Omnichannel vs multi-channel

What does it mean to have an omnichannel marketing strategy? The difference between omnichannel and multi-channel marketing can mean the difference between a short-term revenue bump and long-term revenue growth.

A multi-channel experience is disjointed, whereas an omnichannel strategy builds relationships with cross-channel conversations informed by unified customer data.

In other words, an omnichannel strategy meets your customers' personal and individual needs across every interaction-no matter where it takes place.

With 1 in 5 consumers abandoning brands after a single negative experience, according to Klaviyo's future of consumer marketing report, the stakes for getting this right have never been higher.

Omnichannel marketing: creating unified customer experiences

Omnichannel marketing is real-time orchestration across marketing and commerce channels-both physical and digital-powered by a shared customer profile and AI that adapts to each moment.

With omnichannel, customers experience an integrated, cohesive, and personalized journey, regardless of where or when they have touchpoints with your brand.

Why omnichannel marketing matters now

• Rising consumer expectations: Customers expect fast, personalized communication across every digital and physical touchpoint. According to Klaviyo's aforementioned future of consumer marketing report, 74% of consumers expect brands to provide personalized experiences in 2025.
• Privacy transformations: Changes to privacy regulations are leading to a devaluation of third-party data. With more states enacting comprehensive privacy laws, brands need to invest in channels that function through zero- and first-party customer data instead.
• AI-driven personalization: Consumers now regularly interact with AI systems that remember their preferences and predict their needs. These expectations are translating to their shopping experiences as well.

Customers move fluidly from TikTok to your site to your physical store to WhatsApp support-and they expect brands to meet them there, in real time, with context.

Multi-channel marketing: what it is and why it's no longer enough

Multi-channel marketing, on the other hand, is visual and linguistic consistency across all channels without a data connector between them. Behind the scenes, these channels function as separate islands, each with their own isolated data repositories, performance metrics, and customer profiles.

While multi-channel marketing is not inherently bad, here are two of its key limitations:

• Fragmented customer experiences: If you've ever purchased an item only to get an email the next day with an offer for that same item, you've experienced multi-channel marketing. This disconnect extends beyond communication to pricing and promotions, and it can lead to frustration among shoppers who want access to the same offers across all channels.
• Limited personalization capabilities: Siloed data makes meaningful personalization virtually impossible. When you can't follow a customer's complete journey-from their email interactions to their in-store visits to their mobile app usage-you're missing the full picture of their experience. This fragmented view prevents you from delivering the right message at the right time through their preferred channel.

Keep in mind that multi-channel marketing may still be appropriate for some situations (more on that later). But in a world where consumers increasingly expect personalized, integrated experiences, the limitations of this approach may cost you in revenue and customer loyalty.

4 key differences between omnichannel and multi-channel approaches

Now that you understand the big picture of omnichannel and multi-channel, let's zoom in on how these marketing approaches differ.

1. Data silos vs. data integration

Multi-channel marketing stores data in separate databases for each channel. Your email platform stores email engagement data. Your SMS platform holds data for SMS subscribers. Your point-of-sale (POS) captures purchase data from in-store sales. And all your customer data lives within these data silos. These disconnected tools require complex integrations that often break or sync too slowly to create cohesive experiences.

True omnichannel marketing requires a fundamentally different technological foundation: a unified CRM that serves as a single source of truth, connected to integrated marketing and commerce solutions and updating instantly across all touchpoints.

This integrated architecture creates a data flow between touchpoints, leading to real-time personalization and integrated experiences that define omnichannel excellence.

Consider how a sportswear brand might approach price alerts for running shoes with an omnichannel strategy. Rather than broadcasting identical messages across all channels, they deliver notifications through each customer's preferred communication method. So, customers who consistently open emails receive email alerts, while those who engage primarily via text get SMS notifications instead.

Without this integrated data foundation, the brand risks creating message fatigue and misses engagement opportunities by guessing which channel to use.

2. Customer journey mapping

Multi-channel teams optimize separate channels in isolation. Email teams focus on click rates, social media teams track engagement metrics, and retail teams measure foot traffic. While each channel may improve incrementally, the overall customer experience remains disconnected at transition points between channels.

Omnichannel strategy optimizes channels through customer lifecycle marketing. Rather than channel-specific metrics, teams map complete customer journeys from discovery to purchase and beyond.

