Marketing your company and brand online has become an essential aspect of any business in this day and age. Not only are there more people online now than ever before, they are interacting more than ever before. Because of this, one of the most important and effective marketing strategies your brand can have is the ability to utilize what is known as Cross-Channel Marketing.
Cross-Channel Marketing is often confused with Multi-Channel marketing, and in many ways the two strategies are similar, however, the difference comes in the subtle ways they are used.
For instance, Multi-Channel Marketing implies the use of multiple channels (hence the name) to convey a message to your audience. Channels are the forms of media you decide to relay your message through, such as the commonly used mediums like TV, Radio, e-mail, social media and various other online techniques like websites and adverts. In Multi-Channel Marketing, the message conveyed over each medium is generally the same (although adapted to the format, it is still basically a one-way communication process).
One the other hand, Cross-Channel Marketing also utilizes the various aspects of media and technology that have been discussed above, but with the focus being placed on the customer rather than the content of the message. The trick is to get each and every medium to work seamlessly together in order to integrate the customer’s experience of them as much as possible. For example, through Cross-Channel Marketing, information about not only how the customer uses certain technologies, but how often, and what purpose it is used for is collected and stored, and then aids in the process of interacting more effectively with the client. By tracking and engaging with the client across all media, it is easier to develop personalised content for their preferred medium.
Written by Wesley Geyer (Creative Writer - ATKA Online)
