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Retailers slagging in omnichannel efforts, reveals report

The Periscope research reveals nearly half of retailers acknowledge omnichannel strategies are not progressing fast enough.

April 22, 2016

Retailers aren't moving as fast as most may think when it comes to establishing and developing an omnichannel strategy and experience, with a new report noting just 21 percent feel more confident than last year with the quest and 45 percent admitting it's not happening fast enough.

The research also reveals 78 percent acknowledge customers are not enjoying a one-brand experience across their customer channels.

That doesn't bode well given increasing consumer expectations regarding shopping and enjoying a seamless experience between online, in store and mobile activities.

Yet over half of retailers polled, 64 percent, stated that a well-defined multichannel strategy is the key innovator toward driving digital growth.

Those polled listed out a slew of challenges and reasons for lagging omnichannel efforts with 67 percent citing a lack of customer analytics as a prime obstacle. A lack of internal coordination was cited by 39 percent.

Other top reasons included a siloed organization structure (48 percent), poor data quality cited by 45 percent and the inability to identify customers across shopping trips was cited by 45 percent.

Just 6 percent polled described omnichannel readiness as excellent and fully implemented, while 36 percent are in a 'testing proof of concept,' phase.

Channie Mize, general manager for retail at Periscope said, "Consumers are desperate for omnichannel experiences, they work across channels, why can’t their favorite retailers? In their minds it is a simple as that, and it leads to frustration, and diminishes brand loyalty."