Multichannel vs. Omnichannel eCommerce

As the name suggests, multichannel eCommerce refers to the practice of selling your products and services on multiple sales channels. It means going beyond your physical store or website and exploring other options like marketplaces (such as Amazon & eBay), social media platforms, comparison shopping websites, etc.

But wait, here comes another overlapping term — Omnichannel eCommerce. People often get confused between MultiChannel & Omnichannel eCommerce because in both the cases, the products or services are available on multiple platforms. The buyer can purchase from the channel they prefer and these channels are common in both the cases. So how are they different?

Let’s understand the basic difference between these two.

MultiChannel vs. Omnichannel Selling

Take a look at the above image carefully. I am going to explain the difference between MultiChannel & Omnichannel eCommerce below and then you have to identify which is which through the illustration.

You can share your answers in the comment section!

MultiChannel eCommerce is a strategy that exists as a separate purchase opportunity. Let me explain,

Sephora products are available everywhere — in store, on their official website, on Amazon, etc. But all these channels have very less interaction with each other. Suppose you purchased a perfume from Sephora through their official website but you want to return it as the package was damaged. In this case, you can return the perfume only by opting for the return and exchange option from their website.

Now take a look at the other scenario,

Omnichannel eCommerce offers customer experiences within and between the channels. What does that mean? Let’s take another example for this one,

Suppose you searched for Nike shoes on the official website, but you abandoned the cart as you were not so sure about the size. Now Nike will target you on all the possible platforms through advertising — Facebook, Amazon, Mobile App and whatnot! It is done so that the customer experience is consistent and unified. Now let’s say that you eventually purchased the shoes through their app but you want to return these.

Well, well here comes the difference, Nike Members and guests can return Nike.com and Nike App purchases at any Nike store. That means the buyers have the flexibility to purchase a product from one channel and return it through another channel.

So, the key difference is how the customer experience is joined up across all the channels. Now, if Omnichannel has so many benefits then why can’t everyone implement it? Because there are several barriers like cost and complexity of implementation.

A FitForCommerce survey reported 69% of retailers do not think their current systems are equipped to handle omnichannel requirements. So, it is better to start with the multichannel selling and gradually move to the omnichannel.

Benefits of MultiChannel Selling

There are many reasons why eCommerce businesses should expand into multiple sales channels. Let’s discuss a few of these:

Customer Acquisition: Some people prefer buying products from the official websites or in-store but there is another group of people who directly search for their desired products on Amazon. So, the more avenues you provide to your customers, the more new customers your business receives.

More Revenue: This factor is in connection with the above one. The more customers you can reach, the larger are the chances for revenue growth. According to Stitch’s data, retailers who sell on a branded site plus at least one online marketplace make 38% more revenue.

Lower Barrier to Entry: The internet has made things very convenient for everyone. It is now easier for businesses to get up and run smoothly. Earlier, business expansion meant opening a new brick and mortar store but now all you need to expand your business is to launch a new website or getting yourself registered on a website like Amazon.

Unlike the Omnichannel implementation, there are just a few of the operational challenges retailers face while implementing a multichannel business. Here I am listing a few of them:

• You need to have available inventory to support the demand created due to your multichannel expansion
• An omnipresent brand is supposed to quickly and seamlessly deliver the products
• As your channels multiply, so will the amount of data coming in and you need to manage all that data

How Yo!Kart is Helping Entrepreneurs with Multichannel Selling?

The majority of vendors have multiple seller accounts on popular marketplaces. It is difficult to convince them to register and sell on a new emerging marketplace. For instance, imagine a vendor with 3 different seller accounts on Amazon, eBay, and Etsy. The vendor might face major challenges while juggling between three big marketplaces, while managing all the marketplaces separately.

To get rid of such challenges, you need to provide the vendors with features that just don’t ensure profitability but also the ease of managing everything on different marketplaces.

Fortunately, Yo!Kart multi-vendor eCommerce marketplace platform is in partnership with EasyEcom — a comprehensive multi-channel inventory management software. It offers advanced features like order fulfillment, reconciliation, warehouse management, and more. It is the operating system for everything eCommerce.

Related: Yo!Kart Partners With EasyEcom For Seamless Multi-channel Selling In Online Marketplaces

By partnering with EasyEcom, Yo!Kart aims to offer a vigorous eCommerce marketplace that addresses multi-channel selling challenges.

Here are the challenges you can resolve by implementing multi-channel selling functionality into your online marketplace:

Invite sellers that are selling on other popular marketplaces

Sellers can manage received orders from different stores from a centralized dashboard

Real-time inventory management

So, if you are someone who wants to launch an online marketplace where your vendors can sell effortlessly, Yo!Kart is the best you can opt for.

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Originally published at https://medium.com/yokart-ecommerce-multi-vendor-marketplace/start-multichannel-selling-in-ecommerce-with-yokart-a5e5e4642e7