Adapting to the E-commerce Boom: How Retailers Can Stay Ahead

The e-commerce landscape has undergone a dramatic transformation, driven in large part by the COVID-19 pandemic, which accelerated digital adoption across the globe and is reshaping the way consumers shop and interact with brands. Growth shows no signs of slowing, with Shopify forecasting growth of 7.8% in e-commerce sales worldwide in 2025.

As e-commerce expands, traditional retailers face significant challenges, including the need to pivot from established brick-and-mortar operations to a more flexible, digital-focused approach. A recent Mastercard report suggests that 47% of retailers say they face “significant” competition from online-only rivals with a further 37% facing “moderate” competition.

With increased competition from online giants, such as Amazon, eBay, and Walmart, these retailers must rethink their strategies to maintain relevance in a crowded marketplace. The fast-moving changes in e-commerce call for flexibility and fresh ideas, pushing businesses to rethink how they operate.

This blog will delve into the explosive growth of e-commerce and its lasting impact on retail, focusing on essential strategies such as omnichannel retailing, logistics automation, and last-mile delivery enhancements. By embracing these strategies, retailers can improve the customer experience while meeting the growing demand for quick delivery and efficient order processing.

How Omnichannel Retailing Improves the Customer Experience

What is Omnichannel Retailing?

Omnichannel retailing refers to an integrated approach to sales and marketing that connects multiple channels, including:

• Physical stores
• Online platforms
• Mobile apps
• Social media

This strategy provides a cohesive customer experience by ensuring all touchpoints work together seamlessly, allowing consumers to switch between different channels without any disruption. As Forbes states, “Omnichannel retail isn’t about retailers being everywhere. Omnichannel retail is about providing shoppers what they want, when and where they want it.”

In order to truly understand a customer, retailers must leverage data from various interactions so that they can personalize offers and services, enhancing customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Creating Seamless Customer Journeys through Omnichannel Retailing

A seamless customer experience is crucial for success in today’s e-commerce landscape. Omnichannel retailing plays a pivotal role in achieving this by creating a unified shopping journey across the four channels – physical stores, online, mobile apps, and social media. Retailers must realize that no one channel is more important than the other and as consumers shift their shopping habits to new channels, each channel becomes more connected. According to McKinsey, 2024 has seen a drive towards “social commerce” where consumers browse and buy directly through social media platforms.

Consumers today expect to interact with brands smoothly, whether they are browsing online, purchasing in-store, or using a mobile app. To meet these expectations, retailers must ensure that their channels are interconnected. This involves synchronizing inventory, promotions, and customer data across all touchpoints. When consumers experience consistency, it builds trust and loyalty.

Here are 9 omnichannel strategies that retailers should adopt to ensure a seamless customer experience journey:

1. Consistent Brand Messaging Across Channels: Omnichannel retailing ensures that customers receive the same message and brand experience, whether they are interacting through a mobile app, website, or physical store. This consistency builds trust and helps establish a strong brand identity.
2. Unified Customer Profiles: By integrating data across various touchpoints, retailers can create comprehensive customer profiles. This enables personalized recommendations and communication, enhancing the customer experience and fostering loyalty.
3. Real-time Inventory Visibility: Providing customers with up-to-date information about product availability helps in managing expectations and reducing friction in the purchasing process. Whether customers are shopping online or in-store, they can access real-time stock levels, ensuring a more efficient shopping journey.
4. Seamless Transition Between Channels: Omnichannel strategies facilitate a smooth transition as customers navigate between different shopping stages, such as researching online and purchasing in-store. This interconnection prevents disruptions and enhances the overall shopping experience.
5. Integrated Customer Service: With omnichannel retailing, customer service is more cohesive. Customers can engage with support teams through any channel, whether it’s via email, phone, live chat, or social media, and interactions are recorded and accessible across platforms, ensuring issues are resolved efficiently. Forbes states that 81% of customers believe positive experiences make them want to return for another sale, so it pays to focus on this area.
6. Enhanced Social Media Engagement: Leveraging social media channels as part of the omnichannel strategy allows retailers to connect with customers in real-time, respond to inquiries, and engage with consumers through interactive content, enriching the customer’s journey.
7. Flexibility and Convenience: Offering flexible shopping options, such as buy online, pick up in-store (BOPIS)/click & collect, or home delivery, caters to varying consumer preferences and schedules, making the shopping process more convenient and user-friendly. PYMNTS Intelligence reports that 39% of consumers are now “click-and-mortar” shoppers, engaging across digital and physical channels.
8. Personalized Marketing: By analyzing customer data from multiple channels, retailers can tailor marketing efforts to individual preferences and behaviors, delivering more relevant offers and promotions.
9. Feedback and Improvement Loops: Collecting customer feedback across channels helps retailers continuously improve their offerings and customer service, ensuring the shopping journey remains seamless and responsive to consumer needs.

By implementing these strategies, retailers can create a more cohesive and satisfying customer experience, ultimately driving engagement, loyalty, and sales.

Elevating the Customer Experience with Logistics Automation

Optimizing logistics is a crucial step for retailers looking to adapt to the e-commerce boom and elevate the customer experience. By focusing on logistics management and leveraging automation, retailers can ensure more precise order fulfillment and faster delivery times for their customers.

