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E - Commerce Strategies

Definition and origin of Omni-channel retailing

Omni-channel refers to a multichannel approach to sales that seeks to provide the customer with seamless shopping experiences. It provides the customer with the capability of either buying products online from a mobile device or a desktop. In regards to Omni-channel, customers can shop in bricks and mortar store or by telephone. It is with this characteristic and capability enabled to clients in the shopping process thus eventually defines the term Omni-channel retailing (Morse & G., 2011).

It is a marketing strategy that began in 2003 whereby it has evolved from unfamiliar concept to trendy buzzword, to a critical component of successful marketing. Its origin was not only ventured into by one business by rivals who competed regarding marked price of the market, the quality of items produced and finally aimed for more customers. Therefore, Omni-channel began and mainly based itself on Customer Centricity in stores (Bernstein, 2008). Comment by sara stevens: Read this sentence out loud and revise accordingly. I get what you’re saying, but try to craft the sentence more carefully

Its origin was figured out by Best Buy when they realized they could not beat Walmart on price. Therefore, the strategy ventured by Best Buy aimed at competing with Walmart to out do them in online retailing. It is in this regard that technology can blur the distinction between online and physical retailing, hence enabling the retailers and their supply chain partners rethink their competitive strategies (Brynjolfsson, E., Hu, Y., Rahman, & M., 2013). Comment by sara stevens: These names do not have to be bolded.

Current issues in Omni-channel retailing:

Currently, most retailers and merchants are “Omni-channel” in their behavior and outlook. It is because they are majorly venturing into the offline and online retails channel to do their marketing and sales to clients. These features of omnichannel have helped the Merchants and Retailers so much in new environment flourish through re-examining their strategies for delivering products and information to their customers (Bell, D., Gallia, S., Moreno, & A., 2014). Comment by sara stevens: Why are these terms capitalized? Review capitalization rules.

There is a rise of non-significant cannibalization of the physical stores, the small merchants, and retailers from the channel integration. With the ascent in the notoriety of omnichannel retailing, adding brick and mortar stores to existing systems, for example, sites or indexes expands brand incomes in a global setting. The retailers mostly advocate a competitive advantage through channel integration of both offline and online retailing. It has led to the willingness of the customers paying across channels (Herhausen, et al., 2015). Comment by sara stevens: Not sure this is the right word. Consider revising Comment by sara stevens: Say more about that, it’s interesting.

Innovations have to address industry, consumer, and regulatory-based challenges in order

to facilitate the globalization of markets. Distinct changes have to be incorporated in the current mature, emerging and less developed markets. It 's hard to start a new business model combining online sales and retaining focus on a company’s image and bottom line. Innovations have to be responsive as they are critical to the success of the globalizing retailers (Reinartz, et al., 2011).

Future of omnichannel retailing

Future shopping in Omni-channel retailing will be much more involving due to the expandability of E- Commerce sales. The morphing of digital retailing will lead to more and new tactics of Omni-channel retailing. Customers will be interacting with retailers in countless various channels such as websites, direct mail, physical stores, social media, mobile devices, networked appliances, catalogs and many more thus shopping will be more involving (Rigby & D., 2011).

The importance of innovation has brought new techniques that have led to the convergence of physical retail formats, E –Commerce, and digital services. Therefore, Retailers will be able to confront the need of customers and will be able to deliver a correct and full integrated shopper experience from initial point to final state (Balasescu & M., 2013).

The promptness and constant development of technology and social media in the current and future retail sector as compared to the mortar store. Despite the fact that there are numerous advancements in block and mortar retailing, traditional retailers must consider "omnichannel" methodologies and transforming the substantial shopping knowledge into an "enlivening, energizing, and inwardly captivating background" through different systems. The retailing industry is changing and modifying their behavior due to technology, as compared to traditional and mortar store face more challenges. M-commerce and E-commerce can offer the possibility of customizing services and products to clients’ needs and thus provides a more convenient, faster and easier way of shopping (Demko-Rihter, J., Halle, & I., 2015).

References Comment by sara stevens: Please add these references – if they aren’t already there – to the references at the end of the paper.

DEFINITION AND ORIGIN

Morse, G. (2011). Retail Isn't Broken. Stores Are. Harvard Business Review, 89(12), 78-82.

Bernstein, F., Song, J., & Zheng, X. (2008). “bricks-and-mortar” vs. “clicks-and-mortar”: An equilibrium analysis. European Journal of Operational Research, 187(3), 671-690.

Brynjolfsson, E., Hu, Y. , & Rahman, M. (2013). Competing in the age of Omni-channel retailing. MIT Sloan Management Review, 54(4), 23-29.

CURRENT ISSUES

Bell, D., Gallia, S., & Moreno, A. (2014). How to win in an omnichannel world. MIT Sloan Management Review,56(1), 45.

Herhausen, D., Binder, J., Schoegel, M., & Hermann, A. (2015). Integrating bricks with clicks: Retailer-Level and channel-level outcomes of online-offline channel integration. Journal of Retailing, 91(1), 309-325.

Reinartz, W. , Dellaert, B. , Krafft, M. , Kumar, V. , & Varadarajan, R. (2011). Retailing innovations in a globalizing retail market environment. Journal of Retailing, 87, S53-S66.

FUTURE ISSUES

Rigby, D., 2011. The Future of Shopping. Harvard Business Review, [online] Available at <http://hbr.org/2011/12/the-future-of-shopping/ar/pr >

 Balasescu, M. (2013). The influence of innovations and technology on the future of retail. Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Brasov. Economic Sciences. Series V, 6(2), 9-14.

Demko-Rihter, J., & Halle, I. (2015). The revival of high street retailing – the added value of shopping apps. Amfiteatru Economic, 17(39), 632-645.