There’s no denying that the COVID-19 pandemic led to a substantial spike in eCommerce retail, with features such as same day delivery being one of the most appealing and enticing propositions that a business can offer to maintain existing customers while also attracting new ones.
After all, with the abundance of social distancing, limited capacity, and health-preserving protocols, purchasing items or issuing a pickup from a physical retail location became an increasing challenge.
Most people have access to some form of smart device, be it a smartphone, tablet, laptop or desktop computer, making accessing eCommerce websites not only more accessible and efficient but a safer alternative, as well.
That said, within this newfound booming market, fast and efficient delivery has transitioned from a valuable, exclusive offer to a must-have for business owners.
Even for years to come, these post-pandemic eCommerce trends will likely remain when it comes to higher customer expectations for delivery and shipment times.
Gone are the days of waiting weeks at a time for something to arrive. Now, customers not only appreciate speedy delivery, but they’ve also come to expect it.
So, if you want your business to remain on the cutting edge and maintain its competitiveness in the market, offering same-day delivery is necessary to ensure customer retention, promote customer service, and ensure a positive customer experience.
With this in mind, today, we’re talking about why same day delivery is so crucial. This article will delve into how implementing express shipping helps businesses and how to implement a same day delivery strategy effectively from a logistics and profit-oriented perspective.
This article will cover:
Why is Same Day Delivery Important?
The eCommerce retail market is a competitive one, to say the least, and businesses must do everything they can to set themselves apart.
Customer expectations have never been higher across the board, and it ultimately falls on businesses to meet these new needs. However, simply vying to meet this demand will not put you ahead.
Instead, you must venture to exceed the expectations through offers such as express shipping and same-day delivery.
Data supports the assertion that express shipment and expedited delivery options, such as same-day delivery and shipment services, directly impact consumers’ purchasing behaviours.
In other words, logistics and supply chain technologies of today have increased consumer demand for express shipping.
In fact, 54% of customers under the age of 25 state that same day shipping is their number one motivator for purchasing.
Additionally, 80% of shoppers already expect same day shipping and another 61% want their packages to be delivered even faster within one to three hours of initially placing their order.
Businesses that do not make offers such as same-day delivery available may discover a decline in customer experience that leads to their overall consumer pool diminishing.
So, without sugar-coating it, if you don’t offer same-day delivery, your customers will find someone that does.
How Same Day Delivery & Express Shipping Helps Your Business
According to a research study, 73.6% of shoppers view shipping as a primary factor for their overall shopping experience.
This belief is so ingrained in their purchasing behaviour that 83.5% said they were unlikely to choose to buy from a brand repeatedly if they experienced a negative shipping encounter.
Additionally, 98.1% stated that delivery services impact their brand loyalty.
If you’re still unconvinced that same day delivery is a mandatory feature to make available to your customers, below, we will highlight three examples of how same day delivery can help your business.
Build Brand Loyalty
As we mentioned above, 91.8% of those asked in the Convey research study stated that delivery services impact their brand loyalty.
Ultimately, if customers find a company that creates products they like that meet a particular need or serve as a solution to a specific issue, that’s half the battle. However, the other half falls on the company to ensure that the shipment or shipments are made available as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Particularly in the eCommerce space, customers have grown accustomed to nearly instant gratification. If users like your product and benefit from having access to customized express shipping services to receive their shipments that much sooner, they are far more likely to remain loyal to your brand and come back as repeat clients.
Fulfilling your delivery promise is one way to build brand loyalty. Learn more about brand trust in “The Value of Building Sustainable Brand Trust and How to do it.”
Reduce Cart Abandonment
There are several reasons why consumers may choose to abandon their cart, be it unexpected shipping charges, eCommerce website malfunctions or an overcomplicated checkout process with too many additional details.
That said, extensive, unpredictable shipment delivery windows and a lack of express delivery options are two of the primary driving forces behind cart abandonment rates.
The demand for such services is high enough that if consumers can’t receive their desired items as quickly and efficiently as possible, they don’t want them at all.
Additionally, customers are more inclined to add more impulse purchases to their cart if they are expected to arrive sooner rather than later. It again plays into the instant gratification concept.
Customers don’t have to stop and think, “will I still want this in a week or more?” With features such as same day delivery, they can transition this thinking to “I want this, and I can get it today!”
Taking advantage of instant gratification is a marketing psychology technique that drives sales. Learn about other techniques in “5 Marketing Psychology Techniques to Improve Your Conversions.”
