There are so many ways you can make your customers’ lives easier—for example, deliver straight to their door, direct them to a nearby store for collection, or provide a web of alternative pick-up locations. You might experiment with social selling on Instagram, letting followers tap on photos of your products to add to a cart on their mobile phones. You might even bring a point-of-sale system to community-driven pop-up shops, all in a bid to be where your customers are.
Selling across multiple channels is great for customer convenience and your bottom line. But it can also come with logistical complexity: Inventory management, warehousing, and order fulfillment become more complex when you’re not selling on a single channel. Omnichannel fulfillment can help.
What is omnichannel fulfillment?
Omnichannel fulfillment is a unifying approach to managing inventory and processing customer orders across multiple sales channels, creating a seamless experience for retailers and shoppers. This strategy brings together various selling platforms—from physical stores to online marketplaces—ensuring consistent inventory tracking and order fulfillment, regardless of where a purchase is made.
By unifying sales processes, businesses can better allocate products, prevent overstocking and overselling, and offer flexible options like curbside pickup. Omnichannel order fulfillment typically relies on software platforms that provide real-time inventory visibility, automate order processing, and synchronize data across sales channels.
Components of omnichannel fulfillment
An omnichannel strategy brings together elements of the retail supply chain. It requires coordination between different components, such as sales channels, inventory locations, and customer touchpoints.
- Inventory visibility: Omnichannel fulfillment involves real-time tracking of stock levels across locations, including warehouses, stores, and distribution centers. Having accurate inventory figures prevents stock issues and makes it easier to facilitate processes like ship-from-store and store-to-store transfers.
- Order processing: The omnichannel fulfillment process depends on a centralized system for order processing.
- Warehouse operations: An omnichannel strategy allows you to optimize picking, packing, and shipping processes within distribution centers to ensure timely order processing.
- Shipping and delivery: With omnichannel fulfillment, you can bring together multiple delivery services to offer customers flexible shipping options. This lets you manage store-to-customer shipping alongside traditional fulfillment methods.
- Data synchronization: Employees across the organization can track, analyze and utilize customer data, inventory information, and order details.
- Customer communication: Customers receive automated notifications throughout the fulfillment process—from order confirmation to timely delivery updates.
Benefits of omnichannel fulfillment
Shoppers want convenience. By expanding across multiple sales channels via a unified omnichannel fulfillment model, you can meet customers wherever they prefer to shop. This brings advantages to both businesses and consumers.
Brand visibility
When you expand beyond a single sales channel, you open up new opportunities to connect with potential customers. By maintaining an online and offline presence, you can cater to more customers with varied shopping preferences and habits. The omnichannel fulfillment approach allows you to interact with customers across various platforms, from physical stores to ecommerce sites to social media, increasing overall brand awareness.
The Sill, a plant retailer, has embraced omnichannel fulfillment wholeheartedly. With stores dotted across New York and a thriving online shop, The Sill offers houseplants and outdoor varieties—from its key lime tree to its weeping willow. It’s gone a step further by introducing in-store exclusives and same-day delivery options. Its Instagram account, with more than 746,000 followers, is another sales channel. By spreading its presence across these platforms, The Sill has expanded its reach and given customers multiple ways to engage with the brand.
Operational efficiency
Integrating data and systems across multiple sales channels gives you a complete picture of their fulfillment operations. This full view lets you make better decisions. For example, an activewear brand might notice that a particular style of running shorts is selling quickly online but moving slower in stores. As a result, it could adjust its inventory distribution, ensuring that products are available where they’re most likely to sell.
Lulus is a fashion brand committed to making chic clothing more affordable. The company largely operates as an ecommerce business, with customers placing orders through its website for home delivery or store pickup. However, Lulus has expanded into brick-and-mortar retail, opening a store on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles that includes a bridal boutique—and this in-person experience is carefully aligned with the brand’s online presence. “We have a loyalty program and make sure that customers see the benefits of shopping in the store as well as online, making sure that all stays integrated,” says CEO Crystal Landsem on an episode of the Shopify Masters podcast.
Customer satisfaction
A successful omnichannel fulfillment strategy puts more control in the hands of customers, letting them shop and receive their purchases in ways that best suit their lifestyles. Some customers might prefer the convenience of online shopping, while others value the ability to see and touch products in person. Many appreciate having both options available, for instance, buying a table lamp online but returning it in-store.
Eyewear brand Warby Parker has built its business model around this flexibility. With 278 physical stores and an extensive online presence, it offers customers multiple ways to shop. Its home try-on program lets customers pick five frames to test at home for free, bridging the gap between online convenience and the traditional in-store experience. Customers can start their journey online, try on glasses at home, then visit a store for adjustments. This gives customers the freedom to shop in whatever way feels most comfortable to them, leading to higher satisfaction and stronger loyalty.
3 Ways to handle omnichannel fulfillment
Choosing the right fulfillment strategy depends on the size and complexity of your operations and business goals. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, but understanding the options can help you make the best choice for your company.
1. In-house fulfillment
In-house fulfillment involves managing every aspect of order processing and shipping within your own business. This approach gives you complete control over the order fulfillment process and can be cost-effective for smaller businesses or those with unique product handling needs. However, the process does take time, resources, and expertise to manage effectively. As your business grows, you may also find it challenging to scale your in-house operations to meet increased demand.
2. Outsourcing to a fulfillment company
When you outsource omnichannel fulfillment, you partner with a fulfillment center or third-party logistics provider (3PL) to handle your order processing and shipping. This option is appealing for businesses looking to scale quickly or those wanting to focus on core competencies rather than logistics. Third-party fulfillment companies, like the Shopify Fulfillment Network, can offer expertise, advanced technology, and economies of scale that might be difficult to achieve in-house.
To find the right omnichannel fulfillment services, vet potential partners to ensure they can meet your specific needs—like handling product-specific requirements, maintaining accurate inventory levels, and meeting your shipping speed expectations.
3. Hybrid fulfillment
Hybrid fulfillment combines elements of both in-house and outsourced fulfillment. This approach allows businesses to maintain control over certain aspects of their fulfillment process while using external expertise for others.
You might handle fulfillment for your most popular products in-house while outsourcing the rest to a 3PL. This strategy can offer flexibility and scalability, but it requires careful coordination to ensure a good experience for the end customer. The key to success with hybrid fulfillment? Clear communication and robust inventory management across all fulfillment channels.
Omnichannel fulfillment FAQ
What is multichannel vs.omnichannel fulfillment?
Multichannel fulfillment keeps multiple selling channels separate, while omnichannel fulfillment brings all channels together, creating a smooth experience for customers (no matter how they shop).
Why is omnichannel fulfillment important?
Omnichannel fulfillment matters because it fits how people shop today, helps businesses run more efficiently, and keeps customers happy by providing a consistent experience across all touchpoints.
What is an example of omnichannel fulfillment?
Warby Parker shows omnichannel fulfillment in action by connecting its website, home try-on program, 278 stores, and virtual try-on feature, letting customers easily switch between online sales channels and offline shopping.
