Omnichannel Customer Service: Definition, Benefits, and 2026 Best Practices

Omnichannel customer service delivers consistent, context-aware support across chat, email, social, phone, and in-store—without forcing customers to repeat themselves.

Imagine you’re scrolling through Instagram and notice your favorite activewear brand advertising the same pair of shorts you ordered a week ago, and realize you haven’t yet received shipping confirmation. So you send the brand a direct message on Instagram with your order number to see if the package is on its way. 

An hour later, you still haven’t heard back, so you make a phone call. As soon as you’re connected with a customer service agent, they’re able to find your order number from your Instagram message and send tracking information to your email address, which they have on file. 

Your initial frustration dissolves. You’re grateful you got the information you needed and impressed by how efficient the customer support rep was. You didn’t even have to repeat your order number or give them your email address! This is what effective omnichannel customer service looks like. 

In this guide, learn the mechanics that go into creating such omnichannel customer service experiences for your customers—including the infrastructure you’ll need and examples to draw inspiration from. 

What is omnichannel customer service? 

Omnichannel customer service provides an integrated and seamless customer experience across multiple channels, including phone support, email, chat, social media, and retail stores. It should be consistent for the customer, regardless of which communication channels they use. 

For example, a customer might initiate a conversation via live chat and then follow up with emails or phone calls. Regardless, the customer service representative should be able to pick up the conversation knowing the relevant customer information, previous interactions, and context behind the request.

How omnichannel differs from multichannel 

Omnichannel and multichannel customer service both involve engaging with customers across multiple touchpoints. The difference is multichannel support doesn’t necessarily integrate the customer experience between channels. 

With multichannel support, customer interactions that occur on one channel (like a phone call) may not easily transfer to another (like email or social). If a customer wants to switch channels, they have to begin their query from scratch.

Benefits and realities of omnichannel customer service

Offering an omnichannel customer service experience helps you cater to a variety of customer preferences, and it comes with additional benefits for customer service agents and your business’s bottom line. 

Faster, more personalized support with AI assistance 

Customers expect personalized support and consistent experiences across communication channels. Businesses that offer omnichannel customer service are more likely to have a strong brand reputation and happy customers: A study by Google found that improving cross-channel experience can raise sales revenue by 2%–7% and profitability by 1%–2%.

Happier agents and lower operating costs 

Omnichannel support makes work easier for customer service reps. When they have access to customer information and know the context of past interactions, they’re better able to resolve support issues. This boosts agent productivity and improves job satisfaction, because reps can meet customer expectations more consistently. 

This is especially true when reps have an agent copilot—a mini assistant that can:

• Help in-chat (rep-facing): Suggests responses, provides relevant knowledge base articles, and summarizes previous interactions.
• Defer to AI (customer-facing): Guides customers toward self-service documentation such as FAQs, help centers, or chatbots that answer common questions automatically before they’re escalated to your human team.

Revenue impact of better cross-channel experiences 

Businesses that provide customers a truly seamless omnichannel experience can earn a competitive advantage because customers who use multiple channels spend more than those who use only one. Omnichannel customers spend 1.5x more than single-channel buyers. They’re also three times more loyal than digital-only customers.

Core components of a modern omnichannel support stack

Unified agent workspace and conversation timeline 

A unified workspace is a single dashboard accessible to every agent. It retrieves everything they need to support a customer, regardless of the channel they’ve used to communicate, without requiring them to switch tabs or tools. That includes:

• Unified customer profiles, including purchase history
• Previous support interactions
• Order data and shipping status
• Customer loyalty details

The most important feature is a conversation timeline—a chronological view of every interaction a customer has had with your brand, across all channels and touchpoints. This timeline prevents customers from repeating their issue each time they contact support. Context preservation helps reps immediately understand the customer’s journey without asking repetitive questions.

Intelligent routing and work distribution

Sometimes a particular agent is best suited to handle a particular customer. Whether they bring deep expertise in the customer’s issue or have built a relationship with them through previous interactions, intelligent routing automatically routes incoming tickets to the most appropriate support agent. 

Popular approaches to routing and work distribution include:

• Skill-based routing: Sends tickets to agents with the most relevant expertise. For example, a customer asking about a technical product issue will automatically go to an agent trained in technical support.
• Priority-based routing: Handles high-value customers or urgent issues first. For example, a VIP customer reporting a delayed shipment is moved to the top of the queue.
• Channel-aware routing: Ensures customers stay on the same channel. For example, if someone previously contacted you on Instagram, their next ticket will be routed to your social media customer service team.
• AI-assisted routing: Uses predictive models to route queries to the agent most likely to resolve them efficiently. For example, the system might assign a complex billing question to the agent with a track record of resolving similar cases fastest.