Practicality Begets Profit
While consumers have come to expect same day delivery as a shipping option, it typically works out to the benefit of the company selling the products because these shoppers are likely willing to pay more for this expedited, express service.
Extending opportunities or services that ensure shipments are prepared, packaged and executed as quickly and efficiently as possible causes shoppers to find your business more reliable for all types of scenarios while meeting their impulsive, practical, or last-minute shopping needs.
These days, customers want to avoid the hassle of having to go out of their way to venture somewhere for a pickup.
With this in mind, businesses make flexible shipping options, such as same day delivery shipping services available at a slightly heightened cost for consumers to receive their products fast.
Convenience is key, and many people are willing to pay extra for it.
How to Implement Same Day Delivery Effectively
There’s no denying that implementing express shipping services puts a lot of pressure on businesses, let alone transporting and delivering shipments on the same day.
While it may seem overwhelming, there are few methods for ensuring that you conduct this execution effectively and successfully.
Assess Demand
Depending on the size of your business, your customers will have different behaviours and expectations. When it comes to attempting to implement same-day shipping services, it’s best to start small and keep it local at first.
If you’re rolling these services out on an international or even national scale, the cost for transporting these shipments will get very high very fast, making it difficult to see the value, especially if your shipping costs cut into your bottom line.
Take a step back and see if offering same day services make sense for your particular business.
Gathering feedback and insights from your client base to determine if same day shipments are even something they need or want, let alone would be willing to pay an additional cost to receive is also helpful.
At this point, if clients express a desire for this service, be sure to take note of where they are located. Once you’re able to confirm the demand, you can move forward with a strategy for implementing same day service.
Establish Strategic a Location for Your Fulfillment Centre(s)
Tying into the staying local sentiment of the previous point, the first real step in actively implementing a same day express shipment service is establishing a fulfillment centre in strategic and advantageous locations.
If you’re unclear with the term, a fulfillment centre is just a modern-day phrase for a packing warehouse. To pinpoint where to best place these facilities, conduct some research into your consumer data and analyze where your customers live and work.
Ideally, you’ll want to find fulfillment centres that are relatively close to your business.
This way, you can pivot your same day delivery program to encompass areas that aren’t too far from your stores or fulfillment centre.
From there, you can examine the existing processes you already have in place and establish what needs to change to allow you to ship products on the same day.
If you operate as your own fulfillment centre, this may look like adjusting your packaging of orders to accommodate earlier pickup options.
Suppose you outsource to fulfillment centres owned and operated by separate initiatives. In that case, this may involve discussing how best to implement these new practices with individuals at every step of the process.
Who takes the online orders? Who picks and packages the items? What is the process and timing for transporting the products from location to location? Where are the gaps in availability for delivery drivers?
Understanding every cog in the machine and how they would together is crucial, especially if you will be receiving, filling and delivering multiple shipments a day.
Enlist Help from a Courier Service
Implementing a same day delivery service can be a daunting and task. Changing your shipping strategy can put a serious strain on your overall operations and leasing a warehouse to set up a fulfillment centre can be expensive, but you don’t have to do it alone!
For small to medium-sized businesses as well as eCommerce stores, enlisting the services of an outside, third-party courier service can serve as a lifesaver for ensuring that express deliveries are carried out efficiently and on time.
Additionally, third-party couriers have extensive expertise concerning understanding the ins and outs of shipping practices and how best to effectively implement and execute shipment strategies.
Not only that, but using a third-party courier service also saves time, money and resources for finding safe, reliable and trustworthy delivery drivers.
After all, when it comes to same day delivery, your drivers are the only face-to-face contact your consumers have with your business. You want to ensure that they are people you feel comfortable representing you and your brand.
Key Takeaways
These days, the demand for express shipping services, such as same day delivery, is at an all-time high.
Particularly in the ongoing turmoil that is the coronavirus pandemic, these shipping solutions also serve as an added safety precaution that allows users to receive their desired products while lowering the risk of transmission.
Along these lines, what was once viewed as an exclusive luxury has now become a fully expected service, albeit one that customers are readily willing to pay a bit extra to have. That said, implementing such options is no small undertaking. Ensuring that you carry out the various steps and details effectively is paramount in promoting greater customer service and satisfaction while still driving your bottom line.
There are several benefits to same day delivery, including increased brand loyalty, reducing cart abandonment and driving sales and profits. With this in mind, if you’d like to remain competitive in the eCommerce industry, implementing such strategies is one of the most effective methods for doing so.
