The customer journey is no longer linear: it is simultaneous

The journey equation

The difficulty of the omnichannel is not the number of channels. It comes from the fact that this number multiplys something else.

1. 01
   More channelsThe points of contact have multiplied on both sides.
2. 02
   More momentsThe course no longer has a single sequence or identifiable beginning.
3. 03
   More BehavioursResearch, comparison, purchase and reinsurance intertwine.
4. 04
   More dataEach interaction produces a signal that must be linked to others.

As a result, the number of decisions to be coordinated is growing faster than the number of channels.

Contact points have multiplied

In the B2B routes studied by McKinsey, customers now use ten or more channels to interact with their suppliers, compared to five in 2016. The same work describes a "third party rule" between presentation, distance and digital self-service.

McKinsey · B2B dirty: omnichannel everywhere, every time · 2024 · B2B buyers studied — not as average all sectors — View source

On the team side, Salesforce measures a different phenomenon that should not be confused with the previous one: the marketers interviewed use on average ten channels of customer engagement, and the best performers fully personalize the experience on six of them. One measure the interactions seen by buyer B2B, the other the channels operated by marketing teams.

Salesforce · Marketing statistics · 2024 · marketers questioned — channels operated, non-channels experienced by the customer — View source

The instability of behaviour has also been documented in the post-Covid context: 75% of consumers surveyed said they had tried new ways to buy and 39% had left brands they trusted. This measure dates back to this particular context; it is valid as evidence of instability, not as a permanent state.

McKinsey · Emerging consumer trends in a post-COVID-19 world · 2021 · Post-Covid survey — dated, to read as such — View source

A single funnel is no longer enough to represent the journey

The funnel has not become false. It remains useful to structure certain stages of conversion, but it does not describe the simultaneous behaviour, the feedback between channels and the different role of each point of influence.

BCG describes routes where streaming, scrolling, searching and shopping constantly mingle, and propose to replace the sequence with maps of influence — each point of contact not having the same weight in the decision.

BCG · Move beyond the funnel linear · 2025 — View source

• The sequential model

  Awareness → Consideration → Purchase. An abstraction always useful to organize conversion steps.

• Observed behaviour

  Social search 的 retail 的 video 的 sales 的 reviews 的 trade. Decisions circulate between several contact points that can simultaneously create, strengthen or destroy preference.

Covering channels is not enough

The challenge is both organizational and technological. A HBR Analytic Services search relayed by Quad indicates that 53% of the marketing teams interviewed feel overwhelmed by the number of channels to manage.

HBR Analytic Services, relayed by Quad · How complexity is screaming marketing · 2024 · Marketing teams interviewed — View source

The most revealing point is the ability to learn: among respondents interviewed by McKinsey, only one in four described his organization as having an agile test-and-learn culture, and only one in eight believed that he was able to meet customer needs in real time.

McKinsey · Connecting for growth: a makeover for your marketing operating model · 2024 · respondents surveyed — View source

Bain observes that the most mature organizations as measured by the route are four times more likely to exceed their business objectives; they are distinguished in particular by a more complete measure of the customer journey, more automation and fewer silos. This is an observation and associated characteristics, not a proven causal chain.

Bath · The measurement advantage · 2024 · organisations studied — association observed — View source