Omnichannel Marketing Automation – Expert Strategy Breakdown

Your customers don’t live on just one channel anymore.

They scroll Instagram at breakfast, check email at lunch, and browse your website before bed. If your marketing can’t keep up across all these touchpoints, you’re losing sales.

That’s where omnichannel marketing automation comes in. It connects every customer interaction into one seamless experience that actually converts.

TL;DR – Omnichannel Marketing Automation Strategy

Short on time? Here’s what you need to know:

• • Omnichannel automation brings all your marketing channels together so customers get a smooth experience wherever they interact with you.
  • The system sends personalized messages automatically when customers take specific actions, no manual work needed.
  • Follow the Plan > Build > Run approach: understand your current setup, implement the right technology, then execute and optimize campaigns.
  • Companies with strong omnichannel strategies retain 89% of customers and see 9.5% annual revenue growth.
  • You need unified customer data, integrated tools, and AI-powered personalization to make it work.

What is Omnichannel Marketing Automation and Why Does It Matter?

Omnichannel marketing automation coordinates your marketing campaigns across every channel where customers interact with your brand. Email, text messages, push notifications, social media, websites, and even in-store experiences.

The key difference from regular marketing? Everything works together.

When someone abandons a cart on your website, the system automatically sends an email reminder, follows up with a text message, and shows them a retargeting ad on Instagram. All without manual work.

It matters because 62% of consumers expect the same brand experience regardless of which channel they use. Modern customers touch an average of six different touchpoints before making a purchase, up from just two touchpoints 15 years ago.

Companies with strong omnichannel strategies retain 89% of their customers, while businesses with weak strategies keep only 33%. Omnichannel customers also spend more compared to single-channel shoppers.

Core Components of an Effective Omnichannel Marketing Automation System

Building an omnichannel marketing automation system requires several interconnected pieces.

Miss one, and the whole system breaks down.

• • Customer Data Platform (CDP): This is your foundation. A CDP collects customer information from every source – website visits, app usage, email opens, purchase history, social media interactions, and in-store transactions. Then it stitches all those scattered data points into one unified customer profile. Without unified data, you can’t deliver personalized experiences.
  • Integration Layer: Your marketing tools need to integrate with each other. The integration layer connects your email platform, CRM, ecommerce system, social media accounts, and analytics tools. Data flows in real-time, so when someone clicks a link in your email, your website immediately knows who they are and what they’ve been interested in.
  • Channel Orchestration Engine: This coordinates the actual customer journeys across channels. You map out the path you want customers to take. Maybe they get a welcome email when they sign up, followed by an SMS with a discount code three days later, then a push notification if they haven’t purchased within a week. The orchestration engine handles timing, triggers, and decision logic.
  • Personalization Engine: Not everyone should get the same message. The personalization engine uses customer data to customize content based on behavior, preferences, location, purchase history, and dozens of other factors. Deloitte research shows 80% of consumers are more likely to buy when brands offer personalized experiences.
  • AI and Machine Learning: Modern omnichannel marketing software uses AI to predict what customers will do next. Machine learning models can identify who’s likely to churn, determine the best time to send messages, recommend products, and automatically create micro-segments based on behavior patterns.
  • Analytics and Reporting: You need to see what’s working. Analytics dashboards track campaign performance, measure ROI, show which channels drive the most conversions, and identify where customers drop off in their journey.

How to Build Your Omnichannel Marketing Automation Strategy

At Coffee + Dunn, we’ve refined a methodology that cuts through the complexity of omnichannel implementation.

Our Plan > Build > Run approach has helped organizations transform disconnected marketing efforts into seamless customer experiences.

Instead of overwhelming you with dozens of steps, we focus on three phases that actually work.

Here’s how to start omnichannel marketing automation in practice:

Plan – Understand Where You Stand Today

We start with a diagnostic assessment of your current setup.

This includes:

• • Your team structure and how different departments work together
  • Existing processes for customer engagement across channels
  • Current technology stack and integration capabilities
  • Gaps where customers experience friction or inconsistency

Through collaborative workshops, we help you define clear priorities:

• • Which customer journeys matter most to your business?
  • What does success look like?
  • Where are customers falling through the cracks between channels?

