3 principles for a successful omnichannel commerce strategy

Omnichannel isn’t new. But it’s still evolving

If your reaction to reading yet another article on omnichannel commerce is an eye-roll or a shrug, don’t worry: You’re not alone. 

Omnichannel, like innovation and customer experience, has been part of the commerce vocabulary for years. Yet despite its longevity, there’s still plenty of confusion about what omnichannel actually means and what it takes to make it work.

One common misconception is that omnichannel simply means adding more channels. Launch a mobile app, sell through social media, introduce an AI shopping assistant and, suddenly, you have an omnichannel strategy. Not quite.

So, what is omnichannel commerce, and how can businesses turn the concept into a practical strategy? Let’s start with the fundamentals.

What is omnichannel commerce?

Omnichannel commerce is an approach to commerce in which customers can interact with a brand across multiple channels and move between them as part of a single connected journey. Those channels might include eCommerce sites, mobile apps, physical stores, marketplaces, social platforms and emerging AI channels like ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot. 

Two things define a true omnichannel experience:

1. Customers can use the channels they prefer.
2. They can switch between channels without disruption.

The second point is where omnichannel differs from simply having a presence on multiple channels.

In other words, omnichannel commerce is about connecting those touchpoints so customers can move between them without losing context. A shopper might discover a product on their phone, compare it on a website, check store availability, purchase in-store and later manage the order through an app. The channels may change, but the experience should feel like one continuous relationship with the brand.

Omnichannel vs. multichannel: What’s the difference?

Multichannel commerce means a business sells or engages customers across several channels. Those channels may each have their own systems, data and processes.

Omnichannel commerce connects those channels around the customer.

Think of it this way: Multichannel adds channels. Omnichannel connects experiences.

For example, a multichannel retailer might offer a website and physical stores, but maintain separate customer profiles, promotions and inventory information for each.

An omnichannel retailer might allow a customer to:

• Add an item to their cart online.
• See whether it is available at a nearby store.
• Receive a personalized promotion based on their loyalty status.
• Purchase online or reserve it for pickup.
• Return the item in-store.
• Receive relevant follow-up recommendations through the app.

The customer doesn’t need to know which system powers each interaction. The experience simply carries forward. That’s the goal of omnichannel commerce.

Why does omnichannel commerce matter?

The business case for omnichannel is ultimately about reducing friction between customer intent and customer action. When customers can interact with a brand on their terms, businesses can create more opportunities to convert, serve and retain them. But those opportunities depend on something more fundamental than the number of channels: Context.

A customer who has already provided their preferences shouldn’t have to repeat them at every touchpoint, just like a store associate shouldn't have to guess whether an item ordered online is available elsewhere. And an AI shopping assistant shouldn’t recommend a product without access to accurate product, pricing and availability information.

This is why omnichannel is as much an operational challenge as a customer-experience strategy. The experience customers see is only as seamless as the data and commerce capabilities working behind it.

The 3 principles of a successful omnichannel commerce strategy

There are six principles covered in our Omnichannel Playbook. Here, we’ll focus on three foundational principles: Creating a unified customer view, orchestrating channels and centralizing commerce data.

Together, they provide the foundation for connecting customer experiences across touchpoints.

1. Create a unified customer view

Customers don’t care about channels and how they interact with one another. What they expect is to experience one brand. If each system sees a different version of the customer, creating a consistent experience becomes difficult.

A unified customer view brings relevant information together so teams and systems can understand the customer in context. Depending on the business, that information can include browsing data, transaction history, location, channel preferences and loyalty activity, to name a few. The objective is to make useful customer context available where and when it can improve the experience.

Imagine a customer who regularly browses products on their mobile device during the week but tends to complete purchases in-store on weekends.

With a connected customer profile, the retailer can recognize that pattern and make the next interaction more relevant by surfacing store availability, personalized recommendations or a location-aware offer.

2. Orchestrate every commerce channel

A seamless omnichannel experience requires more than synchronized customer data. The commerce capabilities behind every touchpoint also need to work together. That’s where channel orchestration becomes critical.

Imagine a customer adding a product to their cart through a website, mobile app or AI shopping assistant. At that moment, multiple commerce capabilities may need to respond:

• The promotion engine determines whether an offer applies.
• The inventory system checks availability.
• The pricing engine calculates the applicable price, taxes and regional rules.
• The customer system checks relevant preferences or eligibility.
• The cart and checkout capabilities update the transaction.

The customer sees a simple action: Add to cart.

Behind the scenes, multiple systems may be involved. Without a coordinated architecture, each channel can end up building its own connections to these capabilities. As more channels are added, the integration landscape becomes increasingly complex.

