How An Omnichannel Retail Solution Can Deliver On Customer Experience

Originally posted in Forbes

By Sergey Kozhevnikov, VP of Product Development, at Teamwork Commerce.

In today’s retail panorama, where customer loyalty is a coveted treasure, it is crucial for retailers to recognize that their interactions with shoppers extend far beyond mere transactions. Craving an air of exclusivity, shoppers expect retailers to weave personalized magic into every single interaction. From scrolling through their favorite e-commerce platforms for exciting offers to visiting in-store to touch, feel and buy their desired items, customers want their shopping journeys to be completely seamless.

As Maya Angelou said, “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” This poignant statement holds significance in today’s customer-centric retail landscape, where creating high-quality experiences has become essential for retailers. In order to achieve this, retailers need to find ways to blend their customers’ online and physical journeys, personalize their interactions and create a completely seamless experience.

The Fusion That Retailers Need

Bringing together the strengths of online and offline shopping experiences, omnichannel fulfillment services provide flexibility, allowing customers to shop in ways that best suit them. The popularity of buy online pick up in-store (BOPIS) and buy online return in-store (BORIS) seems to only increase. In fact, the U.S. BOPIS market is expected to surpass $154 billion by 2025 from $113 million in 2023. What does this mean for retailers? Consumer demand is clearly high—and continuing to grow. Retailers must eliminate friction between channels and work to make their omnichannel offering as convenient as possible.

Retailers should be able to enable customers to seamlessly purchase an item at the click of a button and pick it up at their own convenience. The transition from app to store should not only be smooth but also satisfying. Finding a product out of stock, especially when shoppers visit a physical store to collect it, can negatively impact their shopping experience. Retailers must provide their customers with accurate inventory information and enhanced visibility of their order’s fulfillment journey regardless of whether they shop in-person, hybrid or completely online.

One way retailers can achieve this is through technology, deploying solutions that can seamlessly integrate with wider retail operations in real time. An all-in-one solution can tie together different components of a retail ecosystem into a single platform, benefiting retailers and customers alike.

Today, leveraging omnichannel technology allows retailers to streamline their entire operation from the supply chain, and order fulfillment through to customer relationship management (CRM), point-of-sale (POS) and analytics. Weaving together different retail tools, modern technologies allow retailers to automate their operations. Additionally, these technological advancements play a key role in enhancing the customer experience. Shoppers can enjoy increased visibility of retailers’ inventory and receive real-time order fulfillment updates such as accurate expected delivery dates and times.

Creating Meaningful Interactions

In addition to detailed operational information, an omnichannel solution also provides retailers with the opportunity to gain a holistic view of all customer-related information in real time, including their purchasing behavior, habits, preferences, history and feedback across all sales channels. Retailers can lean on this data to tailor their recommendations and suggest meaningful products and services, creating high-quality experiences.

If a customer often purchases items of a particular brand, has a preferred color or regularly shops from a specific collection or category, the right omnichannel solution can feed and reflect this information into wider retail solutions such as mobile POS. With this data at their fingertips, in-store associates can make relevant suggestions. This not only makes customers feel special, but it can also positively influence their purchasing decisions, ultimately boosting sales.

Instead of trying to sell items that customers may not be interested in, retailers must use a data-driven approach and suggest items of customers’ interest. This can attract shoppers’ attention, retain their loyalty and encourage them to purchase products. Omnichannel has numerous benefits, but to drive its maximum potential, retailers need to be able to implement it effectively.

Best Practices For Implementing An Omnichannel Solution

Integrating several retail technologies within a single solution provides a range of benefits, but it is also complex.

While implementing an omnichannel solution, retailers should eliminate silos and identify gaps by working closely with their technology provider. Retailers must step into the shoes of their customers to identify and embrace their customers’ needs. To better stand out in a fiercely competitive industry, retailers should also strive to deliver unique offerings that can benefit their customers, such as same-day fulfillment options or highly personalized in-person interactions.

The implementation process requires architectural expertise, and retailers must partner with technology vendors who have a proven track record of implementing similar solutions within the industry. Retailers must also identify clear goals and pain points before purchasing and implementing any solution.

Finally, retailers need to understand that technology implementation is not a one-off exercise. Instead, it is an ongoing process where both the retailer and the vendor must work together to drive successful results. It is essential that retailers review and upgrade their entire retail technology stack on an ongoing basis.

Omnichannel retail has clearly revolutionized the way retailers and customers engage. It has provided retailers with the ability to blend various channels and touchpoints and ultimately unlock the potential for deeper, more meaningful interactions with their clientele. A well-implemented omnichannel solution is no longer a choice but a necessity for retailers to thrive and deliver unparalleled customer experiences in this dynamic retail environment.