But what it is and how it works ;As we approach the opening of retail stores we have all heard the term “Click Away or Click & Collect shopping” which will be implemented as a transitional stage to better serve customers to avoid overcrowding. But what is it and how does it work ?
Initially, the consumer orders online the products he wants from the e-shop of the company and either pre-pays the order or asks to pay upon receipt. The shop then confirms the order and informs the customer of the day and time at which the order can be picked up from the specially designed outdoor area of the shop.
In this way, courier shipments are thus relieved while avoiding overcrowding, as the consumer’s market research will be done in the online store.
It is therefore clear that for this service to work smoothly, the physical store of a business needs to work in harmony with its e-shop so that the consumer can have the smoothest possible shopping experience.
The Astrolabs team has put together a short 7-step guide to ensure you are ready to offer Click Away or Click & Collect purchases to your customers:

1) Clearly define the fulfilment terms under which you will offer Click Away or Click & Collect purchases
The first thing to consider is where the orders will be fulfilled from. They could come from a central warehouse where you keep stock of your products, but this means that the products will be shipped to your local branch first and then notified for pickup on a scheduled date. Alternatively, if you make direct use of each of your individual branch’s stock, orders could be fulfilled much more quickly and in most cases within a few hours.
For a business that does not have many branches, however, one solution is to allow customers to pick up their order from other locations. Such a service, known as ‘Courier spot’, is provided by a well-known mini market chain, thus giving an additional pick-up option at no extra cost to the business.
You will then have to decide on the payment methods you will provide to the customers of the service. The two obvious options are pre-payment through the e-shop and payment of the order at the time of collection from the shop.
Online payment ensures that the store is paid for the products and that customers actually show up to pick up their order. Payment at the store pickup provides an even faster online checkout process, as the customer does not have to enter payment information before checking out. It is worth noting that by using this method, there is also a greater chance that the customer will add products when they pick up their order at the store, as they will not have to make any additional transactions.
Returns are equally important and how you manage them. In the age of omni-channel marketing, your customers don’t separate your e-shop from your physical stores, to them you are a company, so you need to facilitate Click Away or Click & Collect order returns at any of your branches or via mail/courier. We understand that this can be quite complicated to manage, but customers need and want this kind of assurance to make worry-free purchases.

2) View live in your e-shop the number of pieces available for each product
The ideal way to properly guide the customer in their Click Away or Click & Collect purchases is to clearly and visibly display the stock of each product in real time. This way the customer knows whether the product he wants is available at the nearest branch , whether he can pick it up from another branch in his city or whether he has to order it from your central warehouse. So here you need to ensure that the proper integration of your e-shop platform and the ERP software you are using as it is crucial for providing this Click Away or Click & Collect service.

3) Show separately on all products the respective shipping / pickup options
If your business does not offer all of its products for Click Away or Click & Collect purchases, you should clearly state next to each product all available delivery/collection options for it. Under no circumstances should you let the customer go through all the stages of ordering from your e-shop only to reach the step of completing their purchase and there find out that the product they have chosen does not qualify for Click Away or Click & Collect.

4) Make sure all your store details are correct
Make sure that your website and your business’s social media properly displays all the details of all the branches where customers can collect their Click Away or Click & Collect purchases. This would definitely be helped by installing a store locator on your website where customers can find information such as address, contact details and opening hours, as well as linking it to the business’s Google Business sites to take advantage of this audience in terms of advertising as well.
5) Make sure your website works on mobile devices
With most websites now implementing responsive design and coupled with the public’s demand for a consistent user experience regardless of device, it’s vital to ensure that the new features of Click Away or Click & Collect shopping – such as real-time stock viewing – work seamlessly on mobile devices.

6) Advertise the service and explain how it works
By completing all of the above steps you have ensured that your business now has a properly structured Click Away or Click & Collect shopping service. But now it’s time to educate your audience and let them know that you provide this service and the ways they can use it. It is not enough just to mention your website with a banner but depending on the sector you operate in you will need to do additional advertising activities both on Google and Social media.
TIP : See HERE what’s behind an effective social media ad. If you are still not sure if your business needs Google ads or social media advertising find HERE a comparison of the two.

7) Maintain regular contact with the customer after the order is placed
The truth is that the customer after completing the order, especially when he has paid in advance, feels vulnerable and dependent on the store. You make sure that you communicate with him regularly and keep him informed about the progress of his order. This can be done through automated emails or sms that can be integrated within the automated processes of your e-shop.
But regardless of whether you are a local store, a chain or a B2B company it will in no way be in the best interest of the business for the customer to have a great online experience that will not continue in the physical store when they come to pick up their order.
Therefore, you should ensure with your digital actions that customers know where your store / pickup point is located, the opening hours and when they can pick up their order. It is also important that they know exactly what to do once they arrive at your store. If you have a larger store, it may be best to use a designated area for Click Away or Click & Collect purchases, and even for smaller stores even if the location is obvious you will communicate it with specific signage.
Finally, it is advisable to schedule Click Away or Click & Collect deliveries in such a way and at regular intervals to ensure that your customers do not have a long wait and you do not create confusion.