Why "Omnichannel" Isn't Enough

In 2016, omnichannel became the “must have” way to sell. It doesn’t matter if it’s a large national retailer or a small local retailer—customers now expect every retailer to be everywhere. They want to shop in person at their brick‐and‐mortar store, they want to browse online at their website, they want an app to make everything streamlined. In 2016, the full set of channels became mere table stakes. And if a reseller isn’t prepared to offer all of these solutions, merchants will look elsewhere.
But what, really, is “omnichannel”? It’s become a buzzword, and what buzzwords gain in recognition, they lose in precision. Plenty of “omnichannel” solutions are simply allowing merchants to accept payments in different places—but little more than that. Due to concerns about security, many of these companies are purposefully keeping different channels in silos to minimize risk. It makes security easier for them, sure. But in doing so, they’re causing retailers to lose out on the true value that a fully enabled omnichannel solution could offer.

That’s why we at Cayan have moved past the term “omnichannel.” Omnichannel can now mean anything, and so it means nothing. Instead, we believe in a clearer approach that goes beyond “omnichannel.” We believe in unified commerce.