When people buy merch, they’re not thinking about channels. They just want a smooth experience. They may email or call you, and every time, they expect you to pick up where the last conversation left off. That’s what omnichannel sales is all about: keeping each interaction connected so clients never have to repeat themselves and every conversation builds on the last.
With an omnichannel strategy, clients feel known rather than managed, according to sales leader and bestselling author, Diego Mangabeira. He says that to implement this kind of strategy, it takes a defined process, organized data and the right technology. We share his step-by-step omnichannel process in this issue of PromoPro Daily.
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Step 1: Audit your current channel activity and data architecture. Before building an omnichannel strategy, Mangabeira says it’s important for sales leaders to first understand the current state of their channel coverage and data quality. You should be able to determine which channels are active and tracked in the CRM. You should also understand whether data gaps or duplicates exist and where handoffs may break down.
Step 2: Define your unified customer record. Mangabeira explains that this is a structured data model that captures identity, engagement history, preferences, and intent signals required to coordinate omnichannel execution. He says some key fields for an omnichannel-ready contact record include persona and role, primary channel preference and content engagement history.
Step 3: Map your buyer journey by stage and channel. Journey orchestration requires a clear map of which channels serve which buyer stages, he says. Each stage should specify the primary channel, secondary channel and escalation path if the primary does not produce a response.
Step 4: Build coordinated sequences with clear service-level agreements. Once the buyer journey map is in place, Mangabeira says the next step is building coordinated sequences that enforce the right channel, message and timing for each stage.
Step 5: Connect your sales intelligence stack. According to Mangabeira, omnichannel execution depends on signal quality, and signal quality depends on the data flowing into the CRM from every channel a team uses. Sales intelligence integrations connect things like news alerts and social engagement signals to provide real-time view of buying intent before reps reach out.
Step 6: Implement AI-powered prospecting and automation. Mangabeira points out that AI changes the economics of omnichannel execution by automating the research, personalization and timing decisions that previously required manual effort at every touchpoint. Teams that implement AI-powered prospecting can execute true omnichannel outreach at scale without bringing on more staff, he says.
Step 7: Streamline quoting, payment and deal closure. This is where many processes break down. Mangabeira recommends enabling payment links directly within the quote workflow. That way, prospects can pay for their merch upon receiving a quote.
Your clients don’t care how many tools you use or which channel they contacted you on. They just want you to remember who they are and what they need. Get that right, and you’re not just selling merch but building a lasting business relationship.
Compiled by Audrey Sellers
Source: Diego Mangabeira is a sales leader, speaker, coach and bestselling author who has been ranked in the top 1% of LinkedIn’s Social Selling Index in sales and marketing services.
