Omnichannel experiences remain a priority for many of the leading Retail Chains in North America, especially when it comes to fulfillment.
From Academy Sports and Outdoors tightening its fulfillment data-awareness across channels, to Kohl’s finding ways to reduce friction through omnichannel options, the topic is top of mind for leaders in online retail who want to leverage the advantages that come with physical stores.
Altogether, 85.9% of Retail Chains in Digital Commerce 360’s Top 1000 Database offered some form of omnichannel fulfillment option in 2025. Common examples included curbside pickup; buy online, pick up in store (BOPIS); and sharing in-store stock status online.
Data on those omnichannel options, along with new consumer survey results from Digital Commerce 360 and Bizrate Insights, are all part of the new 2026 Omnichannel Report. The survey, which reflects March 2026 responses from 1,005 online shoppers, offers a look at not only which omnichannel fulfillment services they used most, but also what ultimately contributed to positive customer experiences.
The answers went beyond the technology and options that retailers deployed.
What drives satisfaction in omnichannel retail experiences?
After being asked to score their experiences with retail chains, using omnichannel offerings such as BOPIS or using a mobile app to buy a product inside a store, shoppers were also asked to cite which factors were most important in determining those scores. Their responses showed that retailers’ execution and quality of the experiences they offered weighed just as heavily as the fact that the services were available at all.
Three answers — each receiving response rates of 30% or higher — topped the list of most common answers.
Most cited was wait time upon arrival at the store (39.1%), showing that customer service at that touch point remains crucial for satisfaction outcomes. After all, if communication through an app or other ordering system has set an expectation that an order should be ready, the retailer’s staff still bears a responsibility to meet that expectation when the customer arrives.
Communication also plays a key role in the second-most common answer, which was that a pickup experience was smooth and free of confusion (38.4%). In these cases, messages conveyed to shoppers appeared to be aligned, and expectations were met, thanks to convenience and a lack of added concern.
Third, shoppers flagged the availability of the product they needed for same-day pickup (33.2%), underscoring convenience again, along with the timeliness of retailers’ fulfillment in meeting individual needs.
Other common customer responses to omnichannel offerings
Moving down the list, five answers appeared with response rates of 20% or higher. Those included the ability to schedule a pickup within a desired time window, as well as the experience within a retailer’s mobile app.
In addition, person-to-person interactions on site, along with how easy it was to find a pickup location, also appeared among these responses.
And in each case, Retain Chains should see moments that provide opportunities to impress and delight the shoppers they have already managed to engage and convert. While technology and ecommerce platforms provide pieces of that puzzle, they still need team members on the ground to make everything work.
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