Here’s why adopting a multi-channel marketing strategy will give you better results

There is no firm answer on how many touchpoints you need to convert a prospect into a customer – some estimates range from less than 5 while others claim over 20. The one thing that everyone can agree on though, is that the more prospects see your brand, advertisements and marketing message the more likely they are to purchase from you. If your business hasn’t adopted a multi channel marketing strategy, here’s why you need to change that.

Let’s start with what multi-channel marketing is

Multi-channel marketing is when you don’t just rely on one channel to reach prospects and have a presence across multiple. A few examples are flyers, emails, direct mail, social media marketing, networking, etc.

What the 7 learning styles can teach us about multi-channel marketing

Are you familiar with the 7 different learning styles? Some people are visual, some are verbal and others are aural. This means, that people will process information in their preferred format more easily.

Translated into the modern age, that means that some people will be receptive to your Facebook advertisements while others will just filter it out completely or a prospect that wouldn’t spend a minute reading your flyer will spend 5 minutes on your blog. The below heatmap (courtesy of the Nielsen Norman Group) shows a concept called “banner blindness”. Eye-tracking software is used to show that visitors to the following pages spent plenty of time reading the text (as illustrated by the red/orange/yellows) but almost no time at all looking at the banner advertisements.

Keep your message consistent across channels

In case you missed it, we recently wrote about how your brand encompasses more than just your logo and that a professional and consistent brand will allow you to charge more and convert more leads. Your multi-channel marketing strategy needs to adopt similar principles. Keep your designs, colour, message and tone consistent across channels – this will give your advertisement a greater chance of sticking in your prospect’s minds.

Make your message appropriate for the channel

As important as multi-channel marketing is, different types of messages are just more suitable for specific channels. But your end goal is still the same – your advertisement just needs to be tailored to the specific channel. Flyers, with their (typically) smaller size, are more suited to simpler, more direct messages while email newsletters are perfectly suited for longer, more text-heavy content. By utilising both channels, you are ensuring that the people who are more receptive to that channel will be more likely to convert.

Time your campaign channels to increase the conversion rate

By timing your campaign channels effectively, without spending one additional dollar, you can dramatically increase your conversion rate. For example, if your campaign is going to include: Email, cold calling and direct mail. You can structure your campaign as follows:

Direct mail – As direct mail has the highest open rate of any marketing channel, you can use this to warm up your database and introduce them to what you are selling.
Cold calling – By calling a few weeks after the direct mail has been sent, there is a stronger chance they will be aware of your company, and what you offer and you can be on hand to answer any questions they have.
Email – People tend to hate receiving unsolicited emails, but as you’ve sent a letter and made a phone call already, they will be much more receptive to receiving a follow-up email from you.

Split test, track, and refine

FInally, there is no such thing as a perfect campaign – track everything you can, refine, improve and adapt your campaign as time goes on.