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True unified commerce starts before checkout
It’s important to think about unified commerce as a journey, not a goal line to cross. It begins long before a product hits a shopping cart — in a store or online. Brands have to intimately understand what customers are browsing, what they’re gravitating toward and what they expect from the shopping experience.
True unified commerce starts before checkout
It’s important to think about unified commerce as a journey, not a goal line to cross. It begins long before a product hits a shopping cart — in a store or online. Brands have to intimately understand what customers are browsing, what they’re gravitating toward and what they expect from the shopping experience.
Unified commerce is the industry's latest buzzword, following in the footsteps of other lofty ideals like "omnichannel," giving retailers an important, if somewhat vague, milestone to strive for. But much like the concepts that came before it, it's in serious danger of growing stale as industry decision-makers struggle to find a clear path to their goal.
The truth is that unified commerce isn't something that magically happens at the point of payment — laying the groundwork for true unified commerce begins the moment a potential customer interacts with your brand.
Retailers often forget that the back end of the shopping experience — payments, returns, or refunds — happen after the customer already has a clear perception of their brand. By that point, their mind is likely made up. It's the front end of the experience that sets expectations and it's where all the customer's most important decisions are made.
The high stakes of misaligned channels
Modern retail shoppers demand flexibility. They want to combine the digital and physical shopping experiences — often browsing in-store and then buying online, or vice-versa. This means inventory must be accurate and consistent across physical and digital channels, prices should be similar, and the experience of interacting with your brand should be seamless when switching between the two.
Any retailer who falls short will feel the impact fast. If a top-selling in-store item isn't available online, the brand's reputation suffers. Likewise, in a case where half of a retailer's online products aren't available in their physical stores, foot traffic will grind to a halt. More than mere logistical issues, these are breakdowns in trust between the brand and their customers.
The frustration is easy to understand: Imagine a customer finding a product online and, with eagerness to purchase it, they carve time out from their day to visit the brand's nearest store. They walk in, browse, and ultimately realize that the product isn't available. The customer leaves empty handed, and with a negative view of the retailer that will be difficult to change.
Physical stores as brand extensions
In the highly-competitive retail landscape, this is a mistake that no retailer can afford to make, and it highlights the need for a tangible shift in how we think about Unified Commerce. It's about putting the customer at the center of the retail experience, from real-time inventory visibility to adopting technology that syncs everything from merchandising to customer service.
Physical stores are making a strong comeback, as shoppers rediscover the value of an engaging in-person retail experience. For many brands, a store is the first time a customer will physically interact with their products,it sets the tone. If that experience feels disjointed or inferior from the brand's online presence, it can leave a lasting, negative impression.
The best brands treat their stores like extensions of themselves, not just a box to stack merchandise. This means consistent product availability, marketing and messaging that matches across all channels, and a robust infrastructure that supports fluid movement from one step of the customer journey to the next. When brands pull it off, both the customer experience and the company's operational efficiency greatly benefit.
Commerce is a relationship
It's important to think about unified commerce as a journey, not a goal line to cross. It begins long before a product hits a shopping cart — in a store or online.
Brands have to intimately understand what customers are browsing, what they're gravitating toward, and what they expect from the shopping experience every step of the way.
Succeeding in modern retail isn't about channels, it's about relationships. And strong relationships require trust, earned by consistently delivering products that resonate with shoppers in ways that feel seamless and reliable. When customers come to rely on your brand, how or where they buy becomes secondary, they'll keep coming back wherever they can find you.
The reality is that retail doesn't have to be a battle between online and in-store shopping. Building a unified experience for customers makes shopping effortless, but the technology and coordination that make it possible are anything but obvious.
Original article here.