Omnichannel merchandising is more than just a buzzword. It can be the difference between a brand that thrives, and one that’s easily forgotten.
In today’s digital-focused retail environment, it’s more important than ever for brands to cut through the noise and connect with their customers. An omnichannel merchandising strategy is essential if you want to resonate with shoppers, convert them into buyers, and nurture those relationships, so they become lifelong fans. Read on for our top tips for creating and implementing an omnichannel merchandising strategy.
What is omnichannel merchandising?
Omnichannel merchandising means creating a consistent shopping experience across every customer touchpoint, including brick-and-mortar, ecommerce, and third-party marketplaces. The omnichannel approach to promoting retail goods is centered around the customer rather than the product. It’s about creating a seamless brand experience across every sales channel.
An omnichannel merchandising strategy is critical even if your business only exists online. Consider creating consistency between your online platforms: your ecommerce store, social selling platforms, mobile app, influencer campaigns, and third-party sellers.
How to create a consistent omnichannel merchandising strategy
Here’s some inspiration for designing a seamless shopping experience across all touchpoints to keep customers returning.
Product placement
No omnichannel strategy is complete without a seamless visual merchandising experience.
Let’s say you’re a women’s apparel retailer selling house brands and garments from various vendors. It’s financially in your best interest to prioritize sales of your house brand so you optimize your product placement to highlight the house brand whenever possible.
This means giving your house brand prime shelf space in your store and displaying it prominently. On your ecommerce website and the mobile app translates to pinning and boosting house products to appear above other brands on category pages and in search results. Regarding third-party marketplaces, you might incentivize the reseller to feature your brand.
This approach increases your margins and guarantees that your house brand is the most recognizable line you carry, making it synonymous with your shopping experience across all touchpoints. Adding a social media QR code to your omnichannel marketing approach can help further personalize the customer experience.
Featured products
Now let’s imagine you run a homewares chain with its mobile app. A customer opens your app and sees a collection of Easter-themed decorations, pillows, and tableware featured on the homepage.
Enticed by the seasonal products, the customer comes to your store to browse the new arrivals in person. They see the window displays decked out with the same Easter products they saw in your app as they approach. The shopper goes home with some festive spring pillows.
A few days later, the customer regrets not buying an Easter basket they saw in the store, so they visit your website to look for it. Just like your app and window displays, your website’s homepage features a curated selection of Easter items, and the customer doesn’t have to look too far to locate the basket they had in mind.
Consider the impact on the buying journey if the same shopper had initially spotted the Easter products in store but later found your website still highlighted Christmas decor. Every customer touchpoint should provide a similar, recognizable experience with an omnichannel approach to retail.
