Retail processes are already complex enough as retailers should manage the inventory of all sales channels, distribution centers, and warehouses accurately. In order to improve the customer experience and to use the inventory without causing any overstocking and overselling, retailers need real-time visibility of their inventory. It’s nearly impossible to provide a friction-free service when stock is located across different channels and to achieve success by managing the entire organization with ERP systems that aren’t meant to design for that.

Retailers are aware of the importance of inventory visibility yet it is a huge challenge to find the right solution. That being the case, as the processes and decision-making become more complex and overwhelming, it may end up with inefficient operations and a lack of customer satisfaction and loyalty. Here are three reasons for retailers to understand the importance and the urgency of implementing a true omnichannel solution that provides accurate and real-time inventory visibility in a single place. 

Sell from everywhere with confidence

The digital age has completely transformed the ways in which retailers seek to meet customer demands and every aspect of the business. While technology has brought about all of these changes, however, some underlying factors never change –– like the importance of customer satisfaction.

It does not really matter from which channel the customer use either online or offline, retailers become able to see the entire inventory from anywhere; in a physical store at the sales associate’s hand, online, and on marketplaces by accessing the right stock right away. This way, they never lose a customer who intends to purchase a product yet can not, as the product is out-of-stock in the current store’s stock. It also both increases the revenue by being able to sell physically unavailable products and more importantly improves the trust of the customer.

Never sell unsellable items

A true omnichannel experience does not only give retailers the real-time accessibility of inventory but to track what’s in stock, what orders are being processed and ready for pick up/shipment from stores or distribution centers. With the advanced technology and integration, retail employees can now mark damaged and unsaleable items and it drops from the inventory and are not shown in online channels automatically. Also, the inventory can be flagged as available for pickup from the store or sent to the address on SKU or channel level without bothering the IT departments and the changes reflects within seconds.

Manage the operation in a single hub

Implementing a solution that automizes the retail processes is crucial, yet for continuous success, retailers should also be able to see the clear picture of the operation. Real-time dashboards give actionable data including the channel the most used for fulfillment, products the most sold, and, order and inventory-related details for better business decisions. This way, retailers can stock the inventory in the right place which minimizes the shipping cost and customer experience improve accordingly. 

With Shopi’s Omnichannel Order Hub, inventory is kept on the real-time visibility layer that doesn’t bother ERP systems. It provides better performance while the inventory is managed accurately and despite the traditional legacy systems, damaged and unsellable items can be marked and it surely prevents stocking problems. Not only do retail decision-makers manage the inventory in a single place but thanks to the real-time dashboard, they can make strategic business decisions to be applied for more efficient operations and happy customers!