RP2 – Multichannel UX
Multi-channel user experience gives the customer the choice of interacting and absorbing content through multiple different channels. The content is designed to fit within the confines of the channel it is operating within.
These channels can include:
- Print Media
- Social Media
- Television
- Radio
- Billboards
Each type of these channels are interacted in different ways, meaning the content can be optimised for each channel. Some of these channels are direct marketing whereas other are indirect.
Presentation Video
Currys
Currys is one of the leading omni-channel electronic retailers in the UK. Whilst they sell technology items, they are also offer a repair service too on both technology and home appliances too.
In Store
Currys takes advantage of their omni-channel presence by using printed in-store advertisements which is a unified message that is being spread by all the channels Currys has available (in-store, website, social media, television, radio, billboards).
The advertisements in-store are often used to prompt customers to their website using QR codes, generating more online traffic. This creates a complete experience for the customer, making them aware of both in-store and online options. This method should generate higher conversion rates for their online store.
Website
Their website follows a consistent branding that can be found in store. The offers and promotional material is familiar to customers who have visited their stores prior to the website or vice-versa.
The content on the website differs to in-store because here, all of it can be made interactive whereas in store, not all the content can be made interactive (There is interactive content in-stores on their TVs, computers and interactive billboards).
Social Media
Currys utilises all major social medias, this is used in two different ways. It is another channel for them to spread their advertisements, products and services to customers. Importantly, they use it to spread awareness of their corporate social value, by posting images and videos of them giving back to communities. This is so the brand is seen more favourably.
Whilst the brand speaks a unified message, the content between each channel changes. This is so the content is more inline with each type of channel. Each social media is treated as a new channel. For instance, their TikTok account has videos of them engaging with other TikTok influencers, these were not posted to Facebook or Instagram etc, as the content does not suit these channels.
Email Marketing
Email communications is a form of direct marketing. Here, the content can be tailored to the customer, as a profile of the customer is made about their shopping habits, products their interested in and more. This information is gathered when a customer is given an email receipt in-store or buys a product online.
The content is more personalised, trying to engage the customer with items and offers they are most likely to be interested in. Compared to issuing marketing to everyone about something 50% the people aren’t interested in.
Print Marketing
Print media is issued in stores for customers to take away and read about in their own time. The print media is often given links back to their website and stores. Whilst it is indirect, it can be made direct by the use of their store colleagues, giving these out to customers where they can spot an offer that could be useful to them.
A slight improvement could be made by adding a QR code, as well as a link. This will be easier for the user to access the website as oppose to typing the link out. However, scanning a QR code may not always be possible if a customer is on a desktop device.
The print media offered in store content is often tailored to the season. For their autumn addition of their print magazine, they’re promoting coffee machines. Whilst there seems to be no direct link, as we head out of summer, the days are shorter and colder, this will likely lead to people being more inclined to drink more coffee, or buy a new coffee machine.
Sponsored Posts
Alongside their normal social media, Currys also do sponsored posts. These are paid for advertisements on social media, where they can target specific customers with specific needs. This is a form of direct marketing, that differs from their social following.
By using instagram’s shop now feature, the advertisement has the ability to take the customer straight to the advertised product. Thus, creating a better user experience. This is another great example of Currys using their different channels to justify the content accordingly.
Memberships
Currys introduced Currys perks. It rewards customers with discount codes and giveaways, just like email, it is a form of direct marketing but does not feel like marketing to the customer, as they feel it is personal to them.
What Currys does right
Currys are a great example of an omni-channel business that utilises multiple channels of engagement. From starting out with just their stores, then the website. Now they engage in every major channel available to them, even noting the importance of traditional methods such as print information.
Most impressively, each piece of content is tailored to the channel but speaks a unified message. Each piece of content, regardless if it is seen on their website, Instagram, TV or a printed flyer, is obviously Currys and fits well within the brand.
