The digital revolution has led to undisputable and irreversible changes in the way we experience everyday life. This applies especially to our shopping experiences. With the increasing number of sales channels and omnipresent, easy-to-reach information, people have grown to be the best informed customers who have ever existed. To accommodate these changes in the business context, companies have to change their traditional push-based, brand-centric view to one recognizing and catering to an economy of connected experiences that are equally owned by company and customer. This integrated brand experience is referred to as omnichannel experience. Omnichannel marketing means that companies now need to provide a seamless shopping experience across channels, allowing their customers to switch between devices and the physical preference whenever and however they like.
This work raised the hypothesis that today, many premium fashion companies are still struggling to offer seamless and engaging omnichannel experiences, because they lack a holistic measurement framework including future-oriented KPIs – due to legacy systems and departments’ silo perspectives.
The contribution to this article is twofold. First, it consists of a review of existing literature on the subject. Second, to leverage the significance and implication of this current topic, interviews with seven leading industry experts were conducted. The gained insights were interwoven with the thesis’ literature review and support the work’s findings and statements.
About the author:
Insa Schniedermeier is a Senior Associate Marketing Strategy & Analysis based out of Sapient Nitro’s Cologne office. She has worked within different industries with focus on consumer goods and retail, developing digital experience strategies for Fortune 500/ DAX 30 companies. Insa’s breadth of experience includes customer, market and trend research, (digital) strategy development, and project and product management.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Omnichannel – context and definition
History of omnichannel retailing
Definition of omnichannel
A global perspective on omnichannel preconditions
3. Digitalization in the premium fashion industry
3.1 Premium vs. luxury fashion
3.2 Premium fashion 2.0
3.3 Towards omnichannel – status, barriers and opportunities
3.3.1 Omnichannel capabilities today
3.3.2 Barriers of omnichannel marketing
3.3.3 Opportunities of omnichannel marketing
3.4 Burberry – case study
4. Understanding the omnichannel customer
4.1 Digital shopper characteristics
4.2 The evolution of the customer journey concept
4.3 L’Oréal – case study
4.4 Storyscaping
4.5 Omnichannel touch point map
4.6 An omnichannel manifesto for brands
5. Returns on omnichannel marketing
5.1 Marketing ROI
5.2 Planning context
5.2.1 Vision and mission statements
5.2.2 Business goals, strategy and objectives
5.2.3 Performance and Result Indicators
5.3 Omnichannel analytics
5.3.1 A case study
5.3.2 Implementation – the marketing scorecard
5.3.3 Analysis and optimization
5.4 Technical and organizational implications
6. Summary and outlook
Research Objectives & Key Themes
This thesis investigates why premium fashion companies struggle to deliver seamless omnichannel experiences, hypothesizing that a lack of holistic measurement frameworks and siloed organizational structures are the primary causes. The research aims to develop a new KPI-based measurement framework that enables managers to make sustainable, data-driven decisions regarding channel investment and customer engagement.
- The impact of digital transformation on premium fashion business models.
- Methods for understanding and mapping the modern omnichannel customer journey.
- Barriers to omnichannel implementation, specifically legacy systems and organizational silos.
- The development of holistic measurement frameworks for marketing ROI (MROI).
- Best practices and case studies for successful digital integration.
Excerpt from the Book
3.3.2 Barriers of omnichannel marketing
The disruption of the traditional market structures caused by the advent of digital offerings can and may not be denied. “[…] Consumers’ digital behaviors and expectations are evolving faster than retailers are able to deliver, a gap we refer to as the ‘new digital divide.’ Some of the biggest players in retail have been reluctant or slow to understand or acknowledge this widening gap”, (Lobaugh et al. 2015, p. 3). In this chapter several barriers to change are identified.
Perception
For a long time now, many companies have not understood how to deal with the emerging omnichannel topic and have treated it as just another channel: “Organizations still think about omnichannel as an extension of their digital business – or as a sexier name for e-commerce,” (L2 2015c, p. 3) – some are still doing so. Lobaugh et al. (2015, p. 3) advise companies to not walk into this perception trap: “Our experience in the industry tells us that the traditional approach of focusing on digital as a channel drastically limits the value, the opportunity, and ultimately, the strategy”.
For premium fashion brands there is an additional layer: “Among luxury companies, conventional wisdom used to be that participation in e-commerce—and, in particular, selling through multibrand retail websites—was only for the lower and middle range of products. The pervasive belief was that luxury shoppers, with their discriminating taste and preference for high-priced goods, wouldn’t buy expensive things online; they would always opt for the personalized customer service and tactile shopping experience that monobrand brick-and-mortar stores provide”, (Dauriz et al. 2014, p. 26). The huge success of high-end digital ventures such as Net-A-Porter or YOOX, both launched back in 2000, proved the skeptics wrong, demonstrating that consumers do buy premium and luxury products online and at undiscounted prices. (See Dauriz et al. 2014, p. 26; Amed 2016)
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Outlines the digital revolution's impact on shopping behaviors and states the hypothesis that premium fashion brands lack holistic measurement frameworks for omnichannel success.
2. Omnichannel – context and definition: Provides an overview of retail history and defines the term omnichannel in the context of modern, connected consumer experiences.
3. Digitalization in the premium fashion industry: Explores the unique challenges of the premium fashion sector and identifies key barriers and opportunities for omnichannel adoption.
4. Understanding the omnichannel customer: Analyzes the characteristics of digitally savvy shoppers and evaluates the customer decision journey as a tool for proactive management.
5. Returns on omnichannel marketing: Introduces MROI and proposes a new KPI measurement framework designed to align marketing efforts with business objectives.
6. Summary and outlook: Confirms the initial hypothesis and provides final recommendations for navigating the challenges of an omnichannel future.
Key Terms
Omnichannel Marketing, Premium Fashion, Digital Transformation, Customer Journey, Marketing ROI, MROI, KPI, Performance Indicators, Digital Divide, Customer Equity, Marketing Scorecard, Storyscaping, Millennials, Brick-and-Mortar, Inventory Visibility
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research?
This work examines the challenges premium fashion companies face in implementing omnichannel strategies and proposes a holistic framework to measure their success.
What are the primary thematic areas covered?
The research focuses on the digital disruption of the fashion industry, understanding modern customer behavior, overcoming organizational barriers, and implementing effective marketing measurement systems.
What is the primary research goal?
The goal is to provide a KPI-based framework that helps marketing managers better quantify the return on their omnichannel investments, moving beyond short-term metrics.
Which scientific methods were employed?
The study utilizes a comprehensive review of existing literature combined with expert interviews from seven industry professionals across retail strategy, data analytics, and digital solutions.
What does the main body address?
It details the evolution of retail, identifies barriers like legacy systems and siloed departments, and provides actionable frameworks like the 'omnichannel touch point map' and 'marketing scorecard'.
Which keywords best characterize this work?
The work is defined by terms such as Omnichannel Marketing, Premium Fashion, Customer Journey, MROI, and KPI measurement.
How does the author define the 'New Digital Divide'?
The author uses this term to describe the gap between evolving customer digital behaviors and the inability of many retailers to meet those expectations.
What role does the 'OmniChic' case study play?
OmniChic serves as a hypothetical premium fashion retailer to demonstrate how companies can practically implement a KPI-based measurement framework to manage marketing returns.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Insa Schniedermeier (Autor:in), 2016, Returns on Omnichannel Marketing. Towards a holistic framework to manage and measure Omnichannel strategy's success in the premium fashion industry, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/368175
