Talk:Omni-channel Retailing

Requested move

 * The following discussion is an archived discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. No further edits should be made to this section. 

The result of the move request was: speedy close. According to the instructions at Requested moves a requested move is not the appropriate way to move a page from user space. Instead {{subst:AFC submission/submit}} should be added to the top of the article - this will also get quicker results than a requested move. I suggest however you read WP:PROMOTE as, to me, it currently seems overly-promotional in tone. Dpmuk (talk) 22:57, 6 March 2011 (UTC)

--20thApril2014-- this article is clearly written by someone with intimate knowledge of the subject, it being laden with buzzwords & trade-speak. Since no particular company's strategy is mentioned it cannot be an advertisement for anything more than a methodology. I found the article informative.

timothius — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2.26.53.210 (talk) 14:16, 20 April 2014 (UTC)

User:Cody sharp/Omni-channel retailing → Omni-Channel Retailing — I'm trying to get my page to go live. 17:27, 5 March 2011 (UTC)


 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

Seems obvious, or trivial, is it relevant? Delete article?
I recognize that we have here a new definition for the English language. But WP is not a dictionary. And the content of the definition is just the normal, obvious way of doing business. Who in their right mind would offer a promotion in a store that is not offered online, or vice versa? To put a name to the right way to do business is trivial, and so this marketing-jargon article doesn't belong in WP. The references are to blogs, self-serving commercial sources, and dead links, so relevance has not been shown. Anyone familiar with this concept, please explain why it is relevant. If it cannot be shown to be relevant, someone (maybe me if I have time) should nominate this article for deletion. David Spector (talk) 20:17, 27 January 2015 (UTC)


 * David, unfortunately this is not at all trivial. Perhaps it is widespread within the US (I wouldn't know), but certainly not throughout the world. While it is true that the article in its present form isn't as helpful as it could be, the topic is definitely worth some explaining. Also, since this is an encyclopedia, just because something is trivial in your opinion doesn't mean there should not be an article about it. Finally, omni-channel retailing is actually a much-discussed topic among professionals, it comes up on every other professional forum (e.g. conferences, news outlets, etc., which is what brought me here as well), so I believe the notability of the subject is beyond doubt. I recommend a simple web search and you will see. Best, EstendorLin (talk) 16:54, 24 February 2015 (UTC)

I've read your comments and respect your opinion. I still hope that someday the article is deleted, reflecting my opinion of the triviality and jargon of its content. WP requires Reliable Sources to show notability for the subject of each article. This article has no such references. David Spector (talk) 00:12, 25 February 2015 (UTC)


 * I agree with you. This is essentially an essay. Why don't we simply redirect to Multichannel retailing until reliable sources are provided to clearly differentiate the two. According to this very article, "These concepts are very similar and at the moment the difference needs to be clarified." Pburka (talk) 03:34, 25 February 2015 (UTC)


 * I beg to differ with your assessment that omni channel retailing is merely "triviality and jargon of its content". Its a step beyond multi channel retailing as multi channel focuses on selling through different sales channels (e.g. stores, contacts centers, online, etc.), but generally the sales channels are independent of one another.  Omni channel retailing is an effort to start integrating the sales channels so a company enables a customer to buy an item online, but pick it up in a store later that day rather than having to wait for it to arrive as well as pay for shipping.  Or return an item bought in store or from a contact center by printing out a RMA online and scheduling a pick up.  How customers buy from companies today is getting much more complex due to eCommerce and mCommerce and to remove any reference to this seems to ignore that this is really happening.  And as for reputable sources, there are numerous.  If you Google omni channel retailing, on the first 2 pages of results you will see articles from Forbes, AT Kearney, Accenture, Information Age, CIO and Retail Info Systems among others.  Retail is a $4.7 trillion, TRILLION, industry in the US alone so not to have a Wikipedia entry for where this industry is heading over the next 10 - 15 years appears to be a correctable oversight in my opinion.  As a result, I would like to request that the entry for omni channel retailing be reinstated.  Thanks for your consideration. M2sbdav (talk) 00:27, 7 April 2015 (UTC)


 * Dear Bill, I understand that you work in multi channel retailing and are interested in the article Multichannel retailing. Your posting seems to reflect a too-fast reading of my comments. You wrote, "I beg to differ with your assessment that omni channel retailing is merely 'triviality and jargon of its content'." I did not say that and I do not believe that. My comments have nothing to do with omni channel retailing, but are specifically about the article on that topic. I am an editor here, and editors do not censor Wikipedia on content, but only on the WP policies for what comprises a good article. This particular article had certain problems which I criticized. Again, I criticized the article and recommended improvements; I did not criticize the topic of the article. WP is here to present information, and to present that information in reliable, readable, and accurate ways.