In terms of design, most promotional advertisements use purple and yellow. The two colours sit on the top 14 best colours for marketing according to Indeed in a post written in March 2022. The following quotations taken from the Indeed website on the post “14 Best Colors for Marketing (And Why Colors Are Important)” give a glimpse at why yellow and purple are grate colours to use.
Purple is the color of royalty, reminding people of elegance, prestige, sophistication and respect. It can be a popular color for higher-end products that want to portray a sense of luxury. You can find many beauty and anti-aging products that use purple in their packaging and advertisements. Purple can also be a mysterious color that’s effective for creative or quirky brands.
Indeed Editorial Team, 2022.
Yellow is a color that evokes feelings of positivity, light, warmth and happiness. It can also give people feelings of motivation, encouragement, hope and optimism. Consider exhibiting caution when using yellow in large amounts because it can cause a sense of anxiety in some people while exciting others and boosting their moods. Some shades of yellow can also indicate affordability.
Indeed Editorial Team, 2022.
H&M
H&M are an omni-channel clothing retailer. They sell their products in physical stores, online and in app. They are an international brand, offering stores all across the globe.
In store
The printed media offered in their store is much lower compared to Currys, with majority of their branding pointing towards signing up to a H&M account through their app.
However, their app is where they shine, not only can it be used for direct marketing, but the app is used to compliment the in-store shopping experience. It enables the customer to scan the barcodes of items in store to find other sizes and colours in the app and take photos of clothing items to find similar pieces.
Website
Their website is an extension of their app, or is their app an extension of their website? They are very much one in the same, giving the same features and offerings just through different experiences, enabling all customers to receive a unified experience.
Social Media
H&M take a very similar approach to Currys with their social media influence. They tailor their content to the channel it is being distributed on.
Email Marketing
H&M just like Currys use email marketing to market directly to customers who have signed up to a H&M account. Allowing them to tailor content to the individual.
Print Marketing
H&M are very sparse on print marketing through my research. With the only pieces being found in stores such as posters directing customers to their app.
Sponsored Posts
H&M use sponsored posts just like Currys, allowing them to direct their adverts at particular groups of customers.
Memberships
H&M have their own membership program where customers can collect points for money off vouchers. They make it easy for this account to be used in store by providing a QR code and the ability to link it to Apple Pay. This leads to sticky customers that return more often as they are more likely to get discounts and money off their purchases.
A lot of data can be gathered from these membership accounts, as it can build up a detailed account of the customer which can then be used for direct marketing.
What H&M does right
H&M like Currys are a great example of an omni-channel retailer. Their brand is concise and consistent. They tailor their content to the different channels available to them, while maintaining the same message they’re spreading.
They have created very sticky customers with their H&M app, making it more like a game when purchasing items. Knowing you will unlock stuff for spending more with them.
In terms of design, the H&M colour palette is already white with accents of red, but when advertising events such as sales, they use a vast amount of red. Red is the number 1 best colour for marketing according to Indeed, and their reasoning is in the quotation below which is taken directly from their website.
Red is a highly popular color in marketing because it’s bold, captures attention and can evoke powerful psychological responses. Red represents power, energy, excitement, passion and urgency. The urgency response is often a reason why fast-food chains and clearance sales frequently feature red. To separate your ads from other brands that use red, experiment with different shades, as even minor changes in saturation might cause customers to associate that specific shade of red with your brand.
Indeed Editorial Team, 2022.
Tesco
Tesco is a UK based Brand, primarily known for selling groceries. However, they also offer a number of different products such as, Tesco Mobile, Tesco Insurance and Tesco Bank.
In Store
In store, Tesco uses a vast amount of print promoting their membership scheme, Tesco Clubcard.
By most till points in Tesco, the customer can find a printed poster on their Clubcard Pay+ which is provided by Tesco Bank. They provide the customer with a QR code, which will then take them directly to the appropriate page on their website for the customer to look through. Again, this is an example of where the store meets the website.
