As more and more consumers turn to ecommerce and retailers scramble to compete for the attention of online shoppers, home delivery services are becoming a service differentiator across most retail sectors.
If your company offers home delivery for the “last mile” in your supply chain, you probably provide a standard shipping option and a premium-priced, “express” service, which may include parcel tracking for your customers to keep an eye on their orders. Certainly that’s the typical home distribution model—giving consumers two options: low speed or traceability packaged with high-speed delivery.
But what matters most to retail consumers who buy online: speed or traceability?
Do they care more about getting their products fast or about knowing where their parcels are at any given point in time?
Trending Toward Transparency
The answer, it seems, is the latter. Retailers offering tracked delivery without express delivery premiums are cashing in among consumers who don’t actually care if delivery takes a few days, but who do care about being able to see the status of their orders.
If ordering statistics are anything to go by, some retailers are finding that the uptake of premium services was historically as much for the tracking ability as for expeditious delivery. When a mid-range service (including track-and-trace) is introduced, parcel volumes increase, while volumes through both premium and standard services reduce correspondingly.
Track-and-Trace
How Will You Make Home Delivery Different?
Decoupling express lead times and track-and-trace facilities could add flexibility into your home delivery service tariff and help differentiate your enterprise from its competitors.
Of course ultimately, your customers know what they want, so it may at least be worth soliciting some feedback. You might find your customers don’t need their orders sent via the fast lane, but prefer the confidence of knowing the goods are on their way.
