Adapting your e-commerce operation to emerging consumers trends calls for a scalable and dependable logistics strategy to match.
For businesses operating in the e-commerce sector, it’s never been easier — or more important — to engage with interested customers on multiple channels. From social media platforms offering new digital purchasing options to online marketplaces such as Amazon and Etsy becoming industry heavyweights, today’s consumers can search out products, make purchases, and track orders in more ways than ever before.
With that said, shippers who work in multichannel retail face logistical hurdles that they need to overcome if they hope to succeed. After all, multichannel retail calls for a demanding amount of coordination when it comes to making heads or tails of information from a variety of platforms.
If businesses can overcome those obstacles, however, it’s worth their time. Research shows that retailers who sell on two marketplaces see 190% more in revenue than those who sell on just one. While navigating the landscape of multichannel retail and distribution can be a challenge, making it work — or partnering with a logistics provider who can — can boost profits and revamp modern supply chains.
Understanding Multichannel Retail
At its core, multichannel retail is a strategy in which businesses meet customers wherever they choose to shop. Whether they’re doing research on their home computer, shopping on a tablet, or reviewing a retail chain’s website on their smartphone, customers will have the option of making purchases in a convenient array of digital locations — not to mention brick-and-mortar stores.
When you consider that 62% of smartphone owners have made a mobile purchase at least once within the past six months, you can understand how important it is for companies to engage customers on as many fronts as possible — so long as they can meet consumer expectations when they see an increase in sales.
Scaling Logistics with Rising Demand
A pervasive challenge of multichannel retail is figuring out how to turn disparate flows of information into actionable data. For example, businesses that only engage consumers on Amazon can focus their attention on their fulfillment strategy, complying with Amazon’s regulations, and managing their seller profile. However, companies that sell on Amazon and through other channels such as social media will need to organize multiple data streams in order to complete orders, ensure delivery, and process returns if necessary.
Multichannel retail has been proven to result in higher sales. While this is exciting for brands that are hoping to scale and take advantage of the e-commerce boom, they may not be fully equipped for the number of orders they’ll receive. Before going all in, businesses should be prepared to handle increased orders.
Securing Customer Satisfaction
In order for businesses to grow sustainably, they need to have solutions in place for the challenges that multichannel retail involves.
To interpret information from multiple online outlets — and even from brick-and-mortar locations linked to customers’ online profiles — successful e-retailers need warehouse, inventory, and transportation management systems. With the right technology in place, companies that want to succeed in multichannel sales can better understand what their customers want, how they can best fulfill orders, and where their employees, vehicles, and tools need additional support or problem-solving.
Finding Trusted Logistics Partners
For companies planning to invest in a multichannel retail strategy — or those considering whether it’s right for them to begin with — having the logistical infrastructure in place to succeed should be top of mind. While larger e-commerce operations may have the funds to bring these platforms in-house, it can be a challenge for more modest businesses to make the improvements necessary to keep pace. Working with a third-party logistics (3PL) partner or integrated logistics services provider (ISP), however, can provide the industry expertise that businesses need to keep customers satisfied.
Thanks to more than two decades of experience in shipping and logistics, Primary Freight has the resources that businesses need to drive value for their multichannel strategy. From state-of-the-art facilities to award-winning customer service, we’re strategically positioned to help business partners navigate an increasingly unpredictable and costly shipping market. Wondering what a custom logistics strategy would look like for your multichannel aspirations? Reach out to Primary Freight to find out.
If you’d like to learn more about how Primary Freight’s award-winning shipping services, contact us today at (800)-635-0013.