How OMS Creates Seamless Omnichannel Retail Success?
This means customers often can't find what they want or see incorrect stock information. The retail landscape keeps evolving rapidly. E-commerce sales are expected to reach $300.2 billion in Q1 2025, accounting for 16.2% of total retail sales. This makes OMS omnichannel excellence more crucial than ever.
Poor order management comes at a steep price. About 69% of shoppers will likely avoid retailers who miss delivery dates by more than two days. The numbers paint a clear picture - U.S. consumers sent back $743 billion worth of merchandise in 2023, which equals 14.5% of total retail sales. A positive post-purchase experience matters to 80% of customers. Many shoppers worldwide would think twice before visiting stores that don't show their inventory online - 41% in France, 37% in the US, and 29% in the UK.
This piece will demonstrate how modern omnichannel order management systems enhance smooth retail experiences by addressing longstanding system issues. You'll learn why traditional OMS solutions fall short, how centralized order orchestration revolutionizes fulfillment, and what capabilities drive real omnichannel success across customer touchpoints.
Key Takeaways
Modern omnichannel OMS transforms retail by solving critical inventory and fulfillment challenges that legacy systems cannot handle, directly impacting customer satisfaction and business growth.
- Legacy OMS systems fail due to tight ERP coupling, batch processing, and siloed operations that create fragmented customer experiences.
- Real-time inventory sync across all channels prevents stockouts and enables accurate availability information for customers.
- Dynamic order routing optimizes fulfillment by considering inventory, proximity, and costs to reduce shipping expenses by 20-30%
- Unified returns management allows customers to return items purchased through any channel to any location, increasing loyalty.
- Businesses with strong omnichannel strategies retain 89% of customers versus just 33% with weak omnichannel approaches.
Why Legacy OMS Systems Fail in Omnichannel Retail
Legacy OMS platforms were built for retail's simpler times when inventory cycles were predictable and stores were the main focus. Modern multi-channel commerce has created complexities that these systems can't handle.
Tight Coupling with ERP and Commerce Platforms
Businesses still depend on multiple connected systems to manage order fulfillment, often combining their ERP and commerce platforms. This setup creates major inefficiencies. ERP systems work well for financial management, but can't handle omnichannel order orchestration. Simple rules like "fulfill from warehouse A, then warehouse B" are all they can manage, unlike smart strategies such as "ship from the store closest to the customer".
Legacy OMS platforms come with hardcoded business logic that needs IT help for even small changes. Simple configuration updates turn into complex coordination projects. A retailer shared their experience before getting a modern system:
"If a customer came to the store to order a book and a CD, we had to create two separate orders and two customer accounts because everything was completely siloed".
Lack of Real-Time Inventory Visibility
These old systems were designed for batch processing and can't meet modern commerce needs. Many businesses still use inventory data that updates only occasionally. This creates several issues:
- Stock levels become outdated, causing overselling and canceled orders.
- Items can't be tracked through their complete lifecycle (cart, reserved, damaged, in transit).
- Limited view across sales channels and fulfillment locations.
Research shows only 16% of companies call their supply chain processes "very unified or synchronized". Without proper synchronization, retailers never know their exact inventory levels, locations, or availability.
Fulfillment Silos and Fragmented Customer Experience
Supply chains have struggled with fragmentation for decades. Old systems work in isolation and create disconnected customer experiences across channels. This shows up through:
- Wrong product availability information reaching customers.
- Staff manually fixing inventory differences between channels.
- No support for modern shopping options like click-and-collect or ship-from-store.
Despite years of new technology, most supply chains remain divided. Customer satisfaction suffers when data stays trapped in different systems, often causing mismatches between available products and what customers see.
How a Modern Omnichannel OMS Solves These Challenges?
A modern omnichannel OMS serves as the vital link between inventory, orders, and customers that reshapes retail operations. Legacy systems cannot match their speed and adaptability in today's fast-paced retail world.
Centralized Order Orchestration in All Channels
Smart order orchestration unifies sales channels in modern OMS solutions. Each purchase automatically goes to the best fulfillment location. The orchestration layer works as the command center for retail operations. It finds the quickest way to fulfill orders from warehouses, stores, and vendors. The system automates and optimizes fulfillment decisions without errors or manual intervention.
Purchase data matches against inventory live to stop selling unavailable items. Built-in rules and workflows send orders to cost-effective or nearby locations. Shipping costs and delivery times decrease as a result. Complex processes like split shipments, drop shipping, individual-specific products, and digital fulfillment become possible through this central system.
Live Inventory Sync Between Stores, Warehouses, and Marketplaces
Strong omnichannel OMS provides accurate, live visibility into inventory across warehouses, stores, 3PLs, and drop-ship partners. Customers see correct availability information, and stockouts become rare.
The system controls inventory availability by:
- Connecting with multiple inventory data systems
- Monitoring inventory changes live
- Keeping availability data consistent online and offline
- Distributing available inventory to orders efficiently
Support for Click-and-Collect, Ship-from-Store, and Endless Aisle
Legacy systems fall short of supporting diverse fulfillment strategies that modern OMS platforms offer. Customers save money and get their purchases right away with click-and-collect shopping online and pickup at nearby stores. The system works with POS and store inventory to maintain accurate availability.
