Omni-Channel Retailing
We read a lot about omni-channel retailing in 2014 but is 2015 the ‘year that omni-channel comes of age’?
What is omni-channel retailing? In its purest form it means reaching customers with a seamless experience regardless of channel, device or location.
Shifting to an omni-channel approach requires a huge leap. This disruption to the retailing world requires rethinking the customer retail experience from scratch.
One of the keys to success is a ubiquitous experience across all of the channels. This requires a huge investment and structural change to enable communication and data to flow seamlessly between IT, marketing and sales.
Given the huge investment many businesses have dipped their toes into multi-channel retailing and are struggling to reach that next step. The US and the UK and more recently Alibaba have been leading the omni-channel retail charge and heroes in this space include: PetSmart, Boots, Topshop, M&S,Nordstrom, Macy’s, Sephora, Oasis, Crate & Barrel, Starbucks, Jeans West, and Amazon.
Omni-channel retailing shouldn’t be restricted to traditional retailers, the strategy could be applied to other outlets like banks, or any business wanting to create a dynamic engaging experience for their customers no matter their location.