When devising and planning a successful multi-channel strategy, the importance of ‘value’ to the customer is key.

And while there is no set formula that can be applied uniformly across the board, experienced customer service managers will tell you there are certain constants that should always form the backbone of any strategy:

• Know your audience — Knowing them well will mean you learn your customers’ triggers. This, coupled with pinpointing the channel of choice will have a positive impact on customer relations.
• Effective technology — While everyone nowadays has apps and mobile technology, not everyone uses it effectively. It doesn’t have to be innovative, it just needs to be effective.
• Social is no longer a ‘specialised extra’ — Using social media has become as integral to a company’s staff as using Microsoft Office or checking emails. Social is no longer just the domain of the marketing team, it is now the whole firm’s responsibility.
• Easy to find — Make your various channels easy to find. By effectively optimising for search engines, all of your various channels and their information will be easy to access for your customers.

Tap into emotions — The combination of multi-channels, numerous customer engagement touch-points and an emotive message is a winning one. This was best illustrated by the 2013 award-winning ‘Meningitis: Keep Watching’ campaign.