Where do we go from here?
This is a question a lot of retailers spend their days (and probably their nights) thinking about. It’s no secret that contactless retail is here to stay. So is the need for seamless customer experience.
How do we bridge the gap between hands-off and hands-on service? Enter order checkout and fulfillment methods such as BOPIS to the rescue.
What Is BOPIS?
BOPIS stands for “buy online, pick-up in store.” A typical BOPIS process begins when a customer makes a purchase from a website or app and then proceeds to the brick-and-mortar store to pick it up, typically on the same day.
According to recent data, nearly 70% of US shoppers have used BOPIS more than once. Furthermore, 50% of shoppers have chosen where to make a purchase based on whether they could pick their order up in-store.
Retailers Taking Advantage of BOPIS Capabilities
Some retailers have offered BOPIS options for a few years now. Others have jumped on the train recently and have become fast leaders in the space.
Target
Target is hailed as an inspiration for many retailers looking to the future. The company currently allows customers to shop for many items online and to then pick them up in-store on the same day via Guest Services.
As of June, Target added 750 new grocery items to its BOPIS service in 400 stores with plans to keep expanding the offerings to 1,500 stores by the end of the year.
At the end of last year, Target saw their digital sales surge 31%, with their same-day services accounting for 80% of the growth. These services include Drive Up, same-day delivery and BOPIS. Target’s CEO Brian Cornell has also said that the store’s cost of handling online orders dropped 90% using these methods.
Best Buy
Currently, Best Buy offers in-store pick-up and contactless curbside pick-up for any item in-store. Plus, the retailer promises BOPIS pick-up in one hour. As a result of this speed, the retailer continues to see sales growth related to BOPIS offerings.
Nordstrom
Nordstrom currently offers curbside pick-up, as well as in-store pick-up in select stores. This is paying off for the retailer. At the end of last year, half of Nordstrom’s digital sales growth came from order pick-up.
BOPIS Is a Critical Part of Any Omnichannel CX Strategy
Not only does BOPIS offer contactless capabilities, but it also helps deliver the seamless omnichannel experience your customers want. A pandemic doesn’t change our need for convenience and a good experience. In fact, it increases it.
BOPIS has the potential to be a double-edged sword, however. Customers want to shop how they want to shop and when, and they want the same seamless experience regardless of the method they choose. If they need it, they want it and there’s no room for friction.
Is Contactless Checkout an Option With BOPIS?
Let’s address the elephant in the room. In today’s retail environment, “in store” doesn’t necessarily work. Many customers wish to do what it takes to receive their goods without stepping foot into a store. By combining BOPIS capabilities with curbside checkout, it has the potential to be truly contactless—no brick-and-mortar required.
How LISNRⓇ Can Help
To make seamless pick-up and check-out happen in-store or out, you need a frictionless method of customer authentication and payment. Unfortunately, traditional BOPIS processes involve subpar forms of order authentication such as QR codes a customer must scan when they reach a pick-up station.
Not only is this method not hands-free, but it’s chock-full of friction that can ruin the experience.
LISNRⓇ offers a solution via an ultrasonic (data-over-sound) platform. Using speakers and devices retailers already have, LISNRⓇ enables automatic proximity authentication.
As soon as a customer reaches your pick-up area, authentication occurs automatically. The resulting experience is seamless and completely touch-free.
Take Advantage of Seamless & Contactless BOPIS Capabilities With LISNRⓇ
BOPIS isn’t going away. You can take advantage of seamless BOPIS capabilities with LISNRⓇ. To learn more about BOPIS or LISNR’s person-present solution, send us a message.