The Cross-Channel Targeting Technology finally Explained

Cross-Channel Targeting Technology: A strategy that pays… when you know how to use it.

The best way to get a feel for cross-channel marketing is by way of a simple example. Imagine a  guy “let’s call him Martin” on his way to work. In his packed subway car, Martin surfs news sites and reads car articles on his smartphone. Can you picture the scene?

Martin also checks his inbox and stumbles upon an email from a car brand that he really likes. For the moment, Martin is still not sure he wants to buy a car. But he opens the email anyway if only to fantasize a little about the model he has his eyes on.

Arriving at his subway stop, Martin walks to work, thinking of the day ahead. The promotional message about the car has probably only had a temporary effect. Nevertheless, by using this message, the brand has achieved one of its goals.

How can I develop a Cross-Channel Campaign that Leads to a Sale?

Answer: By optimizing your cross-device tracking with automation strategies and actions based on complex artificial intelligence algorithms. Too complicated, you say? Not necessarily.

The most important thing is that you start to see things a little differently and work with the right partners. Up until now, your first reflex was probably just to optimize the ICPs of each channel. But why not go further? From now on, you and your teams will need to see all these channels as flows of communication built into a single entity: the buying process.

Emails, social networks, web browsers, laptops and PCs, tablets, smartphones, and screen ads are a number of means and contact points which will allow you to reach the same potential customer. Each has its own way of capturing attention and creating an experience. The actions of customers, however, will differ according to the means that is used. That’s why your strategy must be adapted to the particularities of each channel. What’s new is that the process initiated on one channel will now allow you to “track” your targets and guide them towards the final objective: the purchase.

You are probably thinking this process sounds a bit shady. But the truth is, when this type of strategy is well conceived, it actually benefits customers who have embarked on your paper chase, for they stop receiving the same message over and over again.

It is also worth noting that all data remains entirely anonymous, except in the case of secure contact points (e.g. the registration of a customer on your website, email campaigns based on lists of known addresses, etc.). From one channel to another, the data only benefits the action points, for the goal is not to use the customer buying process to collect information. It suffices to know that an Internet user saw message 1 on a banner, that message 2 appears on the interstitial of another website which was visited, that message 3 is displayed when the user watches a video, and so on.

Martin’s story continued

Let’s get back to our story. Martin arrives at his office and starts a workday like any other. At some point, he visits a website where a banner allows him to discover a vital yet relatively unknown feature of the car he is considering. Curious, Martin clicks on the ad to find out more. He now has access to the entire workflow but closes the page when he sees the price. For the time being, the car is not within his budget.

Let’s now imagine Martin on his way home from work. He’s back on his phone, and just as he passes by the car dealership, an ad pops up on his screen announcing that TODAY, and only today, he can benefit from a small, exclusive discount on the price of the car, along with a free pack of options. But to benefit from this offer, Martin has to act fast. He must see the dealer TODAY, and provide the code XPGJRL that appears in the ad.

What do you think Martin will do? He may decide to take advantage of the offer and speak with the dealer, but it is also possible that he does nothing. In the case of the latter, the brand will have to adapt its strategy a little bit more to fit the customer’s buying process. On the other hand, if Martin does in fact head to the dealership, it is likely he will receive an offer and take a few days to make up his mind. He will then be in a totally different position in the process, that of the purchase.

Martin’s process is just one example which can be applied to countless processes and online and offline conversion strategies.

Why is such an Approach also Favourable to Publishers?

Because it allows all the contact points in a consumer buying process to be paid in a fair manner. All publishers and channels receive their share of the sale. When you assign a value to a lead and distribute this value amongst the entire conversion chain, you are seen as a fair partner who ensures all his publishers (or service providers) receive their due share. Up until now, you may have been in the habit of handsomely paying the final contact point leading up to the conversion. Not only was the rest of the chain ignored, but you didn’t possess the necessary data indicating where to invest to generate more leads and sales.

With this kind of cross-channel strategy, the customer buying process becomes easier to follow, which means you can now offer your publishers and service providers their share of the profits. You will subsequently get more leads, for your publishers, duly compensated for the part they play in your strategy, will go out of their way to implement your advertising objectives.

How can I deploy a Cross-Channel Strategy?

It’s easy: By asking for help from the partners or service providers who allow you to match customer buying processes and direct key messages at customers.

Thanks to its vast network of partners, Kwanko offers you a 360° look at the buying processes of your customers. Whether you wish to create campaigns on the basis of the opt-in lists of vertical publishers, circulate ads on cell phones, social media, search engines, or the Internet, or take advantage of a network of content providers, we cover all types of channels and facilitate convergence.

You may, of course, choose to deploy this strategy on your own. To do so, you will need a specialized team and the technology required for carrying out the various phases of the project. Everything depends on your budget and the priorities you have set for the next few years. Although this approach enables you to avoid having to depend on one single provider for the management of the entire process, it comes with some serious drawbacks in terms of coordination, and you run the risk of disrupting the fluidity of the customer experience.

I hope this article was helpful in explaining the benefits you can derive from a cross-channel strategy. Our team will be happy to answer any questions you may have.