Definition – Cross-Channel
Cross-Channel enables a cross-channel purchasing process in which customers combine different sales channels as part of their information and purchasing process. For example, the customer orders their goods in the online shop and then picks them up in a brick-and-mortar store.
While the sales channels are still to be treated separately in the multi-channel sales model, the channels (online – including mobile, stationary, catalog) can be linked in cross-channel. For example, the customer has the option of handling the purchasing process across channels. They can start the process on one of the offered channels and continue or complete it on another.
Prerequisites for cross-channel
To enable this information transfer from one channel to another to run smoothly, centralized and consistent data on customers and products must be provided across all channels. In practice, this means that the same offer from the local store or parts of it can also be found in the associated web shop or catalog, and everything is based on a database, the participating warehouses, the inventory and a customer database.
Important: the underlying IT and payment systems are still tailored to the individual channels and cannot be combined, as is also the case with multichannel. Example: goods ordered online must also be paid for online.
Cross-channel examples:
- The customer starts a product inquiry online (chat, e-mail, web shop research), orders the product online and picks it up at a local store, the point of sale. This is referred to as click and collect or in-store pick up.
- The customer researches offline and orders the goods online. However, this variant has limitations. For example, offline information about the customer is more difficult to map in the online world. One solution is to use voucher codes that are issued locally and personalized and promise discounts in the web shop.
- The customer buys the goods in a brick-and-mortar store and then has them delivered to their home.
Well-known cross-channel terms:
- ROPO – Research Online, Purchase Offline
- Click and Collect / In-Store Pick Up
- Click-and-Reserve
Cross-Channel and the Customer Journey
If all channels are linked in a comprehensible way, a provider is able to meaningfully read the so-called customer journey and apply the conclusions to all available channels. In this context, the customer journey represents the observation of a potential customer who comes into contact with a provider via various touchpoints (brick-and-mortar store, online shop) and ultimately performs a target action (purchase, order, request). The target action can take several hours or days, but it can also be completed in just a few minutes.
Summary
There are only minimal differences between multi-channel and cross-channel. Only the central database in the cross-channel variant and the associated possibility of making customers more transparent using “customer journey” are recognizable additions. In addition, a purchase process across several channels is possible.
For more information on this topic, read the articles E-Commerce, Same Day Delivery and Information in Intralogistics.
Teaser image: Stefan Rajewski – Fotolia.com