BOPIS (Buy Online Pick Up In Store): The Ultimate Guide

Customers nowadays demand convenience. They no longer want to waste their precious time waiting in line or wandering around the store. Especially since the pandemic hit, the customers want to pay digitally, avoid crowds, and ensure the store has the goods before they get in their car. To anticipate this, retailers offer these consumers an option than delivery or shipping. The offer makes brick-and-mortar locations attractive to customers who value convenience and safety and reduces shipping costs, called BOPIS, or buy online pick up in-store. 

It is the process when consumer purchases items online or through an app and collects those items from a store at a specific time. In some cases, the store may notify the consumer when the order is ready so that the consumer can pick it up at their convenience. Some brands even offer curbside pickup for BOPIS orders, while others may have dedicated stores for BOPIS order fulfillment. 

Soon and easily, consumers are attracted to this capability as known as click and collect because of these reasons: 

• Faster than home delivery
• Reduce overall time spent in store 
• Reduce face-to-face contact by processing payments digitally 
• Provides space for impulse purchases 

Retailers also recognize the benefits of click and collect. Adobe found that consumers are 20% more likely to shop at retailers that offer a click-and-collect than those that don’t. Business Insider found that half of the shoppers discriminate between retailers based on whether they provide the click-and-collect capability.

What is BOPIS? 

BOPIS is a retail strategy that allows retailers to blend the online and in-store experience to engage with customers while offering a more convenient way to shop. With click and collect, customers can shop online from their mobile phone or website and go to the store or pickup location once their order is ready. 

This strategy works for retailers with an e-commerce website or mobile app and brick-mortar stores that want to offer local pickup to their customers. It helps streamline the omnichannel retail experience, blending online shopping with in-store experiences and making purchasing more convenient for retailers and customers.

BOPIS in Numbers

In every business, talking about numbers is always interesting. So does the buy online pick up in store, to see the current condition and its potential in the future. But let’s talk about why capabilities, also known as click and collect, are trending nowadays. 

According to Adobe, researchers expect a double-digit growth rate in BOPIS revenue through 2024. MarketScale estimates BOPIS sales will grow to US$141 billion by 2024 in the US. Meanwhile, Globenewswire expected the global buy online pick up in store (BOPIS) market to reach US$ 703.18 Billion by 2027, expanding with a double-digit CAGR of 19.3% during 2021-2027.

It is because many customers are still seeking an in-store experience. A survey conducted by ICSC found that 50 percent of online shoppers use click-and-collect and 67 percent of click-and-collect users buy additional items from that retailer when picking up their original order, and 60 percent make a purchase at a nearby store. 

The primary reasons for utilizing click-and-collect are no delivery fees (49 percent), receiving purchased items more quickly (40 percent), and assurance that items will be available when shopping in-store (33 percent). 

How does BOPIS work? 

The buy online pick-up in-store shopping experience allows customers to choose how their orders are processed. Convenience is key to improving the customer experience, enabling shoppers to buy and pick up instantly when their order is ready. And this is how the buy online pick-up in-store process works.

• Customers purchase online on your website or mobile app

When it comes to buy online pick up in-store, retailers need to create convenience by allowing customers to choose when and where to collect their purchased products while still being able to complete their purchases online or in an app. Real-time local inventory visibility allows consumers to choose when and where to pick up their orders.

• The retailer or the store fulfills the order

There are two scenarios when ordering through click and collect or BOPIS. 

First, the item is in stock at the physical store. If the order is available at your brick-and-mortar store, the item can be found, picked, packaged, and set aside for the customer to pick up. Then you can send an email or SMS notification to let the customer know that the order is ready to be picked up. 

Second, the item is not in stock at the brick-and-mortar store. You can collect from another store or warehouse if the physical store does not have stock of the item ordered. When your customer arrives at their preferred pickup location, you can send them a notification to let them know it’s available.

• Customer pick up the order

Customers can go to a designated online pickup area or store, and the store employee will hand over the item ordered. And even the store can take this a step further by allowing curbside pickup. It will enable the customer to drive to the store and pick up the order without leaving the car. 

Regardless, the consumer should be briefly guided through the steps to receive the purchased product. It includes receiving an SMS, push notification, or email containing your order receipt or QR code, and easy instructions on how to pick up the item ordered in the store.

Things to Consider when using BOPIS

You might think that starting using buy online pick up in-store is complicated. Well, it is untrue. It is simple because you only need to fulfill three requirements to have an outstanding buy online pick-up in-store experience. 

• A website or mobile application for online order

The ultimate requirement for buying online pick-up in-store is a branded website or mobile app that allows customers to order items from, connecting the online and offline experience. But you should also provide accurate and real-time visibility into available inventory to create a reliable and enhanced level of convenience for customers.

Besides, retailers can proactively utilize the app to communicate with push notifications throughout the shopping journey. It lets customers quickly know the order has been received, notifying the order is being prepared and confirming the order is ready for pickup.

• A brick-and-mortar store

According to its name, the buy online pick-up in-store won’t work for stores that only have an online presence without brick-and-mortar stores. Retailers must have at least one physical store to process the online orders and act as a hub for customers to collect items. The store should be strategically located to provide convenient locations for customers while providing opportunities for more walk-in customers.

