Research & Trends: A Cross-Channel Wake-Up Call

By Nikki Baird, Retail Systems Research

Among retailers, it appears that a consensus has been reached as to where to find more profitable customers: They are those troublesome consumers who cross channels. These consumers insist on engaging in activities that expose retailers' vulnerabilities in brand and process, as they attempt to use multiple methods of engagement, leveraging multiple touch points, technologies, and resources to build a personalized shopping experience for themselves. The realization that cross-channel customers are more profitable than single-channel (usually store) customers has been growing for years.