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Single, multi, cross or omni: the definitions
Adyen and Stibo Systems describe the difference roughly like this: in multichannel the channels are not integrated and each has its own experience and goals12. Omnichannel puts the customer first, moving between channels and carrying on where they left off1. So it is not a matter of how many channels you have, but of whether they are connected.
| Model | What it is | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Single channel | You sell in one place. | Only a webshop, or only a shop |
| Multichannel | You sell on several channels, each with its own stock, prices and administration. | Shop, webshop and bol, each tracked separately |
| Cross-channel | Channels share one or two things, often a stock level or an order. There is no fixed definition. | Order online, collect in the shop |
| Omnichannel | All channels run on the same data, so the customer moves from one channel to another without a break. | See online whether the bike is in the shop, and buy it there or have it delivered |
The term cross-channel is not used consistently2. Think of it as a middle step: you share something, such as stock, but not everything yet.
Selling more on bol and your own webshop is not omnichannel yet. It is multichannel, even when it is well organised. How to manage that is in managing multiple webshops and marketplaces.
What do you have to share, and what often goes wrong?
Take a business owner with a physical shop, a webshop, a few marketplaces and one or two suppliers who also deliver. Omnichannel becomes concrete for that owner when these five kinds of data come from one source. Stibo Systems names a central stock system that syncs across all channels in real time as a requirement, next to connected product data and shared customer data2.
| Data | What goes wrong if it is not shared | How StoreLinkr covers it |
|---|---|---|
| Stock | You sell online what you just sold in the shop | Stock from POS, WMS and suppliers is added up, deducted on an order and sent to every channel |
| Prices | A promotion is in the shop but not online, or the other way round | Price lists per export, so a deliberately different price per channel. Price changes in CycleSoftware are online within hours |
| Orders | Orders sit in four screens and the POS knows nothing | Orders from the webshop and marketplaces arrive centrally and move on to webshop, ERP or fulfilment, with the tracking code back. Webshop orders can optionally go into CycleSoftware |
| Product data | One product has three titles and four sets of photos | One dataset you publish from to all channels |
| Customer data | You do not know the shop customer also buys online | Not covered: StoreLinkr has no customer, CRM or loyalty layer |
The most common pitfalls
- Every channel with its own stock number. Then the sum is never right and you sell twice. Read preventing overselling.
- Slow updates. A shop sale that is only online after a day works like a channel without a connection. See syncing stock across channels.
- An unplanned price difference. A different price per channel is fine, also because of marketplace commission. It should be a choice, not an accident.
- Retyping orders by hand. Every retyped order is a mistake that comes back later as a return or cancellation. See automating marketplace orders.
- Starting with customer data. Without reliable stock and an order flow, a customer profile is worth little.
Step by step: from multichannel to omnichannel
- Pick one source per kind of data. Usually the POS or warehouse is the source for stock and articles. Write it down.
- Bring product data and stock together. Import from POS, suppliers and spreadsheets into one dataset.
- Publish from that dataset to the webshop and marketplaces, with its own selection and price list per channel.
- Deduct every sale in one place and send the new number straight to all channels.
- Let orders arrive centrally and flow on to the warehouse, supplier or POS, with the tracking code back.
- Measure and refine. See where manual work remains, and only then add customer-facing steps such as collection in the shop.
What StoreLinkr covers
Steps 2 to 5. Stock from your POS, WMS or suppliers is kept for 15 minutes at most and added up across warehouses; when a new order comes in, the updated number goes straight to every connected channel. Orders from your webshop and marketplaces arrive centrally (see order flows). A practical example is CycleSoftware: a second-hand bike marked as sold in the shop disappears from your webshop, price changes are online within hours, and you can optionally have webshop orders created in CycleSoftware. The other systems you can connect are in the integration overview.
What StoreLinkr does not do: merge customer data into one profile, run a loyalty card or programme, or replace a POS. We do not claim sending marketplace orders to your POS here, because the CycleSoftware integration only mentions webshop orders. Check that for your own POS in the overview or in a demo.
One stock for shop and online
See how StoreLinkr bundles stock from your POS or warehouse and sends it to your webshop and marketplaces.
Frequently asked questions
Sources
Checked on October 27, 2026.
- Adyen, Omnichannel vs multichannel: adyen.com/en_AE/knowledge-hub/omnichannel-vs-multichannel
- Stibo Systems, Omnichannel vs. Multichannel: stibosystems.com/blog/omnichannel-vs-multichannel
