Aus retailers lagging on BOPIS service

Less than one-third of Australian retailers are offering buy online, pick up in store (BOPIS) options, according to new research.

OrderDynamics has released its Omni-2000 Research: Australia, which reveals that 31.4% of Australian retailers offer BOPIS compared with 64% of UK retailers that offer click and collect services.

Despite this, most retailers in Australia have an active e-commerce business, at 84.3%. This is on par with the global average of 86.3% found in Omni-2000: Global Research.

Based on results from the seven countries surveyed, it is clear that omnichannel in Australia is still developing. To progress, Australian retailers are prioritising advertising BOPIS, educating customers through FAQs and promoting pick-up notifications.

Out of 299 Australia-based retailers with a minimum of 10 stores, key findings include:

• 53.2% of omnichannel retailers offer basic, active inventory visibility
• 14% of retailers provide free return deliveries
• 47.8% of retailers offer buy online, return in store
• 74.5% of omnichannel retailers advertise BOPIS on their webpage
• 94.7% of omnichannel retailers provide click and collect FAQs
   

While results prove Australia is progressing as a balanced and developing market of omnichannel capabilities, this pace needs to accelerate.

In accordance with the emerging trend of social media as a retail channel, Australian shoppers are similarly gravitating toward this option. However, most retailers are missing out on the opportunity as only 5.3% of omnichannel retailers sell on Instagram.

Active inventory visibility, highlighting if an item is in stock or out of stock online, is also declining at an alarming rate. Of Australian retailers surveyed, only 33.8% show basic, active inventory visibility. Decreased visibility remains a global problem among retailers. This is important because it heightens the chance of losing customers to another retailer’s site.

“The market in Australia holds quite a bit of potential for omnichannel,” said Nick McLean, President, OrderDynamics.

“While opportunities for growth are apparent, many retailers are making significant advances. It will be exciting to see how this trend evolves in 2019.”

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Amy Walters

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