Guest Post: 10 Best Ways to Overcome the E-Commerce Logistics Challenges

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Today, you can now buy anything and everything with just a single touch on your smart device. 

The vast expansion of e-commerce has made customers' lives much easier and more comfortable. But in pursuing this goal, businesses have faced several difficulties, preventing them from offering seamless experiences to their clients. Here are some of those challenges:

• Challenges #1: Delays in order processing

• Challenge #2: Errors in Inventory Management

• Challenge #3: Managing selling operations manually

• Challenge #4: Customer Issues Going Unnoticed

• Challenge #5: Customer Loyalty

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86% of consumers are prepared to pay more for a more streamlined customer experience. 

So, if you also have similar issues and want your customers to be pleased with your delivery operations, here are ten ways to overcome such challenges.

10 Various Ways to Overcome These Challenges

1) Offer More Delivery Options

Customers' service and pricing expectations have expanded in tandem with the growth of the e-commerce sector. And exceeding those expectations by providing more delivery options to your consumers can take your company to new heights. Develop an e-commerce website as per the customers' needs so that you can grow your online business and achieve new heights in the world of e-commerce. 

Here is what statistics say about the importance of speed and convenience in shipping:

• 30% of internet orders are delivered to different addresses

•  63% believe that delivery speed is an essential concern while shopping online.

• 77% are willing to pay more for fast shipping.

• 41% of consumers have requested same-day delivery.

•  58% believe it is crucial to be able to see things that are available for same-day delivery while shopping online.

Thus, making the delivery method as easy as possible and offering your consumers more options can really be beneficial for your business.

In reality, this can entail offering your customers a couple of different delivery options. Your customers are more likely to complete any transaction they are considering if you provide them with more alternatives and speedy delivery.

2) Offer Fast & Free Shipping to Your Customers

Online customers, as a whole, prefer free shipping as a delivery option. A survey by the Baymard Institute found that 16% of them abandoned empty carts because of prolonged shipment. 

Delivery has become crucial in e-commerce for turning prospects into paying consumers. They start by comparing the costs of various delivery options, but time is still their second important consideration.

Thus, offering quick and free shipment can thereby increase sales, streamline logistics, optimize customer loyalty, and lower the volume of complaints that customer service receives.

3) Manage Your Inventory Effectively

Over 81% of consumers in the previous year encountered an "out-of-stock" situation, resulting in lost revenue for shops and a lot of sadness for in-store shoppers. Retailers worldwide lost a stunning $1.75 trillion owing to poor inventory management.

Inventory management can have a dramatic impact on your business. With good inventory management practices, you guarantee that you have the products and materials you need on hand, in the proper amounts, in the right locations, and at all times. However, if your inventory management isn’t optimized, it can cost you money. 

Moreover, having your inventory management for e-commerce fully optimized will help you avoid delays and long manufacturing lead times, leaving customers satisfied and giving them the confidence to shop with you again.

4) Give Your Customer A Quality Product

Sixty-five percent of your company's sales are generated from existing customers. In fact, 80% of your business profit comes through 20% of your customers. This is why cultivating customer loyalty is one of the most important things. 

But to build customer loyalty, you need to give customers exceptional service, and that means increasing your order accuracy. 

Here are the ways you can improve your order accuracy:

• Set order accuracy rate goals

• Improve the inventory management process

• Optimize the picking and packing process

• Implement the right fulfillment center technology

• Optimize the warehouse layout

• Incorporate smart automation

•  Use appropriate packaging material

This is how you can improve the accuracy of an order and ensure that your customers are satisfied and that they’ll keep coming back to you time after time.

5) Have Robust Warehouse Management System

A robust warehouse management system would be necessary to meet demands for fast fulfillment. A well-organized warehouse facilitates swift inventory management and product retrieval, allowing you to choose, pack, and dispatch your products to clients as soon as feasible. 

You will also benefit significantly from localized warehousing, becoming more popular as businesses encounter increased order volume.

