Improving Both Your Drop Ship Program and Customer Convenience Through Programs Like BOPIS

Retailers, brands, and suppliers are constantly seeking innovative ways to enhance customer experiences while optimizing their operational efficiency. One trend gaining significant traction is the seamless integration of drop shipping programs with the convenience of Buy Online Pick Up In Store (BOPIS) services, and other like-minded tricks to get around the ever-increasing costs for shipping and fulfillment. 

The Convergence of Drop Shipping and BOPIS

Traditional retail models often involve holding extensive inventory in-store or at centralized distribution centers. However, this approach can and will be expensive in the long run and lead to issues like overstocking, expiring or unused inventory, and lost sales. Enter drop shipping – a solution where retailers can list products on their online platforms, and when a customer places an order, the product is directly shipped from the supplier to the customer, eliminating the need for the retailer to hold inventory.

Now, imagine combining the flexibility of drop shipping with the convenience of BOPIS, and its friends “Buy Online, Deliver From Store” (BODFS) and “Curbside Pickup”. BOPIS, allows customers to place orders online and then pick up their purchases from a physical store location or simply receive their order in a more expedited manner. This approach blends the online and offline shopping experiences, creating a seamless omnichannel journey for customers. 

The real benefit for retailers and brands, however, lies in the ability to significantly reduce the cost of shipping. Half of the online shoppers who abandon their carts do so because of unexpectedly high shipping costs. Items ordered through BOPIS can be sent to stores through regular distributor deliveries, allowing retailers to cover up shipping charges, adding convenience without adding to the cost. 

These savings go both ways once you implement additional programs like BODFS. Instead of incurring high shipping costs on your own, or through a supplier, retailers, brands, and suppliers can instead work on an arrangement that allows delivery from a more local-to-the-consumer location to reduce costs. With more local deliveries come the ability to offer next-day or even same-day deliveries with added features like assembly and installation services, further expanding the customer experience. 

Enhanced Customer Experiences

The integration of BOPIS with drop shipping brings several benefits to the table, foremost being an enhanced customer experience. Shoppers appreciate the convenience of browsing and purchasing online, followed by the immediate gratification of picking up their orders from a nearby store. This approach reduces the time between purchase and receipt, promoting customer loyalty and satisfaction. 

Efficiency for Retailers and Brands

One of the significant advantages of this strategy is that it requires no additional lifting for the retailer. By leveraging drop shipping, retailers don’t have to invest in more storage space or inventory management. Instead, they can focus on what they do best: providing a superior shopping experience.

For brands that are also primarily suppliers, like Samsung, this approach becomes a lifeline. Samsung is known for its TVs, gaming consoles, and a myriad of other pieces of tech but has never been the “primary” retailer of its own goods. These hybrid suppliers can tap into retailers’ existing online presence and customer base, expanding their reach without having to establish their own eCommerce channels. 

It’s a win-win scenario – retailers win by capitalizing on business they may have not gotten otherwise, especially through increased foot traffic in-store, while suppliers win through reduced shipping costs, improved speed to consumers, and perhaps most importantly, increased data flow. 

Being able to capitalize on first-party data is vital. As more consumers order products directly from their websites, these more “traditional” suppliers gain the ability to harvest valuable consumer information and trends—something they were barred from as third-party cookies were systematically destroyed. 

When it’s all said and done, both retailer and supplier win in one other vital category often ignored… competition. Neither is marketing against each other nor looking to reduce web/foot traffic. These “co-sell” endeavors are the right mix of reducing costs while driving new sources of revenue. 

Future-Proofing Retail

The retail landscape is evolving rapidly, with consumer preferences and expectations constantly changing. Embracing the combination of drop shipping and BOPIS positions retailers and brands at the forefront of this evolution. This strategy enables them to offer the flexibility and convenience that modern shoppers crave while minimizing the operational challenges that can come with traditional inventory management.

With retailers secure knowing suppliers are looking for ways to not only have their products in store but also drive their own consumers to their brick-and-mortar locations, suppliers can future-proof their organizations by strategically partnering with retailers, avoiding the cost of setting up their own stores. 

Some suppliers can even take BOPIS one step further with “Buy Online, Pick Up at Someone Else’s Store”. Instead of working directly with a retailer who carries your product, perhaps consumers buy on your site and have the opportunity to pick up at the nearest Best Buy or Walmart looking to increase foot traffic. 

This wave of future-proofing your organization against traditional inventory and shipping challenges cannot be done alone. Reach out to industry-leading tech partners like Logicbroker to get a better sense of how a BOPIS solution or other like-minded drop shipping extensions can not only open up a new wave of consumer data but also retain your loyal customer base through any economic condition. 

Discover The Power of Drop Shipping with Logicbroker

Logicbroker is eCommerce’s premier drop shipping solution provider for a reason. We effortlessly blend automation and innovation to create a scalable solution that drives revenue for your organization. To discover more about how our retail clients are utilizing Logicbroker for advanced API and AI-driven eCommerce tools, visit our insights page. We have content focused on every aspect of drop ship, marketplace, and supply chain visibility tools, as well as webinars to help retailers and brands focus on assortment best practices. 

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About Logicbroker

Logicbroker is the premier Supply Chain Experience Management (SCXM) eCommerce platform. Our unique B2B and D2C offerings give manufacturers and retailers a single source of truth for their supply chain, yielding real-time visibility and communications, higher compliance rates, lower transaction costs, and exceptional customer experiences. Through drop ship, marketplace, and supply chain visibility solutions, Logicbroker processes $6.3 billion in GMV each year and can help your organization achieve Supply Chain Excellence. 

Our integrated suite connects all participants of an organization’s supply chain regardless of the type of business model: owned inventory, drop ship, or marketplace. We work with mid-market and Enterprise manufacturers and retailers across a number of verticals including Health & Wellness, Home Improvement, Consumer Electronics, Toys & Babies, and Consumer Packaged Goods and service brands such as Samsung, Victoria’s Secret, The Vitamin Shoppe, Walgreens, Ace Hardware, BBQGuys, and RiteAid.