This planning phase also covers content strategy, lead scoring requirements, and aligning your sales, marketing, and service teams on shared goals.

Build – Implement the Right Technology and Processes

Once your plan is set, we build the technical foundation to support it.

That means configuring Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Insights to match your specific business needs and setting up the workflows that keep everything running smoothly.

Key build activities include:

• • Integrating Dynamics 365 with your existing CRM, email, and ecommerce systems
  • Setting up automated customer journeys across email, SMS, and social channels
  • Creating governance processes so your team can maintain implementations long-term
  • Customizing dashboards and reporting to track what matters to your business

Our decade-long partnership with Microsoft means we bring deep product expertise. We’ve even helped influence the Dynamics 365 roadmap to better serve customers like you.

Run – Execute Campaigns and Optimize Performance

The work doesn’t stop after implementation.

We bridge the gap between software setup and actual marketing execution by running integrated campaigns as an extension of your team.

What this looks like in practice:

• • Ongoing video-based training so your team can use new features as they roll out
  • Customized analytics that show real ROI (not just vanity metrics)
  • Continuous optimization based on campaign performance and customer behavior
  • Regular strategy sessions to refine your approach

Performance optimization is ongoing work. Customer behavior shifts over time. New channels pop up. Your business goals change. Regular check-ins help you spot what’s working and what needs tweaking.

Need help getting your omnichannel strategy off the ground?

We work with organizations to align strategy, technology, and operations into connected experiences that actually drive growth.

Our DUNN Right managed services plans start at $5,000 per month, which often costs less than the premium licensing fees alone for enterprise platforms. And you get expert support that ensures your investment pays off.

Let’s talk about what’s possible for your business.

Best Tools for Omnichannel Automation

The omnichannel marketing tools market is crowded.

This is what you need to know about the major options:

Enterprise Platforms ($1,000+/month)

Enterprise solutions offer the most comprehensive features for organizations managing complex customer journeys at scale.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Insights – Journeys

Microsoft’s enterprise platform combines customer data management and marketing automation in one solution.

It includes both Customer Insights – Data (the CDP component) and Customer Insights – Journeys (the marketing automation piece).

Key features include:

• • Visual journey builders for trigger-based and segment-based omnichannel campaigns with split tiles supporting up to 25 branches.
  • Advanced segmentation that targets specific customer groups using demographics, behavior, purchase history, or any combination of factors.
  • Email marketing with AI-powered content suggestions, drag-and-drop editor, pre-built templates, A/B testing, and heatmap analytics.
  • SMS and mobile messaging (supporting SMS, RCS, WhatsApp, and Viber), plus push notifications for iOS and Android.
    Social media posting and monitoring across Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, with automatic lead syncing from LinkedIn.
  • Event management for virtual and in-person gatherings, including registration with waitlists, paid events with payment processing, and QR code check-in capabilities.

The platform integrates natively with Teams, Outlook, Power Platform, and Dynamics 365 Sales. This makes it particularly valuable if you’re already using Microsoft products.

Pricing starts at $1,700/month per tenant, which includes 100,000 unified customer profiles and unlimited users. There’s also a discounted “attach” rate if you have 10+ existing Dynamics 365 licenses.

Microsoft’s Dynamics 365 Copilot AI features stand out. You can describe campaigns in plain English, and it builds the journey automatically.

Other Enterprise Options

Beyond Microsoft, enterprise options include:

• • Braze (cross-channel messaging and journey orchestration)
  • SAP Emarsys (partners with 1,500+ companies globally)
  • Insider (AI-native platform that’s a G2 Leader in 10 categories)

When comparing enterprise marketing automation platforms, consider integration capabilities with your existing tech stack, scalability for future growth, real-time data processing, AI/ML features, reporting capabilities, and vendor support quality.

Mid-Market Solutions ($100-$800/month)

If you’ve outgrown starter tools but aren’t ready for enterprise pricing, consider:

• GetResponse Marketing Automation runs $59-$599/month, depending on contact list size and features needed.
• Klaviyo specializes in ecommerce with deep purchase history segmentation and product recommendations. It scales as you grow.