An orchestration layer provides a common way for channels to access commerce capabilities. Think of it as a universal plug socket: Rather than every channel requiring its own custom wiring, channels connect to shared commerce capabilities through APIs. 

The benefit is particularly important as new channels emerge, so adding a new customer touchpoint doesn’t mean rebuilding the entire commerce logic behind it.

3. Centralize commerce data

Channel orchestration connects commerce capabilities. Centralized data gives those capabilities a consistent foundation to work from. For omnichannel commerce to work, businesses need reliable access to information about customers, products, pricing, orders, inventory, promotions, loyalty and fulfillment. 

When these datasets are fragmented across disconnected systems, every channel can end up operating with a different version of reality.

A website might show a product as available while a store system says otherwise. A customer might receive an offer online that an associate can’t see in-store. An AI assistant might recommend an item without knowing that the inventory is nearly depleted.

The role of unified commerce

Ultimately, unified commerce transforms omnichannel from a collection of disconnected touchpoints into a coordinated, data-driven experience. By connecting the systems and information behind every interaction, businesses can deliver seamless customer experiences while improving efficiency, agility and long-term growth.

How to build an omnichannel commerce strategy

Technology matters, but successful omnichannel strategies start with customer and business needs. A practical approach:

• Start with customer and business priorities: Identify customer pain points and business opportunities, such as poor inventory visibility, inconsistent pricing or fragmented loyalty experiences.
• Map the customer journey: Understand how customers move across discovery, purchase, fulfillment and service, and identify where they switch channels or lose context.
• Identify the data and capabilities required: Determine what each journey needs, from customer and product data to inventory, pricing, payments and order management.
• Build a connected commerce foundation: Connect these capabilities through APIs and establish reliable sources of truth for critical commerce data.
• Prioritize high-value journeys: Focus first on journeys where reducing friction can create meaningful customer and business value, then expand what works.
• Test, measure and improve: Continuously refine the strategy as customer expectations, channels and technologies evolve.

How AI and agentic commerce are reshaping omnichannel

The next evolution of omnichannel is about changing how customers discover, evaluate and purchase products.

AI shopping assistants can help customers discover products, compare options and complete purchases, while agentic commerce takes this further by enabling AI agents to act on customers’ behalf across the journey. This raises the bar for omnichannel foundations. AI agents need accurate product, pricing and inventory data, as well as real-time access to commerce capabilities like promotions and checkout.

In other words, AI makes the quality of your commerce foundation visible.

On the operational side, autonomous commerce enables AI systems to analyze signals, make decisions and take action across areas such as pricing, inventory and fulfillment. The result is a new model for omnichannel:

Unified data → real-time orchestration → AI-driven decisions → action across channels.

The commerce architecture businesses build today can become the foundation for AI-driven commerce tomorrow.

Conclusion: Build the foundation for what’s next

A successful omnichannel commerce strategy isn’t about being everywhere. It’s about making every interaction feel like part of the same customer journey. Brands such as Pet Valu and Jaycar demonstrate how a unified commerce foundation can support connected commerce experiences in practice. 

The next generation of omnichannel commerce will be defined not by how many channels a business supports, but by how intelligently those channels work together. With the right data, orchestration and architecture in place, businesses can move from simply connecting touchpoints to creating commerce experiences that are more seamless, responsive and ready for an AI-driven future.

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Frequently asked questions

What are the core principles of a successful omnichannel strategy?

Three foundational principles are a unified customer view, channel orchestration and centralized commerce data. Together, they help businesses connect customer context, commerce capabilities and information across touchpoints. The full Omnichannel Playbook covers six principles in total.

How do you build an omnichannel commerce strategy?

Start with customer and business priorities, map the customer journey, identify the data and capabilities required at each touchpoint, connect those capabilities through APIs, establish a reliable commerce foundation, prioritize high-value journeys and continuously test and improve the experience.

What are the most common omnichannel mistakes?

Common mistakes include adding new channels before fixing the underlying data foundation, treating omnichannel as a marketing-only initiative, duplicating commerce logic across channels and relying on rigid technology that can't adapt as customer expectations change.

What role does customer data play in omnichannel commerce?

Customer data provides the context needed to create consistent experiences across channels. A unified customer view helps businesses understand preferences, behavior, purchase history and interactions so each touchpoint can build on previous interactions rather than treating the customer as a stranger.

How does AI change omnichannel commerce?

AI can make omnichannel experiences more proactive and contextual. AI agents can support product discovery, recommendations and purchasing, while autonomous systems can increasingly help businesses make and execute operational decisions across areas such as pricing, inventory and fulfillment.

What are examples of omnichannel commerce done well?

Ulta Beauty connects digital and physical experiences through personalized recommendations and virtual try-on technology, while Pet Valu and Jaycar integrate in-store and digital commerce to deliver seamless cross-channel experiences.