Retailers’ Biggest Omnichannel Mistakes And How To Avoid Them

In the current shopping-landscape, consumers effortlessly switch between social media, webshops, physical stores, and marketplaces expecting a consistent experience across all channels. Yet only 1 in 10 retailers truly manage to align their digital and physical channels. The others struggle with disconnected systems and fragmented data, resulting in a inconsistent customer journey. What are the biggest mistakes in omnichannel retail, and how can you avoid them?

This article was developed in collaboration with Contentserv, now Centric PXM™  *.*

Quick Access

• Omnichannel Retail: The New Normal
• Why Omnichannel Retailers Are Falling Behind On Their Competition
• How To Make Your Omnichannel Strategy Successful
• Climbing To The Top With An Integrated Approach
• 5 Steps To Successful Omnichannel Retail

Omnichannel Retail: The New Normal  

Today’s customers are in control of how and where they interact with brands. They may get inspired via Instagram, compare options on a website, and complete their purchase through a marketplace. When doing so, they expect one thing: consistent, relevant, and accurate information across every touchpoint, in every context.

And yet, many retailers lag behind. The digital market evolves rapidly, but their strategies often fail to keep up with real customer needs. Retailers that invest in an integrated approach - one that aligns product data, customer information, and local relevance - are building a future-proof foundation.

Why Retailers Are Falling Behind On Their Omnichannel Competition  

1. Fragmented Product Information and Content  

Managing product data across multiple disconnected systems leads to conflicting information across webshops, marketplaces, and partner channels. Descriptions and visuals often differ from one platform to another. Without a single source of truth, product updates are slow and reactive, making it hard to respond to trends or seasonal changes on time.

A consistent customer experience is nearly impossible without centralized product data.

2. Inefficient And Error-prone Content Distribution  

Many retailers still rely on manual updates, using spreadsheets or one-off fixes. The result? Delayed product launches, errors in pricing or specifications, and inconsistent images. Scaling to new markets or platforms becomes time-consuming and error-prone.

Without automated distribution, brands miss out on valuable opportunities and deliver inconsistent experiences.

3. Insufficient Allignment With Local Needs  

An approach that works in one region, may not be so successful in another. Many retailers struggle to localize product information and tailor campaigns to local needs. Failing to do so results in irrelevant or disconnected customer experiences and missed sales.

At the same time, it’s crucial to strike a balance between global consistency and local flexibility, product content should remain uniform, but still align with local expectations and legal requirements.

Without smart contextualization and localization, your content risks being irrelevant or even non-compliant.

How To Make Your Omnichannel Strategy Successful  

A successful omnichannel strategy focuses on three key pillars:

• Real-time data and automation to ensure speed and consistency
• Contextual and localized content to drive customer engagement
• Efficient content distribution across all sales and marketing channels

Retailers that get these foundations right deliver superior customer experiences and build long-term loyalty.

Climbing To The Top With An Integrated Approach  

Retailers who start implementing omnichannel strategies early gain a major competitive edge. Their secret? A unified, tech-driven strategy that supports consistency, scalability, and local relevance across all digital touchpoints.

• Centralize product information

  Leading retailers manage product data from a single source, making it consistently available across webshops, marketplaces, and mobile apps. This reduces errors, accelerates product launches, and ensures a consistent experience regardless of the market.

• Ensure visual consistency

  Consistent imagery builds trust. By storing and updating assets - like images and videos - centrally, brands maintain visual alignment across all channels, reducing abandoned carts and boosting customer confidence.

• Adapt content to context and location

  Omnichannel retail isn’t just about showing the right product. It’s about delivering the right message, at the right time, in the right format. Content should adapt automatically to local language, regulations, seasons, and cultural nuances.

• Automate product content distribution

  Scalable omnichannel strategies require the ability to publish product data efficiently to various sales and marketing platforms. Automation reduces errors, speeds up time-to-market, and ensures compliance with each platform’s requirements.

• Synchronize data and track performance in real-time

  To stay competitive, product data, pricing, and availability need to be accurate across all channels. Real-time synchronization and performance analytics allow brands to quickly optimize their strategy based on actionable insights.

• Connect product development with digital commerce

  A successful omnichannel journey starts early during product development. By streamlining collaboration between product, marketing, and sales teams, brands can accelerate product launches and adapt faster to changing customer demands. This leads to smarter decisions about assortments, pricing, and positioning.

5 Steps To Successful Omnichannel Retail  

Step 1: Establish a central product data hub

Avoid inconsistencies by centralizing all product data and distributing it from one reliable source.

Step 2: Connect physical stores with digital channels

Ensure product content and customer experiences are integrated in-store as well. For example, via POS systems, staff apps, or kiosks.

Step 3: Centralize visual asset management

Manage all marketing materials and visuals in one place to ensure brand consistency and faster updates.

Step 4: Automate publishing to all channels

Whether you’re selling on Amazon, Shopify, or local platforms, make sure content is automatically formatted and published everywhere.

Step 5: Localize content per market

Use contextual tools and automation to tailor content to specific languages, cultures, seasons, and regulations.

A better customer experience, starts with clear data and meaningful connections. Contact us today, and find out how Squadra can take your omnichannel retail to the next level!