Website
The Tesco website has many different avenues for the users to select from. It ranges from their clothing brand, to recipes. They offer content that the customer doesn’t have necessarily access to in store, this extra content helps drive traffic to their website by having articles that relates to their brand that customers may search for.
Social Media
Just like Currys and H&M, Tesco uses major social media platforms. Due to Tesco holding more brands, they do have different social media accounts that relate to that specific brand, each brand tailors its content on each channel.
Email Marketing
Most of their email marketing comes from the customers use their Clubcard, thus meaning the customer receives more direct marketing.
Print Marketing
Tesco uses traditional print media in the form of magazines to promote their Clubcard and special offers associated. This magazine was located close to the toy section and is heavily promoting children’s toys. This magazine has been tailored to children, by displaying mainly pictures of toys and the marketing mentioning Christmas. They offer the magazine free of charge.
Sponsored Posts
Like most major brands, Tesco utilises the use of paid posts on Facebook and Instagram. They do also pay for Influencers or content creators to promote their brand. They usually use both Instagram and Youtube as their platform of promotion.
Having creators with a big following helps the brand to reach a wider audience. The audience is specific to particular age groups based on the creator.
Memberships
Tesco is incredIbly well known for it’s Clubcard. They incentivise the use of a customer Clubcard by offering customers money off items, as they can collect data through this. This then allows Tesco to personalise marketing particular products to a particular demographic based on the history of purchases made from each customers Clubcard.
What Tesco does right
Tesco is one of the leaders in the membership markets, offering the Tesco Clubcard since 1995. This has created loyal sticky customers, through the incentives associated with the Clubcard. Their branding is consistent however, their paid sponsored posts don’t include their logo or branding just a shoutout/tag which isn’t as effective as showing the branding.
A campaign that may work in a multi-channel experience
There are different types of campaigns depending on what the company is trying to achieve. For instance, a new product launch.
The product would be launched in stores, with print media directing customers to look at the product. Social media posts on all channels both normal and sponsored around the product, with sponsored posts targeting the target audience of the product, all posts directing customers to the store or website where they can find the product. Email campaigns directly targeting customers that would be the target audience and those who have spending habits that fall inline with this product, again, directing customers to the store or website where they can find the product.
The content would be unified in it’s approach but tailored to each channel. However, the content is dependent on the campaign.
References
- Active Campaign. 2022. 7 Multi-Channel Marketing Examples Done right. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.activecampaign.com/blog/multi-channel-marketing-examples. [Accessed 10 October 2022].
- Coschedule. 2020. 18 Marketing Channels: Types & Examples To Help You Choose Yours. [ONLINE] Available at: https://coschedule.com/marketing-strategy/marketing-channels. [Accessed 10 October 2022]
- Currys. 2022. Currys Perks. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.currys.co.uk/perks.html. [Accessed 10 October 2022].
- Iide. Unknown. In-Depth Tesco’s Marketing Strategy – Case Study with SWOT Analysis. [ONLINE] Available at: https://iide.co/case-studies/tesco-marketing-strategy/. [Accessed 10 October 2022].
- Indeed. 2022. 14 Best Colors for Marketing (And Why Colors Are Important). [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/best-colors-for-marketing. [Accessed 10 October 2022].
- Ngdata. 2017. What is Omni-Channel Customer Experience? Challenges and Best Practices for Delivering the Best Customer Experience Across Multiple Channels. [ONLINE] Available at: https://ngdata.com/what-is-multi-channel-customer-experience/. [Accessed 10 October 2022].
- Shopify. 2019. Omnichannel vs Multichannel: What is the Difference and Why Does It Matter?. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.shopify.com/uk/enterprise/omni-channel-vs-multi-channel. [Accessed 10 October 2022].
- Tesco Clubcard. 2022. Homepage. [ONLINE] Available at: https://secure.tesco.com/clubcard. [Accessed 10 October 2022].
- UKdiss. 2021. H&M Marketing Analysis. [ONLINE] Available at: https://ukdiss.com/examples/marketing-analysis-h-and-m.php. [Accessed 10 October 2022].