Mobile is even more of a primary aspect in a consumer's shopping journey than it once was; it's also a key point for interacting with the brands with which they do business:

• 89 percent of consumers began doing business with a competitor following a poor customer experience.
• 73 percent of consumers prefer to do business with brands that use personal information to make their shopping experiences more relevant.
• 66 percent of customers have made a purchase in the last 6 months that involved multiple channels.
• 54 percent would consider ending their relationship with a retailer if they are not given tailor-made, relevant content and offers.

Omni-channel customer service isn't easy, and for some vendors, their interpretation of its meaning is narrowed by their particular slice. A recent study from eTail shows that 71 percent of retailers polled are using data to improve personalization and predictive marketing, while 54 percent are coordinating user experiences across channels including in-person, online and mobile.

Even the biggest of companies are missing the mark most of the time. For medium-size businesses, it comes down to availability and affordability of the technology, which can be outside their budgets. For the small businesses, it's still a matter of cost, but some avoid that issue by outright elimination of some channels.

That's certainly one method of streamlining the customer service experience, but agencies have to understand that consumers are demanding a multichannel connection. If you can't provide it with a seamless workflow, be ready for them to take their business elsewhere.

Rick Gilman, APR, CMP, is president of South Orange, New Jersey-based communications and public relations consulting company APPsolute Marketing. Contact him at [email protected].