that are easy to integrate. Start with them so people can see the benefits. Change is hard. The ability to visualise a better tomorrow makes it easier. Provide insight into that vision along the way so people are motivated to move forward. The integration process is much easier when your team is working together for the change. Here are some tips to get you started and keep it from being derailed:
Direct Commerce | Catalogue e-business |
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Communicate well. Fear of the unknown is the primary reason that people resist change. The knowledge of what to expect reduces resistance. It can even create excitement and expedite the process. Keep people informed throughout the process, share ownership, and celebrate successes.
Keep it as simple as possible. Elaborate designs are expensive and confusing. The processes that are put in place today have to be maintained tomorrow. Keeping it simple makes it easier to explain and maintain.
Don’t start by looking for a turnkey solution. There isn’t one that will fit all of your needs. Begin with the tools you have and try to adapt them to your needs. Wait until you are 100 percent sure that you need a new system before starting the shopping process.
Brainstorm challenges and solutions before creating your plan. How will the changes affect the customer experience? Employees’ work flow? Compensation? Costs? Revenue? Find the right balance that will deliver the most return.
Perform a limited test before rolling out. This gives you the opportunity to verify the need and resolve any issues. Sometimes integration isn’t needed to provide the best shopping experience.
Use manual updates before changing systems. Integration of incompatible systems is expensive and may not be necessary. A daily import/export of data may provide everything required.
Ask for feedback from team members and customers. The best designed plan can fail to meet expectations. The people who best know how things work are the ones using them every day. Let your end users guide your steps.
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