Small Business Options ($15-$200/month)

For companies just starting with omnichannel marketing campaigns, several affordable platforms offer basic capabilities:

• ActiveCampaign starts at $15/month and includes email, automation, and CRM. It’s a good middle ground between simple email tools and enterprise platforms.
• Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) offers a free plan and paid tiers starting at $9/month. It covers email, SMS, and basic marketing automation.
• Omnisend focuses on ecommerce with Shopify, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce integrations.

Metrics and ROI for Omnichannel Campaigns

You can’t improve what you don’t measure.

Here are the metrics that matter and what a realistic ROI looks like:

Key Performance Indicators

Track engagement metrics like:

• • Email open rates
  • Click-through rates
  • App usage
  • Social media interactions

These show whether customers pay attention to your messages.

Conversion metrics reveal business impact:

• • Conversion rate
  • Cart abandonment rate
  • Average order value
  • Lead-to-customer conversion

Revenue attribution shows which channels drive sales. Use multi-touch attribution models rather than just crediting the last click before purchase.

Customer lifetime value (CLV) matters more than one-time purchases. Omnichannel customers have 30% higher lifetime value than single-channel customers.

Retention metrics include:

• • Customer retention rate
  • Churn rate
  • Repeat purchase rate
  • Net Promoter Score

Realistic ROI Expectations

Marketing automation delivers substantial returns.

Organizations achieve 324% ROI over three years and payback periods of less than six months, according to a 2024 Forrester Total Economic Impact study.

Some platforms report even higher returns.

Beyond financial returns, businesses achieve 75% time savings in customer journey development and 25% in customer outreach and reporting.

Omnichannel-specific results are even better.

• • Companies using three or more channels see a higher purchase rate and a 494% higher order rate compared to single-channel approaches.
  • Businesses with strong omnichannel strategies grow revenue 9.5% annually versus 3.4% for those with weak strategies.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Now, let’s look at answers to common questions about omnichannel marketing automation:

What are the 4 Pillars of Omnichannel Marketing?

The four pillars are visibility, measurement, personalization, and optimization.

• • Visibility means capturing data from every customer touchpoint to build unified profiles.
  • Measurement tracks KPIs like conversion rates and retention to see what’s working.
  • Personalization delivers tailored content based on individual behaviors.
  • Optimization involves continuous testing and refinement based on performance data.

What is the Difference Between Multi Channel and Omnichannel Marketing?

Multichannel marketing uses several channels that operate independently with separate data and strategies.

Omnichannel marketing integrates all channels into one seamless experience where customer data is unified, and information from one interaction carries over to all future touchpoints.

What is the Average Cost of Omnichannel Automation Tools?

Small businesses can start for $15 to $200 per month.

Mid-market companies typically pay $100 to $800 monthly, while enterprise solutions like Microsoft Dynamics 365

Customer Insights start around $1,700 per month.

Can Omnichannel Automation Be Used In B2B Marketing?

Yes, and it’s becoming essential for B2B companies. Research shows 70% of B2B customers prefer doing business remotely, and companies excelling at omnichannel are more than twice as likely to be chosen as primary suppliers.

B2B differs from B2C with longer sales cycles, multiple decision-makers, and channels like LinkedIn, webinars, and direct sales rather than consumer-focused platforms.

Partner with Coffee + Dunn for Omnichannel Success

The difference between collecting customer data and actually using it to grow your business comes down to execution. Most companies know what they need to do, but struggle with how to do it right.

Coffee + Dunn specializes in helping organizations like yours implement omnichannel marketing automation without the typical headaches.

As a Microsoft Partner of the Year finalist with 100% Microsoft-certified experts across marketing, sales, and service, we’ve guided companies like Rush Enterprises, Montgomery County Community College, and Northrop & Johnson through successful transformations.

We meet you where you’re at on your journey and work alongside your team to build customer experiences that actually move the needle.

Start the conversation and see what’s possible.