But, that’s only half the battle!
If you have an app for your store, or an ecommerce site that provides a seamless shopping experience for customers, that terrific. But, how can you ensure that the items for sale on the site are both available, and desirable?
According to RIS News, between an average of 10% and 20% of the time, shoppers will desire a product, only to have it be out of stock or not in the size/color that they want. Up to 1/5 of the users of your ecommerce efforts walk away unsatisfied.
As important as a seamless shopping experience is, a seamless inventory management experience is just as important.
If you’re looking to develop a successful omnichannel retail experience, ensuring your operation has a highly effective inventory management system is where you need to start. Without accurate inventory, there is almost no way you will be able to satisfy online shoppers. Moving to an omnichannel retail model should be taken very seriously. There are many pitfalls that can derail an operation’s efforts, and hurt a company’s bottom line Here’s an example:
To ensure products are always available for purchase (including online), a business could simply purchase more inventory. But what if a big chunk of the inventory doesn’t sell well, while another portion sells fast. If a large segment of your capital is tied into unsold inventory, you won’t be able to replenish the inventory that is selling well. Not to mention the likelihood that you will have to mark down the inventory that is not selling well, further decreasing your margins, eventually turning into losses.
Don’t get spurned by only halfway trying to implement an omnichannel strategy. Make sure your inventory is accurate and easily visible.