Ship-from-store functionality turns retail locations into fulfillment hubs. Local deliveries cut shipping costs by 20-30% and speed up delivery times, sometimes offering same-day service. Target cut its fulfillment costs by 40% by moving e-commerce orders to stores.
Endless aisle features help sell products not in stock to in-store customers. Retailers prevent lost sales and create more selling opportunities. Those using Endless Aisle report up to 10% more revenue.
Key Capabilities That Enable Seamless Omnichannel Success
Modern OMS platforms provide specific technological capabilities that are the foundations of successful omnichannel retail. These features create a smooth experience for retailers and customers alike.
Dynamic Order Routing Based on Inventory and Proximity
An AI-powered decision engine sits at the core of effective OMS omnichannel systems. This engine handles order routing, allocation, and exceptions dynamically. It assesses changing variables in real-time - from inventory availability to delivery constraints and customer priorities. Advanced order routing goes beyond simple rules. It optimizes fulfillment by balancing multiple factors at once: inventory levels, customer proximity, shipping costs, and store staffing levels. Retailers can set business rules through triple prioritization that adapt to changing conditions without needing IT teams to modify code.
Unified Returns and Exchange Management
Returns become a growth driver rather than a problem with modern omnichannel order management systems. Customers can return items through any channel to any location—whether they bought online and return in-store or the other way around. This flexibility builds customer trust and drives more store visits. The advanced OMS finds the best location for returned items, which maximizes resale potential. Customers can start returns, pick their preferred method, and track the whole process through digital self-service options.
Composable Architecture for Easy Integration with WMS and POS
The synergy between OMS and other systems creates what experts call "combinatory benefits"—a case where 1+1=3. This composable approach lets businesses pick and combine specific OMS components that match their needs. POS-WMS integration becomes a strategic asset rather than just another IT task. Stores and warehouses share real-time inventory data for accurate order promises. Systems sync data instantly, so inventory updates never lag behind.
Customer Communication Tools for Real-Time Order Tracking
Customer communication plays a vital role in modern omnichannel systems. Nearly 73% of retailers face challenges with real-time inventory visibility across channels. Advanced OMS platforms offer branded tracking through email, SMS, and in-app messaging. Customers receive timely updates about their order status, shipping details, and delivery estimates. Substitution workflows add extra value by connecting to external services for product recommendations and reaching out to customers when items run out of stock.
Operational and Customer Experience Benefits of Omnichannel OMS
Businesses see measurable results that positively affect their operations and customer satisfaction when they implement an omnichannel order management system.
Reduced Order Cancelations and Split Shipments
Revenue losses and operational inefficiencies stem from order cancellations. Companies using up-to-the-minute OMS platforms have cut cancellations by up to 30%. An $8 billion retailer's adoption of a dual-OMS approach led to a 5% drop in cancellations. Fashion brand Psycho Bunny's success story shows how they cut split shipments by more than half, which led to 33% faster deliveries and lower shipping costs.
Faster Delivery Through Localized Fulfillment
Long delivery times drive away almost half of omnichannel shoppers. Quick fulfillment has become crucial as 90% of US online shoppers now expect free shipping within two to three days. Localized fulfillment solutions make same-day delivery possible to meet these expectations. Customer surveys show that 43% of buyers rank delivery speed as a top factor in their purchase decisions.
Improved Inventory Turnover and Stock Accuracy
Store inventory accuracy typically ranges from 70-90%, while distribution centers maintain 99.5% accuracy. An omnichannel inventory management system bridges this gap with up-to-the-minute visibility. Norman Camera's success story reveals double-digit improvements across multiple KPIs after they implemented an OMS.
Consistent Brand Experience Across All Touchpoints
Companies with strong omnichannel engagement keep 89% of their customers, while those with weak strategies retain only 33%. Marketing integration across three or more channels boosts purchase rates by up to 287%.
Scalability for New Channels and Markets
Marine Layer's success shows remarkable growth potential. Their strategy of shipping 15% of online orders from stores resulted in a 21% sales increase. Shoppers who use multiple channels spend three to four times more than those who stick to a single channel.
Conclusion
Retailers just need to provide smooth experiences across all channels, but legacy systems still hold them back. Traditional OMS platforms use batch processing and work in silos. They can't keep up with what modern consumers expect. Their tight connection to ERP systems makes them rigid, and retailers struggle to adapt when markets change.
Modern omnichannel OMS platforms bridge the gap between customer expectations and what happens on the ground. These systems work like a retail operation's central nervous system. They manage orders across channels while tracking inventory in real time. So retailers can now offer advanced delivery options like click-and-collect, ship-from-store, and endless aisle features. These options directly boost customer satisfaction and loyalty.
A resilient omnichannel OMS brings benefits way beyond better operations. Retailers see fewer canceled orders and split shipments. Local fulfillment makes deliveries faster, which matches what customers want. Stock accuracy and inventory turnover improve a lot, which cuts down on the costly stock mismatches common in traditional retail. These systems help create a consistent brand experience, whichever way customers choose to shop.
Retail stands at a turning point. Companies that use advanced order management get ahead of their competition. Those stuck with old systems risk falling behind. Modern OMS technology has turned fulfillment from a back-office task into a strategic tool that builds customer loyalty and grows revenue. Without doubt, retail's future belongs to businesses that can naturally link inventory, orders, and customers through smart, flexible order management systems.
