Multichannel marketing: Mindset and program development

Individual consumers have quickly embraced the practice of using a variety of channels through which to make their purchases, as 65–70% of them are multichannel shoppers. Indeed, multichannel shoppers (defined as those who utilize a variety of different purchasing channels, including bricks-and-mortar stores, the telephone, and the Internet) are now in the majority, and spend significantly more than single-channel shoppers. Given this reality, it is critical that organizations adopt a multichannel mindset and effectively employ a multichannel marketing program, as these can enhance profitability, the customer experience, and customer satisfaction. It is the aim of this article to provide firms with guidance in developing an effective multichannel mindset and in designing a multichannel marketing program for serving end-consumers in business to consumer (B2C) situations.