Businesses are always looking for ways to increase customer loyalty and drive more sales. One way to do this is by increasing the number of customer touchpoints. However, there is a point at which too many customer touchpoints can actually have a negative effect on your business. In this article, we will explore the concept of sales saturation and discuss how many customer touchpoints are too many. We will also offer some tips on how to determine when you’ve reached the point of diminishing returns with customer touchpoints.
What is Sales Saturation?
Sales saturation is the point at which adding additional customer touchpoints no longer has a positive effect on sales. This can happen for a number of reasons, including customer fatigue and loss of interest.
How Many Touchpoints are too Many?
There is no hard and fast rule for how many customer touchpoints are too many. However, there are a few things you can keep in mind to help you determine when you’ve reached the point of diminishing returns.
First, consider customer fatigue. If your customer touchpoints are becoming too frequent or intrusive, they may start to tune out your message. Second, think about customer interest. If you’re offering too many touchpoints for a product or service that they’re not interested in, you may lose their attention. Finally, take into account the cost of customer acquisition. If your customer touchpoints are costing you more to acquire than they’re worth, it’s time to reevaluate your strategy.
For reference, 15 years ago the average consumer typically used two touch-points when buying an item and only 7% regularly used more than four. Today, consumers use an average of almost six touch-points with nearly 50% regularly using more than four.
Personalization is key in Contact Centers
When it comes to customer touchpoints, personalization is key. Your customer touchpoints should be tailored to the individual customer’s needs and interests. In fact, customers expect this to be the case. A Salesforce study found that 66% of consumers expect brands to understand their individual needs. The good news is that customer personalization can be accomplished through omnichannel analytics.
The Importance of Omnichannel Analytics
The best way to provide a personalized customer experience is through the use of omnichannel analytics. Omnichannel analytics are essential for understanding customer behavior and personalizing customer touchpoints. Without it, you run the risk of reaching the point of diminishing returns with customer touchpoints.
With an omnichannel approach, customers have the ability to reach your company through multiple channels, including phone, email, chat, social media, and more. You also have omnichannel customer profiles which include information from all of a customer’s interactions with your company. When an agent pulls this information, they can see the interactions a customer has had with the company across platforms.
This insight into customer behavior across all channels allows agents to understand customer needs and tailor customer touchpoints accordingly.
How to Personalize the Customer Experience with OmnichannelAnalytics
There are a few things you can do to personalize the customer experience and reduce sales saturation with omnichannel analytics.
- Ensure your agents have access to complete customer profiles. This includes information from all of a customer’s interactions with your company.
- Segment your customers into groups based on their needs and interests. This will allow you to create targeted customer touchpoints.
- Use customer behavior data to understand what customer touchpoints are most effective.
- Stand out from your competition by reaching customers on their preferred platforms. Using multiple touchpoints also reduces ad blindness – also known as the phenomenon that occurs when people ignore or avoid banner ads, or don’t recognize what the company is advertising.
By following these steps, you can be sure that your customer touchpoints are personal and relevant. This will help you avoid the point of diminishing returns and maximize the effectiveness of your existing touchpoints.
The Takeaway
Reaching the point of sales saturation is a risk for any business that relies on customer touchpoints to drive sales. However, by understanding the concept and using omnichannel analytics, you can avoid this pitfall and ensure that your customer touchpoints are effective.
Byline: Nick Bandy, Chief Marketing Officer, LiveVox
Author Bio: Nick has over 25 years of executive leadership experience in the marketing and technology space, serving private, PE-backed, and public organizations. He founded and developed the SpeechIQ product which was subsequently acquired by LiveVox in 2019.
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