Effective logistics management not only cuts operational costs but also fulfills customer expectations for prompt and reliable service, thereby enhancing customer loyalty and satisfaction. As stated by McKinsey, “retailers know speed matters” and they report that 75% retailers intend to build networks that offer two-day or faster delivery.

By harnessing technology and innovative logistics solutions, retailers can markedly enhance their service quality, empowering them to thrive in the competitive e-commerce landscape and keep pace with giants like Amazon.

Streamlining Order Processing

Streamlining order processing through automation is crucial for retailers striving to keep up with the fast-paced e-commerce environment. Automation technology can significantly reduce human error, accelerate order fulfillment, and enhance overall efficiency.

Here are the top 8 benefits that retailers experience when they automate their order processing:

1. Automated Order Entry: Automated order processing solutions automatically capture and process orders placed in stores or online, reducing manual input and errors.
2. Inventory Management Systems: Automation tracks inventory levels in real-time, allowing for accurate stock updates and minimizing overstock or stockouts.
3. Robotic Picking and Packing: Robots pick items from shelves and pack them swiftly, reducing handling time and increasing throughput.
4. Automated Sorting Systems: Sorting technology categorizes products for distribution, ensuring quick and correct dispatch.
5. Real-time Order Tracking: Customers receive automated updates on their order status, enhancing transparency and trust.
6. Predictive Analytics: AI forecasts demand and adjusts inventory and staffing levels accordingly, improving readiness and reducing lead time.
7. Self-service Portals: Portals allow customers to place, track, and return orders independently, reducing the load on customer service teams.
8. Integration with Vendors and Logistics Providers: Communication and coordination with vendors and logistics partners are streamlined through automated systems, ensuring timely procurement and delivery.

Automating these processes reduces operational costs and allows staff to focus on more value-added tasks. By streamlining order processing through automation, retailers can handle increased order volumes efficiently, meet customer demands for speed and reliability and ultimately improve the customer experience and maintain a competitive edge in the fast-paced e-commerce landscape.

Enhancing Last-Mile Delivery

Enhancing last-mile delivery is a critical aspect of meeting customer expectations for speed and convenience in the e-commerce sector. Consumers have come to expect speedy fulfillment and distribution of orders with the emergence of services like Amazon Prime. And eMarketer reports that 25% of shoppers will buy from another retailer if their order doesn’t arrive in three and half days.

Here are some key ways retailers can leverage automation to enhance their last-mile delivery operations:

• Route Optimization Algorithms: By using sophisticated algorithms, retailers can optimize delivery routes to minimize travel time and fuel consumption. This not only speeds up delivery times but also reduces overall operational costs.
• Dynamic Scheduling: Automated systems can dynamically schedule deliveries based on real-time conditions such as traffic patterns and customer availability. This flexibility ensures that deliveries are made at the most convenient times for customers, enhancing their experience.
• Autonomous Delivery Vehicles: Implementing drones, robots, and self-driving vehicles can significantly cut down on delivery times, especially in urban areas, by bypassing traditional road traffic. According to Shopify, last-mile drone delivery is expected to be worth $9.8 billion by 2030 and 16% or retailers expect to use drones for delivery in the future.
• Flexible Delivery Options: Retailers can provide automated parcel lockers or designated collection points, allowing customers to pick up their deliveries at their convenience, reducing the need for repeated delivery attempts.
• Real-Time Tracking: Automation enables real-time tracking and alerts, keeping customers informed about their delivery status. This transparency builds trust and reduces anxiety about delivery issues.
• Predictive Analytics for Demand Management: Using predictive analytics, retailers can forecast demand and adjust their logistics operations accordingly. This proactive approach helps in managing resources effectively and ensuring timely deliveries.
• Customer Feedback Integration: Automated systems can gather and analyze customer feedback after delivery, allowing retailers to continuously enhance their service quality and address any issues promptly.

By leveraging these automated solutions, retailers can streamline their last-mile delivery processes, ensuring quicker, more reliable service that meets the high expectations of today’s consumers. This not only boosts customer satisfaction but also establishes a strong competitive advantage in the thriving e-commerce market.

How AP Automation Helps Retailers Adapt to the E-commerce Boom

SoftCo’s accounts payable automation solutions empower retailers like Superdry, Primark, and Logitech in navigating the e-commerce boom by streamlining processes that help enhance customer experience and meet growing demands. SoftCoP2P for Retail automates key accounts payable tasks, including invoice capture, matching, and approval, reducing administrative burdens and allowing retailers to focus on strategic initiatives like innovating their retail models and enhancing customer engagement. This streamlining improves financial management, enabling optimized cash flow to support omnichannel strategies.

SoftCo’s integrated platforms connect supply chain elements, from procurement to delivery, enhancing communication and coordination between retailers and vendors. Real-time inventory visibility prevents stockouts and overstock issues, and SoftCo’s efficient eProcurement solution, along with pre-approved spend capabilities, ensure that products are available when and where customers demand them. These solutions help retailers deliver a faster, more reliable service, securing a competitive edge in a rapidly evolving e-commerce market.