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Why omnichannel is the ultimate differentiator

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Joe Pratten, hosted sales specialist at Gamma, explains how resellers can differentiate themselves by successfully delivering omnichannel.

Even before the pandemic, customer expectations were shifting. Younger generations now make up for a large percentage of the market - one that prefers digital interactions over traditional ones. While this doesn't mean that calls and voice interactions are disappearing, it highlights the necessity for web, self-service, mobile, and social interactions to be an integral part of the customer experience (CX).

Providing a consistent and seamless experience across channels and interactions is now more important than ever for organisations that hope to succeed in the coming months and years. One bad or frustrating interaction and customers will simply go looking elsewhere.

Resellers have the great opportunity to provide organisations with the ultimate advantage - consistent CX through omnichannel. Omnichannel provides organisations with the ability to communicate with customers using multiple channels in the same interactions, or over different interactions. Relevant information is carried over to subsequent channels, creating a consistent customer experience for customers.

But what are the key aspects to consider when selling omnichannel?

Identifying your client - IT or CX team?

Different departments will have different requirements when it comes enabling omnichannel.

While IT business leaders will consider how omnichannel integrates into the technology stack, what are its requirements and how it can enable agents, CX teams will evaluate the customer journey and how an omnichannel environment affects it.

Identifying your clients and their requirements is vital to make sure you are able to overcome their doubts and challenges, and to deliver the right solution for their needs.

Understanding omnichannel barriers

The shift to omnichannel needs to start from understanding customer barriers and pain points.

One of the biggest challenges for customers hoping to implement omnichannel is overcoming data silos. In a traditional environment, different channels are usually aligned with different departments, or even products. Agents might not have the access to the necessary data to solve issues quickly and seamlessly, but often this only because that data is scattered across different channels and interactions.

Moreover, too often agents don't have the expertise, or ability, to provide the same CX over different channels. The latest technology, often embedded with AI capabilities, can help agents effectively interact with customers. However, providing agents with the right tools to enable omnichannel is only the first step, organisations will need to trust them to become 'brand ambassadors' across channels - training, support, and trust are key to omnichannel.

Finally, obsolete and legacy technology can make the path to omnichannel virtually impossible for some businesses. With the changing requirements of the new generations, organisations need to employ a cloud-based technology, such as Gamma's Cloud Contact Centre, that enables them to integrate data and functionalities to deliver the same, excellent experience regardless of the channel.

Providing the right demo for your customer contact centre needs

Once you've identified the barriers and pain points of your customers, providing the right demo to overcome those challenges is key.

There are hundreds of features that can ensure a successful omnichannel environment, but resellers will need to make sure they understand which of those are critical to their customer needs and build the demo around them. As a reseller, this is the perfect chance to demonstrate your value and expertise, and to show your customers the true benefits of an integrated cloud contact centre solution.

Building a partnership with the right vendor will also prove vital to differentiate yourself and your offering in an ever-so competitive market.