If you’re a company delivering orders to customers, either as a delivery company, an eCommerce business, or a service provider, you’ve probably had to deal with upset customers who’ve experienced a bad delivery with your brand.
Those bad delivery experiences are usually caused by elements that companies can avoid. As a matter of fact, most bad delivery experiences can now be significantly reduced.
Here are the main elements that cause customers bad delivery experiences and how your company can minimize them.
1 Lack of communication
Many customers complain about poor communication with companies while waiting for their order.
Customers might have instructions that they would like to give the delivery driver, such as hiding the package in a specific spot if they won’t be home to receive it.
They might realize they made a mistake in their delivery address and would like to inform you. However, if they can’t communicate with you, the delivery will be delayed, customers will be frustrated, and you will have wasted time.
How to communicate better with customers
The best way to create a good relationship with your customers and gain their trust is to allow them to communicate with your team. Many delivery software allows you to do so via a chat on the platform. Your customers will receive a notification when the order is on its way, and they can open a conversation to talk to your team and let them know of any significant requests regarding the parcel.
2 No visibility on the order
As more and more companies allow customers to track their order, or at least get access to their delivery status, customers are now expecting to get this information and can become upset if they don’t know what is happening to their order.
As we have discussed in this blog, customers usually experience pre-parcel anxiety after placing an order online. They get anxious that their order might be late, get lost, or even get stolen. Therefore, providing visibility on the order allows the customer to avoid all of this anxiety, and it also shows transparency.
Customers usually appreciate companies being transparent with them and sharing all the information about their order. After all, since they’ve already purchased it, it is only fair that they want to know what is happening to their order.
How can you give customers more visibility?
Delivery software is usually equipped with a real-time delivery tracking feature. Customers will receive a notification when delivery drivers are on their way with an estimation of the delivery time. Customers will receive a notification if there is any delay. They will be informed of how many stops are left before theirs and be able to plan their day knowing when the driver will arrive.
3 Damaged items
When customers order online, they are usually impatient to receive their parcel as they have already paid for it. Therefore, when their order finally arrives but is damaged, you can only imagine their frustration.
They might have needed to use the item right away. For example, they could have ordered new furniture to work from home or a bed for their new apartment, and it won’t be convenient for them if they have to wait for your company to send another item.
They will most likely be resentful and annoyed, which can significantly impact your brand image and your customers’ return rate.
How to deal with damaged items
While there are some solutions to minimize damages during delivery, incidents happen, and it is not always possible to prevent them. But while you might not be able to avoid damages, you can deal with them right away to reduce customers' frustration and minimize their negative impression.
Delivery software now allows drivers to take photos of incidents and record them directly into the app so you can be informed right away of any damaged delivery. You will receive a notification and see which customer is concerned and get access to their information to contact them.
You could decide to negotiate with them if the damage is minor and won’t necessarily bother them by offering a discount, which will be a lot less costly for your company than replacing the damaged item.
If you would like to know more about how to deal with damaged items, we’ve written a blog about this topic here.
4 Missed deliveries
When customers have been waiting for days, sometimes weeks, for the item they purchased, they are disappointed when they see that they missed the delivery driver. In fact, many customers choose home delivery over in-store shopping because it is more convenient.
They have busy lives; they go to work and have appointments. Therefore, they don’t have time to go shopping. However, a missed delivery often means that they will have to get their package at a pick-up location. In a recent survey we conducted, 18% of respondents said they fear having to go to a pick-up location when ordering online.
Customers order online as a matter of convenience. Asking them to pick up their order because they missed the driver is not convenient for them as they will have to be available during the pick-up location hours and not forget to take their documentation with them.
How can you avoid missed deliveries?
You might be thinking, “Okay, I know that going to a pick-up location is not the best for customers, but what do I do if they are not home when drivers arrive?” While you probably won’t be able to erase missed deliveries, you can significantly reduce them by letting the customer know when your driver will be there to deliver the order.
With this information, customers might arrange to be home when your driver arrives. If they have no idea when your driver will be there, they won’t want to stay home all day and depend on them. But if you allow them to track the driver, they will be able to plan their day accordingly and are more likely to be there to receive the parcel.
5 Late deliveries
Some customers need the item they purchased as soon as possible. Therefore, they will be less tolerant of any delay from your company. A late delivery usually makes people upset and less likely to purchase from your brand.
Orders can be late for different reasons: item is out of stock, a shortage of drivers, errors in the delivery management, or traffic on the road.
How to minimize late deliveries
Most of the reasons listed above can easily be avoided using delivery software. Thanks to the route optimization feature, a powerful platform will allow you to optimize delivery management, avoid errors, and minimize traffic.
Not only will it be easier and clearer for you to organize deliveries and make sure you don’t miss any information, but route planning time will also be highly reduced, orders will be intelligently dispatched, and your drivers will spend less time on the route.
6 Stolen parcel
In 2020, no less than one out of three customers has experienced package theft. In a survey we conducted, approximately 60% of the respondents said they were worried that their package would get stolen if it was delivered when they were not home.
However, sometimes customers are not home when delivery drivers come as they usually do it during the week and in the middle of the day when customers might be working or running errands. While some companies will leave the package at a pick-up location, many will leave it at the doorstep, making it easy for thieves to steal it.
If you’re living or working in a building, you’ve most likely noticed packages waiting at the entrance that could easily be stolen. Naturally, having an order stolen will upset your customers, and they will be likely to question your reliability. They might even decide not to purchase from your brand again.
How to prevent parcel theft?
Thankfully, it is now possible to greatly reduce the number of stolen packages thanks to delivery software. Delivery software allows customers to track their order, making them more likely to be present when the delivery driver arrives, but it also enables customers to communicate with drivers.
Thus, if they get a notification that the driver is on their way and should be there in two hours, but they won’t be home, they can give instructions to the driver on how to hide the package, for example.
Take a look at this blog if you’d like to have more information on package theft.
Meet CIGO Tracker
CIGO Tracker is a best-in-class, cloud-based platform to increase deliveries, service calls, and pick-ups for your business. It scales as you need it and provides a state-of-the-art, “last mile” delivery experience that will thrill your customers.
Driven by innovation, an unwavering commitment to customer service, honesty, and trust, CIGO delivers the best, most flexible delivery tracking software in the industry.
At CIGO, we are always on the lookout for new features that we can add to our delivery software to improve your daily operations. If you would like to learn more about our delivery software.
