A Practical Guide to Curbside & Buy-Online-Pickup Commerce
Curbside pickup and BOPIS became permanent fixtures of retail, blending online convenience with physical stores. Here's how this omnichannel model works, why customers love it, and how to market it well.
Curbside pickup exploded out of necessity, but it stuck around because it solved a real problem: it blends the convenience of buying online with the immediacy and zero shipping cost of a physical store. Along with its sibling BOPIS (buy online, pick up in store), curbside is now a permanent fixture of retail — an omnichannel model that turns physical stores into a competitive advantage against pure e-commerce rather than a liability. For any business with physical locations, understanding and marketing this model well is now table stakes.
This guide covers how curbside and pickup commerce works, why customers value it, and how to market it effectively.
Why pickup commerce endured
Curbside and BOPIS weren’t a temporary workaround — they addressed genuine customer desires that persist:
- Immediacy. Get it today, without waiting for shipping. For “I need it now” purchases, pickup beats even fast delivery.
- No shipping cost or hassle. Free and instant compared to paying and waiting for delivery.
- Convenience and control. Order from the couch, pick up on your schedule, without the full in-store trip — or without even leaving the car, for curbside.
- Confidence. Reserve online, confirm availability, and know it’s ready — no wasted trips for out-of-stock items.
The deeper significance: pickup commerce turns a retailer’s physical stores into local fulfillment and distribution centers, letting them offer speed and convenience that pure-play e-commerce can’t easily match. The store becomes an asset, not a cost.
The omnichannel foundation it requires
Pickup commerce only works on solid omnichannel infrastructure, and this is where many retailers stumble:
- Accurate real-time inventory. Customers must see what’s genuinely available at a specific store. Nothing frustrates like ordering for pickup only to find it’s not actually in stock. Inventory accuracy is the foundation.
- Integrated systems. Online and in-store systems must connect so an online order flows to the right store and staff. Siloed systems break the experience.
- A smooth pickup process. Clear communication (order ready notifications), easy pickup (designated spots, quick curbside handoff), and good staff processes. The last hundred feet make or break satisfaction.
This is the omnichannel and customer experience work behind the scenes — get it right and pickup delights; get it wrong and it frustrates worse than either pure channel.
How to market pickup commerce
Beyond the operations, marketing pickup well drives adoption and value:
- Promote availability prominently. Make pickup options visible on product pages, in ads, and at checkout. Many customers don’t use it simply because they don’t know it’s offered.
- Emphasize the benefits customers care about — speed (“ready in an hour”), free (no shipping cost), and convenience — in your messaging.
- Use it for local search. “In stock near me” and local availability are powerful for local intent; ensure your local listings and site reflect pickup options and local inventory.
- Drive incremental value at pickup. Pickup brings customers to (or near) the store — an opportunity for add-on sales, upsells, and building the relationship. Many BOPIS customers buy additional items when picking up.
- Reduce friction to convert online browsers — clear “pick up today” calls to action can convert people who’d otherwise abandon over shipping time or cost.
Why it helps the bottom line
Pickup commerce is a genuine bottom-line lever, not just a convenience:
- Captures sales pure e-commerce loses — customers who want immediacy or won’t pay shipping.
- Drives incremental in-store purchases at pickup — a real revenue bump.
- Reduces fulfillment costs — customer pickup is cheaper than shipping.
- Leverages existing stores — turning fixed-cost locations into fulfillment assets.
- Builds omnichannel loyalty — customers who use multiple channels tend to be more valuable and loyal, echoing omnichannel economics.
What to measure
- Pickup adoption rate — share of orders using curbside/BOPIS, and its growth.
- Attachment/incremental purchases at pickup — the add-on revenue it drives.
- Inventory accuracy and fulfillment reliability — the foundation; measure failed pickups and stock discrepancies.
- Pickup experience satisfaction — especially the speed and smoothness of the handoff.
- Omnichannel customer value — retention and lifetime value of pickup users vs. single-channel customers.
- Sales captured that would otherwise be lost to shipping cost/time objections.
A practical starting plan
- Get inventory accuracy right first — real-time, store-level availability is the non-negotiable foundation.
- Integrate online and in-store systems so orders flow smoothly to the right location.
- Make the pickup process smooth — order-ready notifications, easy pickup spots, and good staff process.
- Promote pickup prominently — on product pages, in ads, at checkout, and in local listings, emphasizing speed, free, and convenience.
- Capture incremental value at pickup and measure adoption, reliability, and omnichannel customer value.
Frequently asked questions
What is curbside commerce and BOPIS?
Curbside commerce lets customers buy online and pick up their order without leaving their car, while BOPIS (buy online, pick up in store) has them collect it inside. Both blend online convenience with the immediacy and zero shipping cost of a physical store, turning locations into local fulfillment points. They became permanent retail fixtures because they solve genuine customer desires for speed and convenience.
Why did curbside pickup stick around after the pandemic?
Because it solved real, lasting customer needs, not just a temporary problem: immediacy (get it today without shipping waits), no shipping cost or hassle, convenience and control over when to pick up, and confidence that items are in stock. It also turns retailers’ physical stores into local fulfillment advantages that pure e-commerce can’t easily match, benefiting both customers and businesses.
What does curbside and BOPIS require operationally?
Solid omnichannel infrastructure: accurate real-time, store-level inventory (so customers see what’s genuinely available where), integrated online and in-store systems (so orders flow to the right store and staff), and a smooth pickup process (order-ready notifications, easy pickup, good staff processes). Inventory accuracy is the critical foundation — ordering for pickup only to find items out of stock is the worst failure.
How does pickup commerce help the bottom line?
It captures sales pure e-commerce loses (customers wanting immediacy or refusing shipping costs), drives incremental in-store purchases when customers come to collect, reduces fulfillment costs versus shipping, leverages existing stores as fulfillment assets, and builds omnichannel loyalty (multi-channel customers tend to be more valuable). It’s a genuine revenue and efficiency lever, not just a convenience feature.
The bottom line
Curbside and buy-online-pickup commerce endured because they solve real customer desires — immediacy, no shipping cost, and convenience — while turning physical stores into fulfillment advantages that pure e-commerce can’t match. But they only work on solid omnichannel foundations: accurate store-level inventory, integrated systems, and a smooth pickup experience.
Get the operations right, then market pickup prominently around speed, free, and convenience, capture incremental value when customers collect, and measure adoption and reliability. Done well, pickup commerce captures sales you’d otherwise lose and makes your stores a competitive edge rather than a cost.
Keep exploring: see omnichannel AI, e-commerce marketing, and local search, or browse the Digital Business Marketing Awards.
