Multichannel Marketing: What Is It? Why Does It Matter?
Multichannel marketing is the practice where companies interact with customers via multiple channels, both direct and indirect, to sell them goods and services. Channels include websites, email, text, social media, storefront, television, radio, and paid search.
Why does a business need a multichannel marketing approach?
Because today’s consumer seeks information through various sources, businesses need to consider a variety of touchpoints based on their buyer personas.
Additionally, as the number of marketing channels continues to increase, businesses need a multichannel marketing strategy that is scalable and able to adapt.
The Difference Between B2B and B2C Multichannel Marketing
Whether you are a B2B or a B2C company, having a multichannel marketing strategy not only makes sense, but is essential to a achieving a positive return-on-investment (ROI).
The distinction between these two areas is quite simple. B2B marketing sells products and/or services to other businesses, i.e., business owners or management, while B2C marketing sells directly to consumers. In a B2B environment, the sales cycle is longer and less transactional than B2C. Therefore, B2B buyers take more time to decide when it comes to the decision-making process.
To create an effective multichannel marketing strategy, start with your buyer personas. Since B2B businesses focus on the owner or management, the marketing channels are likely narrower. For example, a multichannel approach may include LinkedIn, along with a targeted email campaign and landing pages offering case studies or white papers.
The Cornerstone of a Multichannel Marketing Strategy
Within a multichannel marketing strategy, the adage, “Content is King,” certainly rings true. Savvy marketers should consider content or “thought leadership” as the cornerstone of any multichannel marketing strategy as potential B2B buyers want to educate themselves before making an inquiry and initiating contact.
Remember to vary your content from channel to channel based on audience paraments, and consider various options, including blogs, white papers, case studies, client testimonials, infographics, videos, and the like. Additionally, your feature content should follow the 80/20 rule — meaning 80 percent of the time you are informing and educating, with the other 20 percent promoting your business. Remember, no one wants to be sold to all the time, and if you spend too much focus on yourself, you will quickly lose the interest of your audience.
The Components of B2B Multichannel Marketing Strategy
As evidenced in the graphic above, a multichannel marketing strategy has several components.
- Website: Your website should serve as the cornerstone of your marketing efforts and a primary landing place when someone is searching for your product or service.
- Social Media Channels: Encompassing platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn, as well as others, social media offers a way to personalize your business, interact with audience members, and show that you are an active, open, and relevant business. Content should vary from platform to platform, involve B2B advertising (for instance, on LinkedIn), and be consistent — it doesn’t do your business any good to have your social platforms go dark.
- Blog: Your blog should feature well-written articles that offer a trustworthy voice and include both “in the moment” topics (i.e., industry trends, timely news, and the like) as well as “evergreen” content (i.e., content that never goes out of style and is relevant no matter how much time passes). Blogs can and should feature infographics, link to other internal pages on your website, and provide a strong call to action to inspire a reader to make contact.
- Mobile: This part of a multichannel marketing strategy aims to reach audience members on their smartphones, tablets, and other mobile devices. It involves sending promotional offers, text messages, push notifications, mobile vanity URLs, and other value-added content.
- Email Marketing: Research shows that email is a preferred mode of brand marketing and is the glue that keeps a multichannel marketing strategy together. Email marketing enables you to share varied content and offers easy integration of all of your marketing channels.
When approached strategically, these tactics should educate and inform a visitor, showcase your thought leadership and subject matter expertise, and inspire action.
The Current State of Multichannel Marketing
B2B multichannel marketing has evolved in recent years. Consider the following statistics:
- 51% of companies today use at least eight channels to interact with customers.
- 52% of marketers use three to four marketing channels compared to 44% in 2015.
- 67% of B2B buyers rely more on content to research and make purchasing decisions than they did a year ago.
- 72% of consumers say they prefer to connect with brands and businesses through multichannel marketing.
- Nearly 64% of B2B technology buyers indicated that they read between two to five pieces of content before making a purchase.
- 90% of customers expect consistent interactions across channels.
The Benefits of Multichannel Marketing
Now that you know what multichannel marketing is and what it entails, let’s look at the benefits.
A multichannel marketing strategy:
- Builds brand awareness across platforms and expands visibility.
- Encourages engagement and helps keep your business top of mind.
- Increases sales opportunities — studies confirm that a prospect needs to see and interact with your brand approximately seven times before making a decision or purchase. In addition, multichannel marketing speeds up the process because there are more touchpoints.
- Allows you, the business owner or head marketer, to analyze your marketing efforts through a cumulative and comprehensive lens.
Reach Out to YGL Enterprises to Develop a Multichannel Marketing Strategy
Tying your marketing channels together presents the chance to reap the greatest return on your marketing investment.
If you are ready to start a multichannel approach, reach out and schedule a consultation with the marketing experts at YGL Enterprises today.
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