Multichannel communication in ecommerce or how to complete the quest "abandoned basket"?

Small changes and innovations in business can significantly increase conversion. Entrepreneurs and marketers around the world are constantly looking for such solutions. But sometimes it does not require serious investments - it is enough just to create a system from existing elements. For example, make communication channels work together.

For example, take the online shopping industry, like a market that is at the forefront of all marketing technologies and with a huge army of consumers. Today we can safely say that the number of purchases online and offline almost equaled. At least, data of the eMarketer edition testify to it. Obviously, in order to achieve greater success in e-commerce, it is necessary to facilitate the process of shopping for buyers. From product search to the purchase process, every step should be simple and intuitive. This task, as it seems, is not an easy one, but it will be easier to cope with it if optimization of communications is carried out.
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The first banal, but important thought: the direct stay on the store's website is only part of the online shopping process. Even if you maximally simplify the process of finding and selecting a product, as well as making a purchase, what to do with customers who for some reason have not gone this way to the end? Will you encourage them to return and complete the purchase, or offer other products? This is an e-commerce quest “abandoned basket”.



The key to the answer lies in the understanding that online shopping is a multi-channel experience. A person can begin to search for goods from the phone, and then make a purchase from a laptop. And want a new phone in the store mall. You need to reach the client, no matter what communication channels he uses.

We propose to act in the following scenario:

1. Start with push notifications

Push notifications are no longer limited to smartphones and tablets. Now they can be sent to user desktops. We wrote more about this in our “Guide to a marketer on push notifications . ” A simple reminder to the customer that there are unformed goods left in his basket can convince him to return and complete the purchase. But what if he has already closed the browser or the store application?

2. Refer to the universal solution: SMS

If the user left his mobile phone number during registration, send him a short text message. Remind him that he has not completed the purchase, and offer him an additional discount or gift coupon. Fantasy can extend further. The main thing is that the client has an incentive to return.

3. Good old mail

Email remains the best tool for communicating with the client. You do not have a mobile customer number? Write him a letter and tell in more detail what he will gain if he continues purchasing. On the basis of standard customer behavior patterns, trigger mailings are built, which some companies use very effectively.

4. Communicate

If the buyer has questions about the product to which he cannot find the answer, he will most likely not make the purchase. Give him the opportunity to ask a question and get a comprehensive answer. Any tool is suitable - from the built-in chat on the site to the exchange of SMS. Communication, since the times of market traders, remains an important, if not a key element of sales. Only its forms change.

With such a variety of channels, it is important not to get confused and not to start bombarding a potential client with a lot of unnecessary messages. To avoid this, make a clear plan of communication with him, and follow him strictly. We have prepared a special matrix that will help you understand the plan. To do this, you will need to structure the following information:

1. Identify bottlenecks. At what point do buyers most often leave without completing a purchase? What prevents them from reaching the end?

2. Segment visitors. Someone came to buy something, someone just looks, someone is thinking about buying, but he doubts. Each group has its own approach. For those who have come just to see, offer a discount or a gift - this may incline them to a spontaneous purchase. If a person studies similar products for a long time - perhaps he may have questions that should be answered.

3. Determine what you want to say to each group of customers at each stage. They have different bottlenecks, which means that messages must be different.

4. Decide on the best time to send a message. Everything has its time. If a person has already set aside several items in the basket, but continues to walk around the site - he does not need to be reminded of the need to complete the purchase. The maximum that can be offered to them is to talk about products that can complement what they have already chosen.

5. Select the appropriate channel. Push or SMS, mail or all at once? Experiment, choose.

Having developed a script, be sure to test it, test it many times and make changes. In your area, approaches that work nowhere else may work, so look for exactly what is right for you.