2019 is the tipping point for same-day delivery
Next-day delivery doesn’t cut it in 2019.
I know what you’re thinking. It wasn’t that long ago that next-day delivery was the gold standard; you worked hard to deliver on the proposition, otherwise customers would go elsewhere.
But consumer expectations have changed at almost the same pace as delivery speeds. According the third annual survey of shopping and delivery expectations from Dropoff, 31% of consumers opted for same-day delivery in 2018, up from 17% in 2017. That pace of change will mean that well over half of consumers will now expect to use same-day delivery given we’ve just rung in 2019.
So we’re calling it — 2019 is the tipping point for same-day delivery.
Why it matters
It’s simple — the delivery experience is retail’s new battleground.
79% of customers would switch retailers if offered more convenient delivery options. 53% of customers have abandoned the checkout process due to slow delivery times. A bad delivery experience is enough to stop 65% of UK shoppers returning to an online retailer.
Get it wrong and people go elsewhere.
But flip that on its head and same-day delivery can drive customer loyalty and basket size. According to a recent CapGemini consumer survey on last-mile delivery, 74% of customers will increase spend with retailers when satisfied with the delivery service. 53% of satisfied customers claim to have purchase paid memberships for delivery, inevitably increasing frequency and LTV. And 40% of online shoppers would shell out on same-day delivery according to a recent PWC report. A delivery service people are prepared to pay for — who would have thought it!
In other words, do it well and there are big rewards to reap. Don’t do it, and customers will look instead to those who do.
How to do it well
There are no easy answers here, and retailers are trying a number of different ways to do same-day delivery efficiently and effectively. Some are moving towards smaller warehouses closer to the end-customer. Others are integrating bricks and clicks, using their stores as micro-warehouses dotted across the city. Automated collection points and parcel lockers are springing up in stores and high-footfall areas. There is no one size fits all approach, but there is something of a playbook.
At Quiqup, we’ve seen it all, from same-day ship from warehouse, same-day ship from store through to next day international delivery.
We’ve built tailor-made logistics solutions for some of the world’s biggest retailers, providing all the tech, fleet and operational insight they need to delivery industry-leading delivery times. Delivering a great experience to customers — which to us means speed, user-friendly software and a great doorstep experience — requires deep expertise built on years of experience and development, something most retailers don’t have when it comes to last-mile logistics, but which we do. As we like to say — you work hard to create the best product for your customer; we work hard to get it to them in a way that will have them coming back for more.
Exciting times call for exciting measures
So here we are — exciting times for consumers and retailers alike. We predict a year in which retailers have to evolve in line with consumer demands if they want to see their customer again. Doing delivery well — and quickly — is critical, and in our view it’s best done working with urban logistics experts who know how to get it done in a way that just works.
If any of this sounds interesting, get in touch here — we’d be happy so share our thinking and learnings along the way. And here’s to an amazing 2019!
