One of the primary benefits of O2O is that it can help you expand your customer base. There is no doubt that online marketing campaigns allow you to reach a larger audience than you could if you just relied on the people walking through your doors.

Consumers rarely just walk into a store anymore – they spend time online researching new products and browsing social media first. Almost 90% of shoppers start their product searches online so that they can narrow down what they want to buy.

If you can effectively capture this channel and help your customers find what they need, you can direct that internet traffic right to your store. When you do this right, you will get much more foot traffic than if you relied solely on in-person marketing efforts.

Another benefit of a strong online-to-offline strategy is that it enhances the customer experience. Consumers have high expectations when it comes to retailers – they want access to information about your products instantly, whether they are in-store or on their mobile devices.

However, they don’t want to be forced to do everything online either. Research shows that over 60% of consumers prefer to buy from companies that also have a brick-and-mortar location when compared to those that only have an online presence.

An O2O strategy allows you to combine these experiences into one that is seamless and engaging!

The other major reason to motivate customers to visit you in-store is that customers shopping in-store tend to have a higher spend and a higher conversion rate. That means that by getting an online customer to visit you in-store, you’re going to see a higher overall lifetime value (LTV) from that customer.

That’s not to say that you want to force customers to only shop in-store, but giving them good reasons to shop in person can have a positive impact on your bottom line and their total spend over time.

Online-to-offline commerce can also help you save money on logistics. The larger your business scales, the more complicated logistics can get – so giving your customers the option to buy online and pick up at the store can significantly cut down your costs, particularly on shipping and on returns - did you know that customers who purchase in-store only have as low as an 8% return rate? That's nearly a third of the return rate for online merchandise. Plus, store returns do not require any packaging and therefore are less costly to you and your customer.

Regionalizing inventory can not only reduce your warehousing expenses but can also minimize the cost of same-day or next-day pickups.

Buy online, pickup in-store (BOPIS) is one of the top strategies for O2O.

BOPIS makes it easy for shoppers to look for products online and then come to the store to retrieve them. The global pandemic significantly increased the demand for these services, and many consumers indicate that they will continue to rely on these services in the future, particularly in the form of curbside pickup.

Especially with restrictions on store capacity because of COVID, offering in-store appointments is a great way to reassure customers about the safety of their store visit and increase store traffic. There are a number of different online booking systems such as Acuity you can leverage in order to encourage customers to book an in-store appointment that will give them access to an in-person expert who can help them find what they are looking for, and equip you with even more knowledge (including contact info) about who is visiting your store. Once a customer has booked an appointment, you can also empower your store team to reach out to them ahead of their appointment to get a sense of their size and product preferences.  

QR codes allow you to deliver more than just products to your online customers. Consider adding a QR code to your packaging so that customers can learn more about you, including where they can come meet you in-person. You can even add a promotion as part of the scan that they can redeem in-store.  

You can also satisfy customers with the most urgent shopping needs by indicating which products on your e-commerce site are available in a customer’s local area. All you need from the customer is their zip code. From there, you can help them understand what items are available for purchase without having to buy before they try.

Customers who are new to your store may be hesitant to come in, especially during COVID. Your store associates are the best people to assuage their concerns and inform them about your store offering. Many retail salespeople today are already using their store's downtime in order to clientele with online customers to provide an extra helping hand as customers navigate your e-commerce site or seek out specific advice about products.

By giving your customers the opportunity to connect directly with a salesperson, you're creating a unique, two-way conversation that may be what a customer needs to actually visit you in-person.

Allbirds, the shoe retailer, is a great example of a company that learned to blend its in-store experience with e-commerce. They started by experimenting with pop-up locations, and eventually, they were able to open physical stores around the world.  

How were they able to do this? One of the biggest reasons that shoppers love visiting their stores is that they never have to leave empty-handed. Even if the product they want isn't available at that store, they can process the transaction right there and ship it to them directly. It's the best of both worlds!

Another company that has succeeded in the online-to-offline space is Magnolia Market. This brand was created by Chip and Joanna Gaines who gained extensive popularity through their show Fixer Upper.  

Their modern farmhouse and rustic furniture draw many people to their stores so that they can see the products up close – and Magnolia Market makes it easy for them to make the trip in person. They use Shopify's AR tool to see what the furniture would look like in their home, so they already know they will love their purchase when they go into the store.