How many channels should you sell on to grow sales?

Shoppers today jump effortlessly between apps, devices, and platforms; 73 percent use multiple channels [1] before making a purchase. Yet more than half of e-commerce brands still manage those channels in isolation, creating disconnected experiences that frustrate customers and hurt conversions.

That’s where your approach matters. The way you connect and coordinate those channels comes down to two main strategies: multichannel and omnichannel. While both involve selling in more than one place, they differ in how and how well those channels work together.

In this article, we’ll unpack what each model means, how they differ, and what leading brands are doing right now. With this information, you’ll have a clear idea of which approach matches your customers’ expectations and your team’s capacity.

What is Multichannel E-commerce?

Multichannel e-commerce is the practice of selling through multiple, independent channels, which include your website, marketplaces like Amazon or eBay, social media platforms, email campaigns, and physical stores. Each channel operates on its own, with separate content, data, and goals. That makes it easier to reach customers wherever they prefer to shop.

But these touchpoints usually don’t connect. A customer might see one message on Instagram, get a different offer on Amazon, and come across something entirely new when visiting your website. The experience shifts depending on where they interact with the brand.

Take a skincare brand, for example. They might feature a limited-time bundle on their homepage, highlight a single product on Instagram, and run a discount on the Amazon marketplace. Each channel does its own thing, without much coordination in between.

What is Omnichannel E-commerce?

Omnichannel e-commerce is about creating a consistent and connected experience across every customer touchpoint. Whether someone browses through a mobile app, chats with support, walks into an offline store, or engages over email or social media, the messaging, product availability, and customer data should stay in sync.

This approach allows customers to move across channels without friction. A shopper might check inventory online, reserve an item, pick it up in-store, and receive a follow-up email with related offers. All of it connects back to a single customer profile. That level of continuity is what sets omnichannel apart from multichannel.

Luxury brands like Gucci and Dior often lead in omnichannel execution[2]. They connect physical and digital touchpoints using AI-driven personalization [3], live chat, and integrated loyalty systems to guide customers from discovery through purchase and beyond.

To make omnichannel work, the backend needs to be just as connected as the customer experience. That means having systems that pull data into one place and keep orders in sync across every channel.

A strong order management setup helps track inventory, process sales from different platforms, and send real-time updates to customers. Whether someone buys online, in-store, or through an app, the goal is the same: a smooth, consistent experience from start to finish.

Key Differences Between Omnichannel and Multichannel E-commerce

Omnichannel and multichannel e-commerce both involve selling across multiple platforms, but the experience they create is very different.

In a multichannel setup, each channel runs on its own. Messaging, customer data, and service often stay siloed. Whereas omnichannel connects these touchpoints. Customers can start on one channel and pick up where they left off on another. Their cart, preferences, and support history follow them.

This makes the experience feel more seamless, personal, and consistent across every interaction.

Let’s have a look at the key differences.

Aspect	Multichannel E-commerce	Omnichannel E-commerce
Channel Structure	Channels operate independently	Channels are integrated to work together and communicate customer data in real-time
Customer Experience	Inconsistent across platforms	Seamless and continuous across all touchpoints
Data Sharing	Customer and sales data stored separately per channel	Centralized customer profile and unified analytics
Marketing Strategy	Channel-specific campaigns, not coordinated	Cross-channel campaigns with personalized messaging based on user behavior
Technology Requirements	Low, can run on basic infrastructure	High, requires integrated systems (OMS, WMS, CRM, POS)
Order Fulfillment	Managed per channel, often with inventory silos	Unified inventory and fulfillment system enables BOPIS, BOSFS, BORIS
Support Experience	Each interaction starts fresh; context is lost	Support teams can access previous interactions across all channels
Personalization Capability	Limited to what’s available on each platform	Deep personalization driven by unified behavioral and transactional data
Scalability	Easy to launch but difficult to maintain at scale	More complex to launch but scales more efficiently through centralization
Best For	Early-stage or resource-limited businesses testing multiple sales channels	Growth-focused brands aiming for retention, lifetime value, and operational efficiency

Benefits and Drawbacks of Multichannel E-commerce

Multichannel e-commerce is often the default choice for growing businesses. It’s also the first step towards omnichannel retail. It enables broad market exposure by allowing you to meet customers on multiple platforms without requiring full system integration.

Benefits

1. Broader Reach

Selling across multiple platforms like Amazon, Instagram, email, and in-store means reaching different customer segments. It’s an effective way to expand visibility without needing a centralized tech stack.