Data layer: Customer identity, consent, and single view 

You’ll need customer data to initiate a conversation with your buyer and understand their reason for reaching out. This data is protected; noncompliance with data protection laws like GDPR and CCPA can result in hefty fines and reputational damage.

The systems you’re using to collect, transmit, and store customer data must be secure. Customers must also know what information is shared, the purpose of it, and give explicit consent for both. Include short privacy policies and trust notes at each touchpoint, like Allbirds does with their live chat feature:

Voice, chat, SMS, social, and self-service

Make it easy for customers to reach out by being active on the channels they use to contact support and integrate them with your omnichannel customer support platform. That includes:

• Email 
• Phone calls
• Direct messaging through social media platforms
• SMS and apps like WhatsApp
• Live chat 
• Self-service channels, such as help centers, knowledge bases, and chatbots 

How to create an omnichannel customer service strategy (Four steps) 

Providing great omnichannel customer service is all about effective communication across channels. Here are four steps for establishing an omnichannel customer service strategy.

1. Centralize customer data 

A centralized customer data system integrates information from multiple communication channels. This allows customer service representatives to have a holistic view of customer interactions and customer preferences. 

The easiest way to do this is through customer service software with identity resolution, which links multiple data points from different channels and touchpoints—such as email, live chat, or social media—to a single, unified customer profile. 

Just remember to gather explicit consent from customers before collecting this data. Around two-thirds of the global population is covered by privacy laws. Prevent noncompliance fines with opt-in boxes, audit trails, and a data repository to support customers who ask to have their data deleted at any time. 

Shopify-compatible apps to help with this include:

• Gladly
• Zendesk
• Kustomer

💡Tip: Shopify merchants have a customer data platform (CDP) by default. It uses exact identifiers like email addresses and phone numbers to create a unified profile for each shopper. Any supplementary data you collect—whether through a native Shopify feature or integrated third-party app—feeds back into this profile for a 360-degree customer view. 

2. Create seamless channel transitions 

To enable smooth transitions between support channels, ensure customers can switch from social media to email to a phone call without having to repeat information. 

This is where your centralized CDP comes in handy. A unified desktop surfaces a customer’s interaction history and makes it easily accessible for reps to continue the conversation when it transitions from one platform to another—no need to switch between platforms. 

For even smoother transitions, automatically route incoming requests to the most appropriate agent or support team.

3. Train employees to deliver omnichannel support 

Customer support agents represent your brand. Equip them with the skills and knowledge required to navigate different channels, understand customer preferences, and use the centralized data system effectively.

Support representatives should also deliver the same advice, using the same tone, across every channel. To do this: 

• Standardize training. From onboarding seasonal staff to upskilling existing team members, give everyone the same customer service training. 
• Use scripts and checklists. Provide agents with pre-approved responses and step-by-step workflows for common inquiries. Link these to documented return, refund, and shipping policies. 
• Deploy agent copilots. Give reps in-chat assistance with a copilot that can surface relevant policies, suggest how to handle difficult conversations, and retrieve customer details to personalize their approach. 

💡Tip: Standardize processes with custom workflows that reduce strain on your customer support team using Shopify Flow. It has a library of prebuilt templates to support customer service reps—like creating a new support ticket when a customer communicates with you, or tagging unhappy customers for your advocacy team to follow up with. 

4. Measure success with the right customer service KPIs

To determine whether your omnichannel customer service strategy is working, define your goals. These could include improving customer satisfaction, reducing response times, or increasing customer retention. 

Then choose accessible metrics that align with your objectives. For instance, if your goal is to boost customer satisfaction, use surveys to gather information about your customers’ experiences with your customer service reps. If you want to reduce response times, track how quickly issues are resolved and identify pain points.

Overall key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure omnichannel customer support include:

• Customer satisfaction score (CSAT): This measures how satisfied customers are with a specific interaction or overall service, on a scale of 1 to 10 (the higher, the better).
• Customer experience score (CES): This measures how easy it was for customers to get their issue resolved with an after-support survey that asks “How easy was it to resolve your issue?” A high score indicates your service processes are smooth and user-friendly.
• First contact resolution (FCR): The percentage of issues resolved in the first interaction without the need for follow-ups.
• Average handling time (AHT): The average time an agent spends resolving a customer inquiry, including talk, chat, and follow-up time. It helps measure agent productivity. 
• Deflection rate: The percentage of customers who have their query handled by a deferred resource (help desk link, chatbot, instant response, etc.) This measures self-service efficacy.
• Resolution time: The total time it takes to fully resolve a customer issue from initial contact to closure, which helps track overall service speed and wait times.
• Repeat contact rate: The percentage of customers who have to reach out more than once for the same issue. For example, if 20 out of 100 customers call again about the same order problem, the repeat contact rate is 20%, highlighting areas where processes or communication could improve.