• Real-time inventory capabilities

Retailers must analyze and implement appropriate technology components to provide consumers with the most up-to-date inventory. It includes connecting all elements of a retailer’s fulfillment system to create real-time analytics on order status, workflow, overall cycle time, location management, and customer retention. With multiple locations, the solution chosen must connect the POS inventory at all locations to provide customers with this transparency.

The Benefit BOPIS 

Buy online pick-up in-store or click-and-collect trend will continue to grow because it is perceived as a cheaper and faster way to shop for consumers. Here are the benefits both for the consumers and the retailers:

For Customers

• Cost and time saving

The apparent benefit of click and collect is that consumers can save money because they don’t need to pay shipping costs. Besides, it saves time because consumers do not need to wait for delivery and spend time browsing aisles for the products they are looking for. They can make purchases with a click away and take their order anytime. 

• Guarantee item availability

With buy online pick up in-store, the consumers can get guaranteed item availability before purchase and pick up in the store. So, it will minimize the possibility of a gamble shopping in-store for a specific product, only to find out the product is no longer in stock. It makes 100% guaranteed that when the customer arrives at the store or pick-up point, the product will be available. 

• Limited interaction 

The customers don’t need to interact with others with click and collect, whether for personal or pandemic reasons. But somehow, the additional flexibility offered by Click & Collect can provide a competitive advantage for those who rely on it.

• An extra choice for customers

Buy online pick up in-store allows customers to no longer be stuck between in-store and online shopping. It will enable consumers to choose how they want to buy and collect their purchases with the flexibility that consumers and retailers welcome. 

For Retailers

• Shipping Cost Saving

Retailers also benefit from buy online pick up in-store because the costliest leg of the delivery chain is removed. It allows you to send mass shipments to offline stores or pickup points. Surely it will save on last-mile shipping when a buyer picks up an order from your store.

• No risk of shipping delays

One of the retailers’ challenges is shipping delays that can affect customer experience and reflect poorly on the brand. Shipping delays are usually caused by driver shortages or inefficient routing. But click & collect removes shipping delays risk entirely and any chance of delay squarely in the hands of the consumers.  

• Increase sales and store traffic 

BOPIS is a powerful profit driver as it adds flexibility and choice to current fulfillment models and drives revenues. Besides, it gives an upsell opportunity. When consumers enter stores to pick up their online orders, they might look around, browse, and even shop for more products in-store. Based on a survey collected by Doodle, a return service company, found that 85% of consumers who enter stores to pick up their online orders purchase additional items in-store. 

• Enhanced the inventory management 

Streamlining the inventory management system and getting real-time stock updates are vital for retail businesses. With buy online pick up in-store, you need to merge online and in-store inventory tracking to fulfill orders from the customer. You will have more access and control over an extensive assortment of inventory. And you also have better insights into what products are available in real-time. 

BOPIS Examples

Many major retailers or brands offer click-and-collect and realize this fulfillment option’s benefits. Let’s look at these examples of brands that have implemented this technology.

MASARISHOP

MASARISHOP is a retailer that provides high-end curated fashion with over 100 emergings and establishes designers worldwide. It is one of the fashion retailers that offers buy online pick-up in-store for its customers with five brick-and-mortar stores. The BOPIS capabilities make it easy for shoppers to understand the buy online and pick up in-store process. 

EraSpace 

Eraspace is a lifestyle retailer in Indonesia that provides special services through an integrated experience with the Erajaya Group, which is diversified into Erafone, iBox, Urban Republic, and The Face Shop. Eraspace provides the BOPIS capabilities called CLICK N PICKUP that allow customers to purchase items on the website or mobile apps and pick up the order in the shop of customers’ choice. 

SESA 

Not only fashion retailers or electronics and gadget retailers that utilize buy online pick up in store but also a retail and e-commerce company for healthy living products, SESA provides pick-up in store capabilities. The customers can shop SESA’s huge selection of groceries online and have them ready when it’s convenient for the shopper by confirming the name, phone number, email, and pick-up time.  

BOPIS Challenges 

Convenience is the main reason consumers prefer to buy online pick up in-store. So, speed and inventory become crucial for click-and-collect capabilities. Research from Raydiant found that the most common turnoff for customers when using this shopping method is to wait in line to pick up their order (36%). Other common turnoffs are products not ready when customers show up (25%) and generally poor customer service within the click-and-collect process (15%).

Another fact is consumers may avoid or be wary of your click and collect for reasons that are within your organization’s control, such as: 

• 25.2% of people avoid because items are unavailable at your store
• 11% of people complaints because there is a long line at the pickup desk
• 10.5% of people avoid it because they find a general lack of convenience in your click and collects offerings
• 6% of people are wary of the lack of safety measures in your click-and-collect operations. 

That is why dynamic, fast, well-stocked, efficient, and high safety measure BOPIS operations are what consumers expect from retailers.

The Takeaways

Buy online pick-up in-store is a fulfillment option that can blur the lines between online storefronts and brick-and-mortar stores. It will also help you increase customer traffic in your store and boost sales. And indeed, click and collect is considered a customer engagement strategy because it helps bridge the gap between the physical store and digital store experience. 

Since more retailers are using this as their offering, ensure that your retail business isn’t left behind. Don’t hesitate to contact us if you need an integration between your physical and online stores to provide click-and-collect capabilities.