2. Channel-Specific Optimization

Each channel can be customized independently. Your marketing team can test creatives on Facebook while your email campaigns follow a different strategy based on open rates or seasonal promotions.

3. Faster Go-to-Market

Launching a product or campaign in a multichannel environment is often quicker. You don’t need to wait for cross-channel syncing or full backend integration to get started.

4. Low set up investment

There’s less upfront investment in infrastructure or data systems, as these channels may not be integrated or managed centrally.

Drawbacks

1. Disconnected Customer Experiences

Because these channels don’t share customer data, interactions feel isolated. A shopper who viewed a product on your mobile website might not see a related offer via email or in your offline store.

2. Limited Personalization

Without a unified customer profile, targeting relies on channel-specific behavior. You lose the ability to deliver experiences based on a user’s full journey.

3. Operational Redundancy

Marketing and customer support often need to be managed separately for each platform in a multichannel setup, increasing workload and the risk of inconsistency.

While inventory can be centralized using a robust WMS (Warehouse Management System), businesses without one may still struggle with fragmented inventory visibility and overselling issues

4. Siloed Analytics

Data is scattered across platforms. And without consolidated data, it’s harder to see what’s truly driving conversions or where drop-offs occur.

5. Scaling Challenges

As your brand grows, disconnected systems become bottlenecks. Keeping inventory synced, aligning messaging, or coordinating support across platforms becomes increasingly complex.

Benefits and Drawbacks of Omnichannel E-commerce

Omnichannel e-commerce creates a unified shopping experience across every channel, driven by centralized data and integrated systems. While more complex to implement, the payoffs are substantial.

Benefits

1. Seamless Customer Experience

Customers can browse a product online, receive a reminder via SMS, and complete the purchase in-store without restarting the process. This consistency improves satisfaction and reduces friction.

2. Increased Customer Retention and Loyalty

Brands with strong omnichannel strategies retain up to 89% of their customers, compared to 33% [4] for those with weak integration.

3. Higher Sales and AOV

According to Harvard Business Review [5], omnichannel customers spend 10 percent more online and 4 percent more in-store than single-channel customers. Unified experiences drive confidence and repeat purchases.

4. Real-Time Personalization

With connected customer data, brands can trigger personalized offers, product recommendations, and re-engagement campaigns based on real behavior, not just assumptions.

5. Centralized Data and Analytics

Insights from all touchpoints feed into one system, helping brands understand lifetime value, attribution, churn triggers, and more.

6. Operational Efficiency at Scale

Unified systems reduce duplicated effort. Inventory, support, and campaign management become easier to scale when managed from a central platform.

Omnichannel success also depends on the ability to manage inventory across a distributed network of fulfillment centers and retail locations. Optimizing multi-warehouse operations ensures that orders are routed from the most efficient location, reducing shipping time, costs, and stockouts.

Drawbacks

1. Higher Initial Investment

Implementing an omnichannel system requires robust infrastructure like CRM, CDP, API integrations, and automation tools, which may be too expensive upfront.

2. Longer Setup Time

Aligning systems, teams, and data workflows can take time. Launching omnichannel properly is a phased effort, not a plug-and-play solution.

3. Change Management

Shifting to omnichannel means cross-functional collaboration between marketing, sales, IT, and customer service. Misalignment across teams can slow progress.

4. Ongoing Maintenance

Integrated ecosystems require regular updates, testing, and data hygiene to ensure performance and accuracy. This can be time-consuming if not strategically implemented.

When to Choose Omnichannel vs Multichannel

Choosing between omnichannel and multichannel e-commerce depends on your current infrastructure, team capabilities, business model, and customer expectations. One is not inherently better than the other; rather, it’s about choosing the right one as per your current stage of your business and resources.

Choose Multichannel if:

• You’re early in your e-commerce journey and need fast, cost-effective channel launches
• Your team lacks technical resources to integrate systems
• You’re experimenting with different marketplaces or regional markets before scaling
• Your channels operate with different goals or teams and do not require tight integration

Best for: Early-stage brands, lean teams, or businesses testing new sales channels. That said, you can still centrally manage these channels via an order management system.

Choose Omnichannel if:

• You want to offer a consistent and personalized experience across all touchpoints
• You already have multiple channels and want to improve data flow and efficiency
• You manage significant order volumes and need automation to scale
• You want to support BOPIS, BOSFS, BORIS, or in-store returns from online purchases
• Customer loyalty and lifetime value are key performance indicators for your business

Best for: Scaling retailers, experience-driven brands, and businesses with cross-functional teams managing e-commerce, retail, and marketing.