Consider a fashion brand implementing true omnichannel journey mapping. Rather than separately optimizing their website for conversions and their stores for in-person sales, they create connections between these previously isolated touchpoints.

So, they might email in-store-only discount codes to online shoppers to bring people into physical stores. They may also alert local store managers about high-value items left in abandoned carts online.

3. Personalization capabilities

Multi-channel marketing typically offers basic audience segmentation within individual channels. Your email platform might segment subscribers by engagement or purchase history. Your SMS platform might group customers by response rate. Each channel delivers personalization based on limited, channel-specific data points.

Omnichannel personalization adapts messages in real time, across all channels. With access to unified customer profiles that house cross-channel behavioral data, preferences, and history, brands can deliver truly personalized experiences that meet customers where they are.

Consider a skincare brand with both ecommerce and physical spa locations. With an omnichannel approach, they can use geotargeting to promote brick-and-mortar spa services via email, but only to customers living near physical locations. An omnichannel approach would also make it easy to send aftercare tips based on the actual treatment someone received.

This approach creates a continuous feedback loop where in-person services inform digital recommendations, and online behavior shapes future in-store experiences-a level of personalization that simply can't exist within the siloed approach of multi-channel marketing.

4. Marketing team structure

Multi-channel organizations typically structure teams around specific channels-an email marketing team, a social media team, an in-store team-each with separate goals, budgets, and performance metrics. These silos naturally lead to disconnected customer experiences.

Omnichannel organizations break down these walls. Rather than structuring around channel-specific teams, brands hire customer lifecycle marketers to break down different strategies for attracting, engaging, converting, and retaining customers across their entire journey. This integrated structure naturally produces more cohesive customer experiences.

When to use multi-channel vs. omnichannel

Not every business needs to implement a full omnichannel strategy immediately. Your optimal approach depends on your business size, customer base, industry, and resources. Understanding when to implement each strategy can help you allocate resources where they'll drive the greatest returns.

When multi-channel marketing makes sense

Sometimes, a well-executed multi-channel strategy is the right choice. Multi-channel approaches often work best:

• For smaller brands just starting to expand beyond a single channel: If your ecommerce store is established but you're just starting to text subscribers rather than only emailing them, focus on excellence in each channel before tackling complex integration.
• When budget constraints limit investment in integrated technology: Quality execution across separate channels often beats poor implementation of omnichannel tools that exceed your current resources.
• For businesses with distinct customer segments that don't overlap between channels: If your in-store and online customers have minimal crossover, the investment in unification might not deliver immediate returns.
• For temporary campaigns or limited-time promotions: If the complexity of full integration doesn't justify the short-term benefits, it might not be the right time to implement an omnichannel strategy.

When to prioritize omnichannel marketing

Omnichannel marketing becomes essential in several scenarios:

• For brands with complex customer journeys spanning multiple touchpoints: When customers discover you on social media, conduct research on your website, visit your store, and complete their purchase via mobile app, you'll need ways to send contextual messages to customers across all these touchpoints.
• When competing in markets where customer experience is a key differentiator: This can include brands that operate in luxury retail or premium hospitality. Here, customers expect personalized service that acknowledges their preferences and purchase history.
• When your data reveals customers are experiencing friction points in their journey: If customers browse online before buying in-store or check inventory on mobile while standing in your shop, they're already behaving in an omnichannel fashion-even if your systems aren't. Meet them where they're at with an omnichannel strategy.

6 assessment questions to determine your readiness for omnichannel

These 6 questions serve two purposes: to identify whether you're ready for omnichannel implementation and to highlight areas where your current multi-channel approach is falling short.

Your answers can reveal both your readiness level and your most critical next steps. The key is developing a staged approach that builds omnichannel capabilities progressively rather than attempting a complete transformation overnight.

How Klaviyo B2C CRM powers true omnichannel experiences

Moving from multi-channel to omnichannel isn't just a matter of strategy-it requires the right unified customer platform.

Klaviyo B2C CRM centralizes data from 350+ integrations into a single customer profile that updates in real time as shoppers interact with your brand across channels. This is how top B2C brands are implementing cross-channel orchestration, delivering personalized experiences via email, SMS, WhatsApp, mobile push, and physical stores.