From #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt to seamless fulfilment: How an OMS captures today’s impulse buying trends
Today, trends emerge in the blink of an eye, often driven by viral content on social platforms such as TikTok. A single product video can create a surge in demand, with consumers eager to make a purchase as soon as they see it. This phenomenon, captured by the hashtag TikTokMadeMeBuyIt, reflects how social media is reshaping consumer behaviour and amplifying impulse buying like never before.
For brands, capitalising on these trends means more than just making sure products are in stock. It’s about delivering a seamless, frictionless fulfilment experience that turns this impulse into a positive customer experience. This is where an Order Management System (OMS) becomes essential. An OMS enables brands to respond quickly and efficiently to the influx of demand generated by viral content, ensuring that the path from discovery to delivery is as smooth as possible.
The rise of social commerce and impulse buying
With the rise of platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube, social commerce is booming. Short-form videos and influencer content can instantly drive consumers to make unplanned purchases. In fact, a 2023 report by Accenture found that global social commerce sales are expected to grow three times faster than traditional eCommerce, with a projected market size of $1.2 trillion by 2025. The rise of TikTokMadeMeBuyIt illustrates this shift, with impulse purchases often resulting from a quick tap of the “buy” button after watching a viral video.
This impulsive, on-demand behaviour presents both opportunities and challenges for brands. On the one hand, it allows them to capture sales quickly. But it also puts immense pressure on fulfilment systems to manage sudden surges in demand without compromising the customer experience.
Why an OMS is critical to capturing impulse buyers
An Order Management System (OMS) plays a key role in managing the complexities of today’s viral commerce environment. When a product goes viral, inventory can fluctuate rapidly, and fulfilling orders from the right place becomes critical to meeting customer expectations. An OMS ensures that brands can respond to these real-time changes efficiently and seamlessly, capturing the essence of the impulse buying trend while maintaining operational excellence.
Here are four key ways an OMS supports the rise of impulse buying trends:
- Real-time inventory visibility
In the fast-paced world of impulse buying, instant gratification is non-negotiable. Nothing frustrates shoppers more than getting an “out of stock” message just after they’ve been persuaded to make a purchase. OMS revolutionises this process by providing real-time, end-to-end inventory visibility across all channels, whether stock is held in warehouses, retail stores or with third party suppliers. With this cutting-edge solution, retailers can ensure that their stock availability is always up to date, allowing customers to shop with the confidence that what they see is what they get. Ongoing technology enhancements to real-time inventory tracking enable merchants to deliver a flawless customer experience, even during the most unpredictable viral shopping trends.
- Dynamic order routing
When a product unexpectedly takes off due to a viral trend, brands need to act quickly to fulfil orders from multiple locations. OMS uses intelligent order orchestration to seamlessly select the most optimal fulfilment location, ensuring faster deliveries and lower operational costs. This capability is especially critical during viral peaks, when quick action can prevent delivery delays and disappointed customers. By routing orders efficiently, brands stay agile and maintain customer satisfaction, no matter what the surge in demand.
- Seamless omnichannel fulfilment
Impulse shoppers expect options. Whether they choose home delivery, click and collect or in-store pickup, OMS ensures seamless fulfilment across all channels. Viral purchases drive customers to seek out the fastest and most convenient option, and OMS is designed to support this flexibility. Technological enhancements ensure that brands can deliver flawless fulfilment across all touchpoints, keeping customers happy even during high-pressure periods of viral demand.
- Managing sudden surges in demand
Viral content can turn an ordinary day into a logistical challenge, with sudden surges in orders threatening to overwhelm unprepared retailers. OMS is equipped to handle these spikes with ease. By efficiently balancing inventory levels and routing orders to the appropriate fulfilment centres, the solution ensures that supply chains run smoothly even during periods of high demand. This capability is critical to maintaining a brand’s reputation in the face of a wave of impulse-driven purchases.
Meeting customer expectations in the age of viral shopping
Consumers today are not just looking for fast delivery, they want a frictionless, reliable experience from the moment they hit the ‘buy’ button. The impulsive nature of viral trends creates an environment where the slightest delay or complication can lead to customer frustration and lost opportunities.
For example, a TikTok user sees a product they love and wants it as soon as possible. They expect real-time stock availability, seamless purchasing and timely delivery. An OMS is the backbone of this process, providing the infrastructure needed to meet these expectations. By leveraging real-time data and optimising fulfilment processes, brands can turn impulse clicks into customer loyalty.
Building long-term success in the social commerce era
Brands that thrive in this fast-paced environment are those that invest in technology that supports agility and scalability. As social commerce continues to grow, an OMS will become an invaluable tool not only for managing the immediate influx of viral-driven orders, but also for building a long-term strategy that aligns with evolving consumer behaviour.
The ability to seamlessly capture and fulfil impulse purchases will separate the social commerce winners from the laggards. The OMS is no longer just a logistics tool, it’s a critical enabler for capturing demand, driving sales and ensuring that customers keep coming back, even after the viral moment has passed.
From #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt to the checkout process, the omnichannel experience has transformed into a dynamic, fast-paced environment that demands agility, speed and reliability. For brands, the key to thriving in this landscape is mastering both the discovery and fulfilment phases of the customer journey. An Order Management System provides the flexibility, scalability and intelligence needed to capture today’s impulse buying trends and ensure that every viral moment is converted into a successful customer interaction.
By investing in an OMS, merchants can meet the expectations of impulse shoppers and create a seamless, omnichannel experience that not only drives sales, but also builds long-term brand loyalty. In an era where social commerce is driving retail trends, delivering on the promise of instant, accurate fulfilment is key to staying ahead of the competition.