 * Concerning writing a separate article on Omni channel retailing (replacing the current redirection page), you are welcome to do so. Just be sure that you clearly explain the difference between omni channel retailing and multichannel retailing, and that you include several specific references to Reliable Sources defining omni channel retailing, to show that it is, indeed, a standard field within marketing. Please avoid jargon and vagueness, and be very specific and accurate, to ensure that the new article won't also be deleted. David Spector (talk) 01:51, 8 April 2015 (UTC)

David - thanks for the feedback. While I quoted directly from your response on 2/25, I appreciate the clarification and given that would say I did misinterpret your statement. I will work on a rewrite, but there was some useful content as well as references in the previous article so is there anyway to get access to the last version that was posted? And if you are the editor for this, I would be happy to run this by you to get your feedback before publishing anything. And to be clear, omni channel retailing extends beyond marketing, its the logical evolution from multi channel retailing which evolved from big box retail which evolved from department stores which evolved from general merchants, etc. Thanks. M2sbdav (talk) 03:51, 8 April 2015 (UTC)


 * To view the history of an article, click on the tab marked "View history". From there you can see every version of the article which has ever been published. Pburka (talk) 23:24, 8 April 2015 (UTC)


 * Bear with me as I am new to participating in Wikipedia discussions, but the issue seems to me that the Omni channel retailing entry was removed. Don't I need to be on that entry and select View History to see the different versions?  There isn't one available that I can tell from Talk:Omni-channel Retailing as I clicked on View History from there and am just seeing the discussions on this page.  And Multichannel retailing isn't the same, but should update that as while its similar to omni channel, its the current state of retail as opposed to where things are heading.  Thanks.  M2sbdav (talk) 23:57, 8 April 2015 (UTC)
 * It wasn't removed. It was converted into a redirect. The page is still right here. Also note that article actually said that "These concepts are very similar and at the moment the difference needs to be clarified," so it's not at all obvious that they're different topics. Pburka (talk) 00:15, 9 April 2015 (UTC)


 * Bill, I think you've gotten the help you need from these other editors. Best of luck with your rewrite. If you want to write it on your own Talk page (or mine) before copying it to the destination page, I will be happy to review it for adherence to WP policies. Let me know when you are ready by posting on my talk page. David Spector (talk) 02:01, 9 April 2015 (UTC)

Here's an updated version of an omni channel selling entry. I posted it for David Spector to review as he was the one to remove it in the first place, but he's busy right now and suggested finding another editor to assist with this, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:David_spector#Omni-channel_retailing.

"Omni channel selling, whether B2B, B2C and/or B2B2C, has emerged in the last few years and is the logical evolution of multichannel selling which emerged ~20+ years ago when eCommerce surfaced in the mid 1990s and mCommerce, Mobile Commerce , a few years later. Multichannel selling is about selling through a variety of sales channels such as point of sale (PoS) in brick & mortar stores, telephone in a contact center, eCommerce, mCommerce, etc.

That being said, these sales channels are generally independent of one another so are not well integrated and as a result rarely provide a consistent customer experience. This is a key point and the primary differentiator between multi and omni channel selling. To keep the peace inside of companies, the eCommerce and mCommerce initiatives were usually kept separate from the traditional brick and mortar and possibly catalog/contact center business environment. This resulted in little, if any, formal integration between the different channels and the customer is usually the one impacted.

Omni channel selling will focus on the customer journey, how they arrive at a buying decision as well as making their purchase. Integrating the sales channels is starting to get more focus from companies as customers now often use more than one channel when making a purchase. For instance, online is heavily utilized to research the buying decision regardless of whether the purchase is made online, in store or through a contact center. Concepts like a 360 degree view of customer activities across sales channels have existed for a while, but its only recently that this is getting emphasized because companies are now realizing they are providing an inconsistent customer experience across sales channels.

And with Amazon and other eTailers delivering a vastly improved customer experience, companies have but no choice to play catch up. The impact of the pure play eTailers can’t be underestimated on the emergence of omni channel selling because as sales keep migrating online, topping $300+ billion in 2014 in the US, existing companies have to stem the tide and knowing they aren’t going to become eTailers, effectively leveraging all of their sales channels to compete is their path forward.

