How Omni Channel Research is Beneficial for Your Website

Posted by usabilitysciences on July 10th, 2014

Omni channel is a term used to describe cross-channel marketing/retailing done well. This means that a business' mobile app matches the responsive design of its website, while also thematically reflecting the overall look and feel of the store or the brand. It is a continuously evolving concept that anyone wishing to give their consumers the best user experience should at least be familiar with. Omni channel is all about true continuity of experience that extends beyond one brand's universe. Omniscience, in this context, is being able to perceive and understand everything—allowing users to own their individual data experience, which in turn gives them the ability to use that history to guide the context and creation of each future experience.

Omni channel retailing aims to create a seamless approach to user experience through each and all available shopping channels, from computers to mobile internet devices, radio, television, direct mail, brick-and-mortar, and others. Moving to omni channel retailing creates more knowledgeable consumers. As a result, store employees must also be knowledgeable, if not more knowledgeable about the merchandise that a brand/store carries, as well as their production processes. It also creates a paradigm shift in consumer demand, which is why retailers and brands must reformulate their strategies to match such demands. Omni channel retailing must provide an immersive consumer experience regardless of the channel the user is on, which means user experience must be consumer-centric everywhere.

Omni channel consumers will most likely want to use all available channels simultaneously, requiring retailers and business owners to track activity across all channels. They expect continuity across all channels, which means merchandise and promotions should not be channel-specific, but consistent across all channels. This is where omni channel research comes to play, making sure that retailing and marketing is efficient by determining purchase patterns, website visits, social network affinities, loyalty, and tracking data mining techniques of consumers. A move to this approach requires careful study of these factors, and your business will need proper usability and web based/field research testing strategies and tools to make the transition a success. When it comes to omni channel retailing, real-time data are necessary, because digitally savvy, well informed, and socially connected consumers tend to move from one channel to the next, while expecting their stopping points to be marked so they can pick up where they originally left off while browsing. Consistency is key in Omni channel retailing.

About The Author:

The article has been written by Ben Bishop, the Marketing Manager at Usability Sciences. Usability Sciences offers various Usability Testing services like – Website Usability Testing, Mobile Usability Testing, Website Design, Testing, Remote Usability Testing, and Rapid Iterative Testing. They also offer Eye tracking, Web Usability, Card Sorting and Intercept Survey services to improve your web experience. Besides these they also take a keen interest in various online research and competitive usability research study and analysis.

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Joined: January 5th, 2013
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