Innovative retail technology has transformed the way people shop, both online and in store. From new ways to pay, to a strong focus on user experience design, shopping has evolved for the better.
Over the last decade, we’ve seen e-commerce flourish and the pandemic has only accelerated the shift to online. It shows no signs of stopping, so it’s vital that both retailers and couriers can take full advantage.
At Circuit we conducted a survey to find out more about customers and their delivery experience over the past year. A stand-out statistic showed that nearly a quarter of customers (22.5%) who experience delivery issues whilst ordering goods online do not complain.
This concerning result proves that retailers are not fully aware of their customers’ needs. If they do not get negative feedback, retailers are missing out on an important opportunity to resolve it – to generate a positive experience, and get the customer back on side.
It’s crucial that this delivery feedback gap is closed as e-commerce continues to rise. Retailers can gain a deeper understanding of their customers by taking the steps below:
The gift of customer feedback
Customer feedback has huge value. While it’s never good to hear that a customer has an issue, it is important that delivery issues are not going unnoticed or unresolved – as this leads to unhappy customers. Having knowledge of customer issues lets proactive businesses resolve them for others, improve customer relationships, and keep their custom. Getting new customers is more expensive than retaining them so keeping the right customers has clear economic benefits.
Feedback is also needed as it impacts a retailer’s internal decision making. Retailers risk making changes that do not improve customer satisfaction with the current gap – as customer issues are ignored. This results in cycles of change where decisions are not based on the real customer pain points and have a limited effect. With feedback, retailers can develop insights and spot patterns to improve their process.
Online retail has seen huge growth over the past year due to the pandemic. Our survey shows that this is set to continue – with 85% of online shoppers saying they would shop either the same or more frequently online over the next 12 months. Delivery is the new normal and, with no shop front, delivery drivers are the brand front-of-house.
Making moves to solve the issue
Asking customers to give feedback is the vital next step and so it must be easy to do. Retailers should make sure that they ask for feedback at all stages of the process – including the shopping process, delivery experience and of course, the product. They could also use technology, such as mobile apps, to make feedback possible at just the touch of a button.
Offering consumers an incentive is one way to get feedback. Letting your customers know that their feedback is valued by giving them something in return is a great way of increasing customer reviews.
There are a number of ways to do this including:
- Entering customers in a raffle to win your products once they’ve given feedback.
- Giving customers a discount code after giving feedback on a number of purchases.
- If you have a points-based rewards card, give them more points for feedback.
What we can expect in the future
The current delivery process sees retailers, couriers and customers living in silos – this is something that Circuit is committed to changing. Communications will be vastly improved and processes will be streamlined through combining all three parts within one ecosystem. Ultimately this will result in a vastly improved customer experience and, in time, there will be no surprise delays or packages left out in the rain.
Retailers using one central application for all delivery correspondence also lets customers give quick feedback. With apps such as Uber or Deliveroo, asking for a quick star rating out of five means customers do not need to leave the app or sign into their email to offer reviews. It is easier, takes fewer clicks, and doesn’t need the customer to ‘think’. This could also help increase the rate of feedback given as it takes less time.
Whilst the feedback gap is concerning, it can be resolved – as long as retailers, dispatchers, and couriers work to prioritise customer experiences and develop a culture where reviews are welcomed and encouraged.
To learn more about Circuit and our recent survey visit: https://getcircuit.com/blog/delivery-experience-customer-behavior
About the Author
Jack Underwood is Founder and CEO of Circuit. Circuit is the best way to manage your delivery operations. Everything you’ll need to create routes, track packages, manage drivers and delight your customers.
