Why every Retail eCommerce software Needs to be omnichannel

Your business can gain a competitive edge if you use omnichannel strategies. Consumers today are highly attracted to the seamless integration it provides. In competition with Amazon, Walmart, and all the rest, it makes all the difference.

The Omnichannel concept also involves many moving parts. Sales channels include online and offline with various fulfilment options. The returns are fast and integrated. Meanwhile, customer demands are flooding in from all directions.

Therefore, it is imperative to use omnichannel retail software of the highest quality. This is what drives your omnichannel business forward. In this post, we’ll take a look at some of the critical things about why every retail eCommerce software needs to be omnichannel.

It offers a single, complete solution

Behind the scenes, omnichannel operations are characterized by three key elements:

1. Syncing of orders and inventory.
2. Shipping and fulfilment.
3. Returns.

For your management software to be effective, it needs to manage these three key elements. In addition, the system would have to be able to handle this directly in an all-in-one manner. Consistency is essential for the customer experience. Connecting various apps and systems in your operation is not the way to go if you’re trying to handle some critical areas of your operations.

It’s not a proper omnichannel solution if you have to depend on a third-party app for shipping. It’s the same if shipping is handled, but inventory isn’t synced. Maybe your warehouse is excellent at returns, but you need a system to run it. Multiple login areas result in a confusing patchwork of numerous systems. Consequently, customers always end up with a negative experience.

Platform integration of high quality.

To effectively operate an omnichannel business, it is critical to have an eCommerce platform in place. You will also need a robust and reliable connection to the monitoring software.

It is best to choose the best platforms to provide the best customer experience. Shopify Plus, BigCommerce Enterprise or Magneto Enterprise are the three retail solutions we recommend for most retailers.

Integrates with your offline stores

The omnichannel management software you use should also easily integrate physical stores or pop-up shops into it.

It involves integrating the POS system required for in-store payment processing. Your management software should be able to create new offline orders alongside all your online ones.

Additionally, it should allow you to:

1. Asynchronously sync inventory between both online and offline channels.
2. Deliver online orders via stock from physical stores.
3. Allow online customers to pick up from a physical store.
4. Check offline and online sales together in one place.

Platforms for POS integration are essential. By doing this, you’ll be able to unify your offline and online operations into one.

Direct integration with shipping carriers

It would help if you directly integrated your management software with the carriers you use since shipping is one of the most fundamental aspects of an eCommerce operation.

In actuality, this means you can integrate your shipping account right into the system. The software will ship orders using the carrier account of your choice.

It would be best if you had shipping software that allows you to:

• Bulk printing of labels.
• The ease of tracking shipments without having to log into your carrier’s account.
• Organize your order and view a variety of shipping quotes in real-time to determine the best one.

Real-time synchronization of inventory

As a part of being omnichannel, you should make every touchpoint relevant to customers shoppable. But managing inventory manually will be nearly impossible.

So inventory management is crucial for omnichannel software. It means you have real-time access to the number of units to be shipped, the level of available inventory, and other information. Manually updating your inventory is not a good option for a business with regular sales. And may have severe operational implications. Having an accurate inventory number for every product and warehouse right up to each sales channel is therefore critical.

The warehouse must be more streamlined

Retailers should consider going omnichannel to grow their businesses.

These changes will likely put additional strain on your warehouse operations. You can ruin your sophisticated omnichannel buying process if you cannot back it up with fast and accurate fulfilment. This is a crucial aspect that you can’t overlook in an omnichannel software system.

For your warehouse to cope with the new demands placed on it, it must be able to transform into a fast-paced, accurate, digitized operation. The focus should be placed on:

• Organization of warehouses (for instance, placing bins for specific stock)
• Picking.
• Packing.
• Taking delivery of new supply.
• Inventory counts.

Automation and digitization of these aspects remove your team’s burden and speed up the process while reducing human error. This means your omnichannel customers will receive the right products at the right time, every time.

The refund process should be smooth.

A successful retail business should embrace returns. It’s essential to consider going beyond the conventional one-dimensional returns and providing a top-quality customer experience by offering various options.

However, this can be extremely difficult to manage on the back end. Hence, go for omnichannel software that integrates a solid return management strategy.

In a nutshell, it means that your warehouse, finance, and customer service groups should be able to work together efficiently on returns within a single platform.

Conclusion

Retail brands should consider omnichannel as an exciting prospect.

Yet, performing it properly requires top-notch software to handle the range of operational tasks. Without quality software, it is impossible. The checklist in this post will help you select the best solution for your business.