6) Focus on Reducing the Shipping Cost

The cost of shipping is a big problem for retailers. Fuel, vehicle maintenance, wages, return deliveries, free shipping, customer support, and other operating expenditures can all cut your earnings.

So, if you want to cut the delivery cost, look for ways to improve efficiency. And the best way to accomplish this is by reducing the waste of your resources and maximizing their use.

Below are the statistics that support this claim:

Costs are 15% cheaper for businesses that focus on reducing shopping costs than for those that don't.

The use of technology has a significant role in the solution. You should, for instance, consider if you manually plan your trips.

If the answer is yes, you must go beyond conventional methods of controlling your distribution operations.

To perform activities automatically and with little effort, you must look for solutions that automate the procedure.

Once you begin employing technology, you may leverage it to identify areas where the supply chain can be streamlined for more outstanding performance.

7) Give Your Customer The Power to Monitor Their Product

You should provide your clients the ability to monitor their products in real-time since it is a privilege to let them know about the status of their shipping goods. This will allow you to stay in touch with them from the start of their shopping experience until they receive the goods.

Nowadays, it is standard to provide a tracking number generated by your courier firm after their goods have been dispatched. To check the status of their package in real-time, they can input this number into the courier service's website.

8) Communicate With Your Customers

It is crucial not to keep your consumers in the dark regarding their deliveries. Consumers no longer need to purchase a product and wait several weeks for it to arrive. 

A great customer experience throughout delivery entails keeping them informed with the most recent information on their shipment. 

It's essential to keep consumers informed so they can take charge of organizing their day, whether it's through SMS, email, in-app notifications, a dedicated monitoring website, or using an omnichannel customer support application.

You can better manage your clients' expectations with meaningful insight. 

You may boost customer happiness while lowering expenses and burden on your customer service team if clients can constantly check online to see whether their item will be delayed or when it will arrive.

You'll also assist relieve the pressure on your customer care. Just as ParcelLab did for their customers Granit Part. 

9) Try Reverse Logistics

Sometimes things can happen that are out of your control at times. For instance, an order may be incorrectly labeled and delivered to the incorrect address. 

It may be damaged or broken when it arrives. The best idea to deal with such a situation is to try forward and reverse logistics.

If you're unfamiliar with reverse logistics, it's the management of the transfer of returned things back to your store, warehouse, or supply depot. Three things are required for this:

An excellent customer service staff can accept return orders, provide speedy solutions, and keep customers happy.

A delivery management system allows you to track and monitor drivers you may deploy to do the required pick-ups and drop-offs, as well as an inventory management system that allows you to quickly discover a replacement item at the nearest depot site or storage facility. Taking care of refunds in this manner is an excellent business practice.

10) Use the Power of Analytics 

Keep an eye on digital analytics to learn what and where your consumers are coming from and spot new marketing opportunities. Using Google Analytics, you may learn more about your clients' locations, the pages they view, and where they interact with the site. 

You may view in-platform statistics in the Shopify admin to keep tabs on your store's performance and measure the success of your marketing campaigns.

Build a solid web application for an e-commerce platform, in addition to your product, are what converts visitors into consumers. 

Next, consider how these best practices may apply to other components of your company, such as your app, social media platforms, or even your in-store experiences.

Final Word

Consumer expectations are unquestionably growing along with the number of e-commerce deliveries in a world where they are expanding rapidly. Businesses must concentrate on nailing the fundamentals of the last mile if they want to differentiate themselves in the fiercely competitive market and create an outstanding, customer-centric delivery experience.

By following the guidelines above and reading about the latest consumer retail trends, you will have the best chance of building a flourishing e-commerce firm that consistently delights customers.

About the Author

Tuhin Bhatt is one of the co-founders of Intelivita, a digital transformation place to hire dedicated mobile app developers. Tuhin is regarded in the industry as a powerhouse of unique and best app ideas that shaped award-winning app projects across iOS, Android, web, desktop, and game console platforms. His write-ups are usually based on E-Commerce, Technology, Leadership, and Entrepreneurship.

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