Best of Both Worlds: Buy Online, Pick-up In Store
Amidst the pandemic, retailers around the world are opting for a buy online, pick-up in store (BOPIS) strategy to provide a more convenient and near contactless shopping experience to the customers. In fact, the value of U.S. BOPIS purchases made during the pandemic increased by 63 percent in 2020, according to Statista.
Adding BOPIS to your omnichannel retail strategy can help you attract more customers and maximize your profits. Before you offer this flexible option to your customers, though, it’s important to understand what BOPIS is, how it works, and which solutions you can use to add BOPIS to your online store.
What is BOPIS?
Buy online, pick-up in store—also known as click-and-collect—is an omnichannel retail sales strategy that allows customers to make a purchase online and then pick up their order from the physical store. It’s particularly convenient for shoppers who are too busy to browse a physical retail store.
Some retailers designate a pickup location or service area for customers’ BOPIS orders, such as a special counter or parking space. This helps avoid confusion and ensures customers who are ready to pick up their orders get quick service.
Other variants of BOPIS include curbside pickup, reserve online pick-up in store (ROPIS), and buy online return in store (BORIS).
How does BOPIS work?
With the right software solutions in place, the BOPIS process is relatively straightforward.
1. Optimize your online store for in-store pick-up
First, you need an online store with an e-commerce platform that supports BOPIS, as well as a physical retail location that can support pick-up orders. You may need to switch e-commerce platforms to gain this functionality or create a designated area in your brick-and-mortar space to separate these orders from the rest of your inventory.
Once you have these measures in place, add “curbside pick-up” or “pick-up in store” as an additional delivery method, and give customers the option to select the day, time, and pickup location of their choice while checking out.
2. Fulfill the order
If the items are in stock, your store staff will receive the order and prepare the items for pickup. If the required items are not in stock, you may need to have the items shipped from a warehouse or another store location. This can cause unexpected delays, so an integrated inventory management system is important to align customer expectations around product availability and pickup timelines.
Related: What Hybrid Retailers Need to Know About SKUs
3. Notify the customer when their order is ready
Your customer will receive an alert via email, SMS, or both that their order is ready to be picked up. This can be automated using email marketing software, so you don’t have to worry about sending manual emails to every customer who places a BOPIS order. In the content of the message, it’s best to include clear instructions about where the customer should go to receive their order once they arrive at your store.