Bear in mind, the cost of poor coordination is high. Customers expect convenience, speed, and personalization across all platforms. Brands that succeed in meeting those expectations, like Nike and Sephora, are building long-term loyalty [6] and competitive advantage through omnichannel commerce.

Case Study: How a 100+ Store Retail Giant in the Philippines Transformed with Omnichannel

One of the fastest-growing retail and distribution companies in Southeast Asia, with over 100 stores across 10 countries, hit a critical inflection point. After years of success in B2B, it was ready to expand into B2C e-commerce and build a true omnichannel operation. But scaling came with serious challenges.

The brand had strong partnerships with more than 150 global names in fashion, lifestyle, wellness, and sportswear. What it didn’t have was the infrastructure to support 15,000 to 20,000 online orders each month or connect its stores to its e-commerce engine.

Warehouse management was fragmented. Fulfillment workflows were stitched together manually. Onboarding new brands took a lot of time and effort. Without a unified system, delivering a seamless experience across channels was proving difficult, and slowed their growth.

The Turning Point

The company partnered with Anchanto to modernize its operations from the inside out. With Anchanto’s Order Management and Warehouse Management Systems, it was able to:

• Map offline stores as fulfillment hubs for BOPIS, BORIS, and BOSFS operations
• Automate inventory across multiple warehouses
• Onboard brands faster with centralized catalog and pricing management
• Integrate with platforms like PrestaShop and iRipple to bridge online and offline systems

This enabled real-time inventory visibility, faster order routing, and seamless cross-channel fulfillment, which are cornerstones of any effective omnichannel model.

Today, the company runs multichannel and omnichannel commerce at scale with better data accuracy, fulfillment agility, and reduced operational overhead. More importantly, it’s now positioned to respond quickly to market shifts and rising consumer expectations for convenience.

Read the complete case study here.

Conclusion

Choosing between omnichannel and multichannel e-commerce depends on your growth stage, resources, and customer expectations. Multichannel allows fast expansion across platforms but on its own, it lacks coordination between channels. Omnichannel takes more effort to implement, yet offers a consistent customer experience, centralized data, and greater retention over time.

If you’re focused on streamlining operations, reducing fulfillment errors, and building lasting customer relationships, omnichannel is the better long-term bet. But if you’re in the early stages, multichannel can be a smart way to test the waters.

In the end, the right choice depends on where your business stands now and where you want it to be tomorrow.

Looking to implement a unified order workflow across your e-commerce and offline retail operations?

Explore Anchanto’s Order Management System to centralize orders, automate fulfillment, and deliver consistent omnichannel experiences from a single dashboard. Built for scale, designed for speed.

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FAQ

1. What is the difference between omnichannel and multichannel e-commerce?

Omnichannel e-commerce integrates all customer-facing platforms, which include web, mobile, physical store, and social media into one cohesive experience. Multichannel e-commerce uses multiple channels independently. In omnichannel, data and messaging flow across touchpoints, while in multichannel, each channel operates in isolation.

2. Why is omnichannel important for e-commerce brands?

Omnichannel matters because customers expect seamless experiences. Brands that unify online and offline channels often see higher loyalty, more repeat purchases, and better lifetime customer value compared to those with disconnected strategies.

3. What are the key components of an effective omnichannel fulfillment strategy?

An effective strategy includes unified inventory across all locations, real-time stock visibility, flexible fulfillment options like BOPIS or ship-from-store, and smart order routing to reduce delivery times and stockouts.

4. How does multichannel marketing differ from cross-channel marketing?

Multichannel marketing runs campaigns separately across each platform without linking user activity. Cross-channel marketing tracks customer behavior across platforms and delivers personalized, coordinated messaging that responds to previous interactions.

5. Can omnichannel e-commerce work for small or medium-sized brands?

Yes. Omnichannel is scalable. Smaller brands can start with essentials like in-store pickup or centralized inventory visibility, then expand into full integration using order and warehouse management tools as they grow.

References:

[1] Hbr.org – A Study of 46,000 Shoppers Shows That Omnichannel Retailing Works

[2] Voguebusiness.com – Gucci, Dior and Burberry battle for omnichannel top spot

[3] Forbes.com – Weaving Elegance With Intelligence: How Luxury Brands Are Embracing AI

[4] Firework.com – 52+ Omnichannel Stats You Can’t Afford to Ignore in 2024 (Or Risk Losing Customers!)

[5] Hbr.org – A Study of 46,000 Shoppers Shows That Omnichannel Retailing Works

[6] Mckinsey.com – The winning formula: What it takes to build leading omnichannel operations