Consider these scenarios which couldn’t have taken place until just a few years ago: • A customer browses and buys via a website on their lunch break, but rather than have to wait for their purchase to be shipped they pick it up in store as they drive by on their way home from work • A customer browsing on a website adds an article of clothing to their cart, but rather than buy they stop by the store to try the item on to make sure it fits first and as they enter the store their mobile device alerts a representative that they have just entered • A gift is ordered for someone via a contact center and delivered to the recipient where they decided it wasn’t a perfect fit so they went online, printed a return receipt and scheduled a pickup from a parcel company

These are but a few examples intended to highlight how quickly the customer experience and their expectations are changing. While the transition from multi to omni channel selling is just picking up steam, it’s the logical evolution for companies that expect to meet and exceed customer expectations. And given the eCommerce and mCommerce waves have arrived within the last 20 years, companies should expect shorter cycles for new technologies to emerge that can disrupt their business and how they engage with their customers so adapting to these new business models is worth considering."

There are 6 footnotes in the article, not displaying here, and below are some additional references:

•	Customer Desires vs. Retailer Capabilities: Minding the Omni-Channel Commerce Gap (Accenture): http://www.accenture.com/us-en/Pages/insight-customer-capabilities-omni-channel-commerce-gap.aspx •	On Solid Ground: Brick-and-Mortar is the Foundation of Omnichannel Retailing (AT Kearney): http://www.atkearney.com/consumer-products-retail/on-solid-ground •	An Omni-Channel Pioneer Explains His Methods (Forbes): http://www.forbes.com/sites/peterhigh/2014/10/27/an-omni-channel-pioneer-explains-his-methods/ •	Why omnichannel retail is more than just a buzzword (Information Age): http://www.information-age.com/industry/uk-industry/123459054/why-omnichannel-retail-more-just-buzzword •	5 Excellent Examples of Omnichannel Retailing Done Right (Multichannel Merchant): http://multichannelmerchant.com/must-reads/5-excellent-examples-omnichannel-retailing-done-right-14052014/

Thanks for any assistance in reviewing this so we can get this entry back up. And please let me know about any comments or suggestions for improving this. M2sbdav (talk) 00:06, 17 May 2015 (UTC)

Any chance of getting some feedback from an editor on this? Thanks in advance. M2sbdav (talk) 16:19, 25 May 2015 (UTC)
 * Instead of pasting the unformatted article here, it's better to create it in a sandbox, e.g. User:M2sbdav/Omni-channel Retailing. The sources you provided aren't great. Avoid using non-independent sources such as AT Kearney. They're promoting their own product, so aren't very reliable. The Forbes link isn't great either - it's an opinion piece written by someone promoting his own company's products. I'd really like to see some truly independent sources; these mostly seem to be promotional. You should also try to put a footnote on nearly every sentence, especially if it's stating something which might be controversial (e.g. "To keep the peace inside of companies...") Pburka (talk) 16:43, 25 May 2015 (UTC)

Thanks, have never created an entry from scratch, so just did that. What do you deem as an independent source because every article can be considered to have a perspective/angle? AT Kearney is a large consulting group like Accenture that has a retail practice and tracks current trends. And the Forbes article is by one of its contributors highlighting a retailer that's been recognized for being further along the omni channel retailing curve than 98%+ of others.

Googling omni channel retailing there were ~392K results so there's no shortage of articles. Here's one from the Harvard Business Review, https://hbr.org/2011/12/the-future-of-shopping, so please define independent. This is so new there's little academic research that's been done, but there's a book by David Bell of Wharton, Location is (Still) Everything - http://davidrbell.com/book/, that starts to touch on this. And there's a PhD student in New Zealand who is trying to carve out her thesis here because there is next to nothing that's been done. Just because its early doesn't diminish that its real and growing.

Thanks. M2sbdav (talk) 03:40, 29 May 2015 (UTC)
 * I've looked at your sandbox, and it's still lacking references. References should be in-line, and you should have a reference to a reliable source for nearly every sentence. Note that you can't use Wikipedia as a source. It looks like the majority of links you provided are NOT reliable, independent sources. Unless you can find reliable, independent sources discussing the topic, it does not belong on Wikipedia. Independent means that the author and publisher don't have interests in the topic (i.e. not someone involved in selling or promoting omni-channel marketing). Pburka (talk) 15:04, 6 June 2015 (UTC)