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Zendor Offers Advice for Effective Home Shopping Delivery

Press Release

By: Zendor
29 March 2005

Online retailing is growing rapidly and as customer confidence in this new shopping channel increases, more shoppers are taking advantage of the convenience and choice on offer. However, for those retailers with little or no prior experience of fulfilling online shoppers’ expectations, the home delivery element can prove to be a stumbling block. A poor home delivery service will impact negatively on customer satisfaction and ultimately the retailer’s brand and so ‘getting it right’ is vital for success.

In order to plan and implement an optimum delivery service, Zendor has compiled the following advice for online retailers:

• Plan ahead - From the outset, the retailer needs to thrash out the details of the delivery proposition; What kind of service fits within the overall business strategy? What are the specific needs of the customer? Is an appropriate delivery service feasible within the retailer’s infrastructure or is outsourcing a more viable option? Through careful planning, the retailer will be in a much better position to offer an effective home delivery service.
• Don’t “over-promise and under-deliver” - This is the most common pitfall and one that can seriously damage customer relationships. Retailers need to devise the most appropriate options to ensure that they can fulfil their delivery promises. Customer expectations vary widely according to product type, circumstances and retail brand. The key is to strike a balance between the level of customer choice and setting up a cost-effective and simple proposition.
• Train a dedicated customer services team - Knowledgeable, qualified and courteous customer services staff will leave a positive impression when answering any customer queries that might arise, and will leave the customers feeling like they have been dealing the retailer directly, even if managed by a third party.
• Build close relationships with the delivery network - Retailers need to establish a good working relationship with their delivery network. By promoting open communication channels between retailer and carrier, delivery problems and customer queries can be identified and resolved quickly. This is all the more important since customers will ultimately hold the retailer responsible if things go wrong.
• Ensure couriers make the right impression - In multi-channel retailing, use of couriers for the final stage of home delivery is one of the only opportunities for retailers to interact directly with their customer. Couriers are an extension of the retailer’s business and it is therefore vital for them to be presentable, professional and to make a good impression.
• Remain visible to customers - A number of features can be implemented, that enable the customer to be kept up-to-date on their order, ultimately making them feel more comfortable with the service. These include “track and trace” systems which provide customers with a status of their orders, and/or e-mail confirmations when an order has been dispatched. These options can significantly reduce customer-service related costs e.g. customers contacting the call centre to find out where their order is.
• Make returns easy - Returns and home shopping inevitably go hand in hand. With careful planning, the retailer can prepare for handling the volume of returned goods and make the return process easy and convenient for the customer. Adopting a clear policy and effectively communicating the returns options to the customer is the best approach.
• Use suitable packaging - It is important for retailers to choose the appropriate packaging materials to protect their products from damage during transit. One option is to use mystery shoppers to test the condition in which packages reach their final destination.

By following this advice, the retailer will be able to offer its customers a superior home shopping experience, thus bringing it one step closer to the establishment of a successful online service.