eShop (Online Shop)
Advantages and disadvantages of an eShop compared to a retail store
Financial savings
By shifting distribution to an online store, retailers can downsize their stores and by that reduce expenses. As a result of a reduced sales floor space, fewer staff are needed, so there is also potential for savings here.
More flexibility for customers
Customers are no longer tied to store opening hours and can shop from the comfort of their own homes. This makes the purchase less complicated and easier.
Lower service and consulting performance for customers
An online store cannot provide the same level of advice as a store, as there is no personal customer service or individual advice.
No real contact with goods
Despite high-quality product images and detailed descriptions, the options for presenting goods in the eShop are limited. Customers lack real contact with the products, which is why returns occur, especially in online retail.
Connecting online shop and retail stores
More and more retailers are realizing that they are not positioned for the future with either the one or the other extreme of online or offline retailing. A combination of online and brick-and-mortar retail offers both you and your customers the best of both worlds. There are already various concepts for this today:
Click & Collect
Goods are purchased and paid for in the retailer's eShop. They can then be picked up at a retail store. This gives customers greater flexibility, as they can pick up the goods at a time that suits them and at the store of their choice. In addition, there are no shipping costs for him.
Click & Reserve
With Click & Reserve, customers can reserve goods in the store online beforehand without paying for them directly. The order can then be picked up at the store and the purchase processed. This gives the customer the opportunity to view the merchandise before purchase and reduces the likelihood of a return.
Click & Return
With Click & Return, products purchased online can be returned to a retailer's store. This saves customers or retailers the return costs and the return can be processed faster.
Click & Meet
Click & Meet gives customers the opportunity to shop in a retail store at an appointment previously arranged online. In most cases, the Click & Meet service is combined with an in-store consulting service. This allows customers to obtain information on products online in advance and then receive individual advice on their selection.
This might also interest you
Connected Retail describes all the possibilities for linking brick-and-mortar and online retail.
An Order Management System, or OMS for short, refers to software or a software service, also called SaaS (Software-as-a-Service), that processes and manages incoming orders regardless of industry or sector.