Omnicommerce: Your Behind-the-Scenes Online Shopper

The following post was written and/or published as a collaboration between Benzinga’s in-house sponsored content team and a financial partner of Benzinga.

Thanks to the global pandemic, the at-home consumer’s kryptonite took center stage in 2020: online shopping. 

Stuck inside their homes, consumers voraciously browsed large companies like Amazon AMZN and Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), as well as smaller, independent retailers, resulting in e-commerce’s COVID-19 related boost of $174.87 billion in revenue by the end of 2020. And according to EY Future Customer Index, though the pandemic restrictions have started to lift, online shopping habits have largely remained the same: a whopping 80% of customers remain committed to the way they shopped retailers in the pandemic, despite returning to normal. 

So what does this digital commerce boom entail, exactly, and how can retailers create a comprehensive online customer experience to use it to their advantage? 

Let’s define a few essential terms. E-commerce refers to the act of buying and selling goods and services through online platforms. This process can involve a few market areas:

• business to business
• consumer to consumer
• business to consumer
• consumer to business

Virtually every facet of life is available through e-commerce now, and many retailers have chosen to implement it into their business models due to its popularity and to remain competitive. E-commerce has proven time and again to be the way of the future, no matter the size of the retailer.

Multichannel commerce refers to a process where each “channel” operates independently of one another to provide a variety of ways to interact with customers. Around 66% of online shoppers rely on multiple channels (more than one) for purchases.

Use of multiple channels can be very effective to feature the brand and boost engagement. However, the downside is that these channels—whether they include social media, mobile apps, an online market or a physical store—are not cohesive. A lack of connection in branding, messaging or execution means that the customer’s information is not shared from one channel to the next.

The glue that can bring this all together? Omnicommerce, which refers to streamlining the customer’s shopping experience from start to finish. It’s a person-first approach, where information on a customer can be gathered from every channel, not just one. It still implements the multichannel approach and facilitates e-commerce, but it personalizes the shopping experience for each person.

The brand experience with omnicommerce is consistent, individualized and extremely effective. 

Yet 45% of marketers feel they have not mastered the technology or processes behind omnichannel marketing to make it effective for their companies, although around 62% of consumers who interact with their favorite brands on up to ten channels make weekly purchases. Retailers have noted the process of creating such a platform can be time-consuming, costly and difficult.

It is no question that many want a one-stop-shop for all their shopping needs, and retailers know they have to provide that service to thrive in today’s world. That’s why it’s important to hire a company that can provide a comprehensive and flexible set of tools to launch or improve business efficiency and performance in-store, online or on mobile. With a merchant-driven feature selection, digital wallet support at checkout, crypto payments available in the future, and data-driven analytics, OLB Group OLB provides cost-effective and leading-edge commerce technology. 

In addition to its powerful technology, OLB Group’s omnicommerce business solutions stretch beyond payments and offer a cloud-based platform that keeps up with the times. While implementing these technical solutions can sometimes seem complicated, OLB Group’s one-on-one engagement for non-tech savvy merchants provides an ability to talk to a human—not a robot— if they need assistance: a part of the company’s personal touch. 

What could be on the horizon for online retailers in addition to this already individualized approach? AI has now made its way onto the scene, zeroing in on customer buying patterns and behaviors in ways that were never thought possible. With the increasing customization of AI commerce platforms, perhaps these platforms might end up knowing their customers more than they even know themselves. 

The preceding post was written and/or published as a collaboration between Benzinga’s in-house sponsored content team and a financial partner of Benzinga. Although the piece is not and should not be construed as editorial content, the sponsored content team works to ensure that any and all information contained within is true and accurate to the best of their knowledge and research. This content is for informational purposes only and not intended to be investing advice.