Omnichannel Imperative: Meeting the needs of a new consumer

Retailers live or die by customer satisfaction and the ability to meet their needs. This means having the ability to identify not only what customers want and when, but being able to deliver those items where and how they want them.

The pressures that retailers, especially fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) retailers, felt in the second quarter of 2020 exposed weaknesses in the execution of the modern supply chain and proved that it is not prepared for sudden, dramatic shifts.

During a webinar held on April 12, 500 attendees consisting of FMCG retailers and CPGs were asked whether they feel that “the events of COVID-19 are driving retailers to optimize the supply chain to support omnichannel strategies faster than anticipated”. 89% of responders said that they agreed or strongly agreed.

Further, research conducted by Brick Meets Click shows that, in March 2020, online grocery sales rose 233% and the number of customers rose 202% over figures gathered 9 months ago.

Omnichannel retail and Click & Collect are not new concepts. However, the occurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic turned what had previously been seen as a matter of convenience into a matter of priority for health and safety.

The massive push to online shopping due to global lockdowns and quarantines had a double edge. On one side, it was a lifeline during COVID-19 but, massive supply chain disruption caused fulfillment issues and the influx of new customers meant that “high value” online shoppers were no longer able to get delivery slots.

During the months of March and April 2020, in the US, a whopping 32% of “high-value online shoppers” stopped buying online due to order fulfillment and pickup/delivery availability issues.

Similarly, in Europe, 14% of “high-value online shoppers” stopped buying online during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Retailers’ struggle to not only keep inventory on the shelves but also understand the complete picture of demand, including click & collect and home delivery, is not just a problem in the immediate term – trying to fill customer orders on a daily basis – but can have long-term detrimental effects on shopper loyalty.

Disconnects equal problems and too many retailers are challenged by disconnected systems that create silos in the supply chain. They are not able to manage the different streams of demand and effectively determine what inventory is needed for any given fulfilment method.

Complexity in the omni-channel marketplace is here to stay, but how retailers manage it doesn’t have to be. By creating a unified supply chain, retailers eliminate siloed channels and, with them, the associated inefficiencies. Retailers need to be able to take control and manage the high volume of orders and channels in one place: e-commerce, click & collect, mobile apps, promotions and more.

In order to truly provide an effective omnichannel experience, retailers need an end-to-end solution that can understand true demand across the enterprise and then manage inventory allocation into each demand stream and fulfillment channel.

What items are needed in the stores? How many of those items are going to be slotted for in-store picking? How much inventory will I need to have available for my home delivery customers versus my click & collect or locker pick up customers? These are all questions that have become critically important as online shopping moves even faster after COVID-19.

An efficient omnichannel fulfillment program must ensure synchronized inventory to ensure on-shelf availability for both in-store and online shoppers. It needs to be able to be able to drive accurate pick times and locations for associates or third-party fulfillment partners.

Accurate fulfillment forecasting enables retailers to map demand forecasts to fulfillment channels to effectively prioritize and execute orders no matter when, where or how they are received by consumers.

Costs are always a primary focus for retailers. By connecting systems to optimize order management, retailers can lower fulfillment costs by sourcing from the most appropriate inventory source. By being able to confidently determine the best source for the inventory needed for any given fulfillment channel – be it on-shelf, warehouse, dark store or other – you’re always able to fulfil the needs of the customer at the lowest fulfillment execution cost. 

Getting inventory to the right place at the right time is vital to omnichannel fulfillment. Retailers should be able to orchestrate from forecast planning by channel to guide the inventory profitably and then empower associates to execute dynamically down to the right time and fulfillment location. If associates don’t have adequate visibility into inventory levels, time and money will be wasted in the picking process resulting in late deliveries and potential loss of customers.

Using a mobile application that is connected directly to supply chain and inventory and fulfillment systems speeds the picking process by prioritizing tasks and delivering alerts directly to associates to save time and effort.

Alerts for new tasks are sent directly to the device  to guide users. Layered with voice technology or pick to light to guide the user further reduced error  and labor costs for an even lower total cost of ownership.

For click and collect fulfillment, eliminating wasted time is imperative and automation is key. Store associates need to efficiently pick multiple customer orders on one route with ease, guided dynamically.

With technology that knows the physical layout of the store, associates are guided directly to the items in the customers’ orders and enable them to save time and deliver more orders in shorter period.

Retailers can provide employees – full time, seasonal and temporary – immediate access to insights that help them take control over the high volume of orders and respond quickly and efficiently. Further, using a smart-device app-based approach, no special equipment is needed and training is minimal. So, associates begin working immediately, saving time and cost and increasing ROI.

Supply Chain is hard enough with the diverse and growing channels. Retailers need the right tools to understand this. Layer in the shifting consumer wants and needs and it’s even more imperative to get it right. If not, you’ve lost your consumer because you weren’t able to deliver those items how and where they wanted them.

Unified platform:

A single source for order fulfillment & picking for improved visibility to orders and fulfillment rates

Preparation efficiency: 

Preparation optimization using physical in-store aisle location and automatic order grouping

Synchronized inventory: 

Ensure on-shelf availability and accurate location to store associates to decrease pick times

Improved in-store operations: 

Utilizing voice-directed applications on smart devices simplifies picking and reduces error rates

Cost effective sourcing:

Fulfill from the most appropriate inventory source without jeopardizing on-hand levels while meeting customer needs