Connecting in-store and online retail: the technology that matters

Shoppers move freely between channels. They browse on a phone, check stock online, try in store, buy later on the website and return the item to a branch. Each switch is a chance to lose them if the experience breaks: the website says in stock and the store doesn’t have it, the loyalty account doesn’t recognise an online purchase, or a return is refused because it was bought online.

The retailers who handle this well treat stores and digital channels as one business, connected by shared data.

What does a connected retail experience include?

Unified stock visibility

Accurate, near real-time stock across stores, warehouses and online. It enables “check stock in store”, click and collect, ship from store, and ordering from the store for home delivery when an item is out of stock (endless aisle).

One view of the customer

A single customer record across purchases in store and online, loyalty, service history and preferences, with consent. It powers personalised offers, better service and accurate marketing.

Connected kiosks and staff devices

Store staff and kiosks that can see a shopper’s online wishlist and history (with permission), check stock everywhere and place orders. Staff become more useful, and lost sales become orders.

Virtual try-on and augmented reality

Trying clothes, glasses, make-up or furniture virtually helps online shoppers choose with confidence and can reduce returns. AR navigation in large stores helps people find products they viewed online. See AI in fashion and AI in retail.

Personalised offers across channels

Offers based on what a shopper has viewed or bought, delivered at the right moment, whether by email, in the app or at the till, and recognising that a purchase in one channel should stop offers in another.

Seamless returns

Return online orders in store, get refunds quickly and see the status everywhere. Returns policy is often where omnichannel experiences break.

What makes it work behind the scenes?

• Connected systems: point of sale, e-commerce, inventory, order management and CRM sharing data through integrations.
• Clean product data: consistent identifiers, attributes and images across channels.
• Order management that can fulfil from any location.
• Consent and data protection built into the customer record.
• Measurement across channels, attributing store sales influenced by digital and vice versa.

How should a retailer start?

1. Map the journeys that fail most often or cost most, such as out-of-stock disappointments, failed collections or refused returns.
2. Fix stock accuracy and visibility first; most journeys depend on it.
3. Connect customer data across channels with consent.
4. Launch one connected journey, such as click and collect or in-store returns, and measure it.
5. Add experience features such as virtual try-on once the foundations are solid.

How do you measure success?

Track conversion across channels, click and collect volume and failure rate, returns rate and cost, stock accuracy, repeat purchase rate and customer satisfaction. Compare customers who shop in more than one channel with those who use only one.

Where to start

Our Systems & Integrations work connects point of sale, e-commerce, stock and CRM so the customer experience holds together. See our retail industry page, or book a 30-minute session.