Convenience has become a vital component of retail in the past few years. E-commerce has grown, and customers have become accustomed to shopping from home. Physical stores remain a big part of the retail experience. But, to match the efficiency of online shopping they must enhance their in-store experience.
One way stores have significantly improved convenience is through the implementation of RFID technology that supports buy-online-pickup-in-store (BOPIS) and buy-online-return-in-store (BORIS) offerings. BOPIS and BORIS can deliver many benefits to retailers, including inventory management, enhanced customer offerings, and improved business performance.
What are BOPIS and BORIS?
BOPIS, an acronym for “Buy Online, Pick-up in Store,” is a retail strategy where customers purchase items online and pick them up at a physical store. This method blends the ease of online shopping with the quick availability of in-store pickup. As well, it allows for fast fulfillment and eliminates shipping fees.
BORIS, or “Buy Online, Return in Store,” complements BOPIS by allowing customers to return items purchased online to a physical store. This approach enhances customer convenience by simplifying the returns process, providing immediate refunds or exchanges, and increasing foot traffic in physical stores. Together, BOPIS and BORIS create a seamless omnichannel experience that meets modern shoppers’ expectations for flexibility and efficiency.
Enhanced inventory management
BOPIS and BORIS deliver a competitive advantage by improving inventory management and enhancing the offer of a full omnichannel experience.
These retail models allow customers to purchase items online, and then either pick them up or return them at the store. These processes combine the ease and specificity of online shopping with local in-store availability. Furthermore, this approach provides for fast order fulfilment and the convenience of a simple return. A prerequisite for consistently high levels of BOPIS and BORIS execution is maintaining an accurately stated inventory. This is where item-level RFID establishes the foundation for success in these growing sales channels.
Enhanced customer offerings
The fundamental appeal of BOPIS and BORIS is a convenient and seamless shopping experience. The COVID pandemic forced a migration of customers to online shopping when that channel became the only viable option. Nowadays, with customers returning to stores, retailers are considering how they can streamline the physical shopping experience too. By improving the speed of service and leveraging stock visibility online, BOPIS and BORIS is driving additional traffic to stores. And, in doing so, they produce higher average basket sizes than traditional in-store shopping carts.
Research has shown that waiting in queues at the point of sale has a major negative impact on customer experience for retailers when customers are conditioned to having everything on demand. In fact, according to the research, the average UK shopper spends over one year of their lives waiting in queues. To make matters worse, 86% of shoppers report they would avoid a store if they perceive queues to be too long.
It takes a substantial amount of time to build up customer loyalty, which can be further enabled by implementing a BOPIS and BORIS model. This will help retailers who have issues with wait times to reduce the time spent queuing, ultimately building greater customer satisfaction moving forward.
Enhanced business performance
There are significant benefits to a retailer’s business performance – namely reduced shipping costs and sustainability benefits, increased customer flow through stores, and a quicker turnaround from returns to resale.
BOPIS and BORIS give retailers the opportunity to reduce their last-mile shipping costs and help to improve margin while leveraging owned inventory. We’ve discussed how RFID technology can give retailers better visibility of their supply chain and this sets the stage for robust BOPIS and BORIS models that can win over early adopting customers and avoid unfulfilled orders. When items are returned using a well-operated BORIS system, the overall turnaround time from returns to resale is reduced, helping stores to restock returned items to the sales floor quickly where they can be resold.
Overall, the benefits of a well-oiled BOPIS and BORIS omnichannel offering are widespread and ultimately benefit customers and retailers alike, as convenience and value proposition come together. This rapidly growing sales channel is critical to ensuring brick and mortar retailers can retain market share in an era of unprecedented e-commerce growth. The benefits of RFID are intrinsically linked to the operational execution of BOPIS and BORIS models, as both stated inventory accuracy and the ability to find specific items tied to orders are necessary to facilitate success.
To find out more about how item-level RFID can give you a competitive advantage, visit our resources page or contact us.
