At a recent conference, I heard a keynote speaker from the John Lewis Partnership presenting the multi-channel strategy they have developed to allow customers to interact with them any way they wish, – in store, on tablet, web, by phone, – with quicker calls, quicker email response and ease of finding product, self-service on the web etc.
This is just what today’s consumer expects and is often the tipping point in reasons to buy products and services. By having a focus on the customer and the customer journey, this has allowed John Lewis to create a multi-channel strategy and work on how different customers think across different parts of the customer journey. It is about delivery, FAQs, availability of product, etc.
The marketing investment in this strategy has required an internal customer programme to align internal departmental issues and lines to be softened. ‘That is not my department’ is a taboo attitude. The key is the right culture, the right training and the right planning.