Omnichannel vs. multichannel customer service (quick comparison)

Omnichannel represents the next evolution of commerce—the same applies to customer service. Here’s how it compares to multichannel customer support:

Example of omnichannel customer service

Rothy’s is an eco-friendly footwear brand that uses Gladly, a Shopify-compatible customer service platform, to deliver omnichannel customer support to their shoppers. 

By organizing customer data and customer interactions in a centralized database, support agents can see a customer’s history in a single conversation timeline, regardless of where previous interactions took place. 

Rothy’s also uses Gladly’s AI features to launch a chatbot, known as Sandi, to deliver quick, contextual answers to SMS and live chat tickets. 

“We leverage AI to take the burden off our agents and their workloads,” says Rothy’s head of customer experience Lauren Inman-Semerau to Gladly. “Sandi allows our agents to focus on more complex, nuanced conversations or those that have more selling opportunities such as fit, sizing, and style and really connect with customers.”

This approach allows Rothy’s to improve response and resolution times. Per Gladly, Rothy’s approach to omnichannel customer service:

• Decreased agent attrition rate by 80%
• Reduced AHT by 34%
• Resolved 31% of conversations with AI

Omnichannel customer service best practices for 2026

Omnichannel customer service should be customer-centric. Use these best practices to make accessing support as simple and effective as possible for customers, no matter the channel or where they are throughout the entire customer journey. 

Use customer service software

To provide omnichannel customer service (where customer service reps can access customer context and data from previous interactions across channels), your business needs a powerful centralized data system. 

Consider a Shopify-compatible omnichannel customer service provider, such as Gladly, Zendesk, or Kustomer. 

Important features to consider include:

• Unified workspace
• Intelligent ticket routing
• Agent copilots
• Sales channel and customer relationship management (CRM) tool integrations 

Meet customers where they are 

Let customer preferences guide your omnichannel customer service strategy. For instance, if you know your customers often shop on mobile devices, make it easier for them to reach customer support representatives by:

• Making phone numbers and emails clickable
• Offering mobile-friendly chat interfaces
• Using mobile messaging apps such as WhatsApp

Likewise, if your business has a robust social media presence, and customers often reach out about customer service issues through platforms like Instagram, make sure to monitor these channels consistently. 

Finally, consider self-service options that can provide support at any time. Deflect incoming tickets toward FAQ pages, video tutorials, chatbots, and helpdesk articles to offer real-time assistance and ease the burden on your team. 

Provide a consistent experience across channels 

Customers should receive the same great customer service regardless of how they choose to reach out. 

Establish your tone, voice, and style of communication to create a unified brand identity. Use this to standardize scripts across phone, chat, and email to prevent channel shopping and align customer service policies.

Speaking of policies: write yours and apply them evenly. For instance, customer service reps shouldn’t be any more or less lenient about your business’s return policy over the phone versus email. The same rules should apply to all. 

Build trust and transparency when using AI in service

Customer support remains one of the easiest ways to lean into artificial intelligence—it can summarize previous interactions and combine its knowledge with store policies to handle customer queries in real time.

Despite its prevalence, Salesforce’s recent report shows customers care whether they’re talking to AI. About 72% say it’s important to know if they’re communicating with an AI agent; 73% say companies now treat them like individuals (up from 39% in 2023). 

Simple disclosure guidance—such as “You’re talking with [Brand] bot”—earns trust. Combine this with easy escalation to a human rep if the chatbot can’t resolve their query, or the customer is unhappy with its response. 

Collect and implement customer feedback

Gather customer feedback to identify pain points, areas for improvement, and customer preferences. Surveys, social media monitoring, and customer reviews can help gauge customer satisfaction levels and guide data-driven decisions to enhance the customer experience.

Use what you find to refine and optimize your omnichannel customer service strategy. For example, you might:

• Adjust response times on live chat based on common complaints.
• Introduce self-service options for frequently asked questions.
• Tailor messaging across product pages, email, social media, and in-app support to better match customer behavior and expectations.