By Mattias Gredenhag, CTO, nShift
Retailers are in a constant battle to not only win customers, but also to keep them. In a world of loyalty programmes, discounts, one-time purchasers and serial returners, simply competing can be tough and standing out even harder. What’s more, these brands must contend with rising marketing and logistics costs.
It can feel like spinning plates. But there is a simple way in which retailers can make massive improvements to revenue and customer retention without breaking the bank.
By getting the delivery experience right.
Deliveries are key to the customer experience
Many retailers treat deliveries as a logistical question of shipping things from A to B. But that overlooks how important they are to customers. Deliveries are more than parcels and boxes. They’re the building blocks of closer customer connections. Time and again, data tells us customers will shop with retailers that consistently meet their expectations.
An online shopper survey we recently commissioned found that customers prize convenience above many other aspects of the post-purchase experience. Being able to choose the time and date of delivery is by far the most influential factor for respondents, with nearly two-thirds (63%) deeming it important. The research also found that nearly two in three customers (62%) would refuse to shop with a brand again after a bad delivery experience.
These results hammer home just how little patience many consumers have for bad delivery experiences.
Handing over the delivery process to carriers raises the risk of things going wrong and denies retailers the opportunities within the delivery experience.
Surprise and delight shoppers
Retailers can turn shipping and deliveries into experiences which surprise and delight shoppers. At the same time, they can reduce costs and unlock efficiencies across warehouses and delivery teams. Taken together, we call this delivery and experience management (DMXM).
DMXM offers a single platform spanning the entire delivery journey, from the retailer to the customer’s doorstep (and if necessary, back again). One that creates a better experience for the customer while helping retailers better understand customers and improve performance.
DMXM enables retailers to drive ecommerce success in four ways:
1. Growth beyond limits – Despite the widely publicised benefits of personalization, too many retailers still follow a “one size fits all” approach to deliveries. This is often because of book and print tools that are too complex, unreliable, or limited in the carrier connections they offer. Instead, retailers need a book and print capability with best-in-class carrier connection that simplifies key logistics processes to enable warehouses to support ever-greater volumes of orders.
2. A connected customer journey – from homepage to doorstep. The checkout is only the start of the customer relationship. What happens afterwards in ‘post-purchase’ is key to keeping them coming back again and again. This must include offering a range of delivery options and be supported with a high-quality tracking experience to provide customers with the information they want when they want it.
3. Data-tight ecommerce – Running a digital delivery process creates a wealth of data that is easy to analyse. Effective DMXM combines this data – from carriers, logistics, and other business systems – to help retailers sharpen customer insights, break down internal silos, and drive operational efficiency. Critical to realising success is ensuring that all systems speak to each other and in real-time.
4. Out-perform competitors – In ecommerce, the next challenge is never far away. The brands and retailers that thrive take advantage of new channels to reach customers, provide the information and level of control customers expect, and adapt to meet their needs– now, and in future.
From a world of boxes to a world of opportunity
We’re seeing more and more retailers rethinking their approach to deliveries. They’re offering a wider range of delivery options, using more carriers, and combining that with a first-class user experience. As a result, they are enjoying greater loyalty and faster growth than their competitors.
Those bland packages stacked in loading bays enclose worlds of opportunity and excitement for the customers who receive them. Retailers that see deliveries as building blocks to customer connections will achieve far greater ecommerce success than those that do not.
Find out more about how delivery and experience management (DMXM) with nShift helps retailers stand out and deliver
Company information
nShift’s delivery & experience management platform drives ecommerce success. Grow beyond limits with constant innovation and the world’s largest carrier network. Build customer loyalty with end-to-end tools that enhance experience. Unify data into usable insight that connects and optimizes processes. With nShift, make delivery the essential link between your brand and your customers.
nShift. Worry less. Ship smarter.
Web: www.nshift.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nShiftOfficial
