In short: Selling across channels without confusion means having a single visible stock, consistent prices and promotions, one customer with one history, and orders and returns that work from one channel to another. Start with one feature your customers ask for, usually in-store availability or collection.
Many brands have a shop and a website that ignore each other. A customer buys online and wants to return the item in store. Or they see something on the website and ask whether the shop has it. If the answer is 'I don't know', you have two separate shops competing with each other.
What integration really means
- One visible stock. Shop and online stock levels are read together. The website knows what is in each store.
- Consistent prices and promotions. Unless you have made a stated choice, the same product costs the same everywhere.
- One customer. Whoever buys at the till and whoever buys online is the same person, with a single history.
- Orders and returns across channels. You buy in one channel and collect or return in the other.
The features customers use most
In-store collection
The customer orders and comes in to collect whenever they like. It saves you the shipping and brings the person back into the shop. Once there, they often buy something else. You need a notification for when the order is ready and an area for handing it over.
In-store availability
The product page shows which stores have the right size. It is one of the most requested pieces of information for anyone shopping for clothes or shoes.
Return anywhere
An online order can be brought back to a shop, and vice versa. Operationally, this requires the till and the website to share the return and the stock level.
Selling from the catalogue in store
If the item isn't on display or the size is missing, the shop assistant finds it in the online stock and has it shipped to the customer's home.
What you need behind the scenes
- Management software or a till system that talks to the online shop. Otherwise data is copied by hand, and mistakes creep in.
- A single product database with the same codes, the same variants and the same barcodes.
- Availability rules. How much of the shop's stock do you make available online? A reserve stops you selling the same item twice.
- Simple procedures for staff. If handling a collection takes ten steps, shop assistants will avoid it.
The most common mistakes
- Putting the shop's entire stock online with no reserve.
- Having two price lists that drift apart.
- Running the loyalty programme in only one channel.
- Measuring channels separately without realising that one often helps the other.
Where to start
Start with a single feature your customers ask for. It is usually in-store availability or collection. Connect what is needed to make it work well. Then add the others. A half-finished integration costs more than no integration at all.
Further reading: integrations and synchronisation · warehouse and online shop · connecting management software and your online shop
Frequently asked questions
What is omnichannel in retail?
It is the integrated management of physical and online shops: the same stock availability, the same prices, the same customer, and the ability to buy, collect or return through any channel.
What is click and collect?
The customer orders online and collects in store. It avoids shipping and brings the person back into the shop, where they may buy something else.
What do you need to integrate a shop and a website?
Management software or a till system that communicates with the online shop, a single product database, rules on how much stock to make available online, and simple procedures for staff.