What is Omni-Channel?
Have you heard of Multi-Channel and Omni-Channel? Why e-Commerce retailers are moving towards Omni-Channel implementation? Let’s understand what it is and why it is important.
Today’s tech savvy and smart shoppers expect the same price, the same merchandise, same promotions and discounts across every channel, regardless of how they come into contact with the brand. They want to shop the same merchandise with seamless integration across all the channels.
Omni-Channel Retailing is concentrated more on a seamless approach to the consumer experience through all available shopping channels in an integrated way. It tracks the customers across all channels. Merchandise and promotions are not channel specific, but rather consistent across all retail channels.
Benefits of Omni-Channel
Below are the benefits of Omni-Channel. As you can see, each channel drives the revenue of each other.
Omni-Channel: WebSphere Commerce Components
Omni-Channel Experience: Online Shopping 
I believe that following features can be implemented online in IBM’s WebSphere Commerce to support Omni-Channel experience to buyers.
- Check product’s availability in Store
- Buy Online Pickup In Store (BOPIS)
- Reserve Online Pickup In Store (ROPIS)
- Ship from Store
- Browse In-Store products Online across different categories
- Shop the Store: Store specific view to browser ALL items within particular store
- My Store View based on Geo-location
- Barcode Scan using end-user’s iPhone and check the availability in-store as well as online
- Track customer’s moment in store using Mobile App & In-Store sensors, and make recommendations Online based on departments that customer visit and the time that customer spends in specific department.
