RESEARCH FROM HYBRIS SHOWS THAT TARGETED MULTI-CHANNEL MARKETING LEADS TO NEW SALES

Published 7th November 2008

London – 7 November 2008 - hybris (www.hybris.com), a leading vendor of multi-channel commerce and communication software, has announced research carried out at its e-Commerce Summit in Switzerland which shows that multi-channel marketing is becoming increasingly critical for companies focussed on both B2C and B2B to generate new sales. The survey of over 120 international companies that attended the inaugural event, revealed that targeted marketing via multiple channels such as online shops, printed catalogues and Point of Sale has the power to identify new sales opportunities and raise market perception, at the same time.

While most of the international companies taking part in the survey said they planned to develop a multi-channel marketing strategy in the future, they agreed that to ensure that the investment is a success, a competent partner is required to turn the strategy into reality. Although the majority of Summit delegates (54 per cent) admitted that they have already instigated marketing campaigns that use several channels, they were surprised at the complexity of multi-channel marketing overall.

Other key findings of the research showed that:

• More than 80 per cent of respondents cited increased customer awareness and the opportunity to grow the business as one of the main reasons for implementing a multi-channel marketing campaign.
• A massive 72 per cent said they expected multi-channel marketing to deliver new target audiences that, in the main, are used to using the Internet. Multi-channel marketing is already considered a ‘must’ by many companies, particularly in the e-commerce area.
• Only 45 per cent agreed that increased sales were the only reason for implementing a multi-channel strategy. Its role in building successful, long-term customer relationships and securing high customer retention rates, across all channels, was considered significantly more important, particularly in an economic downturn.
• Respondents agreed that for multi-channel marketing to be a success, each channel must be clearly defined and its sales potential carefully explored.
• Overall, summit participants indicated a preference for using a combination of online shops, printed material and marketing at the ‘point of sale’ as the ideal ‘mix’.
• Mobile commerce (M-Commerce), where sales are targeted/completed via mobile phones, has yet to be fully explored.

Commenting on the survey, Ariel Lüdi, CEO of the hybris Group said: “Multi-channel is a promising marketing strategy if properly thought out and implemented. The statements by respondents at the e-Commerce Summit support the assumption that companies underestimate the complexity of multi-channel marketing. The declared goal of hybris is to reduce this complexity and, together with our customers, initiate and implement individual and powerful multi-channel concepts.”