Nothing provides more satisfaction to online shoppers than a quick delivery. E-commerce retailers are aware of customers expecting quick shipping and it is highly important as far as the customer experience is concerned.
Shipping plays a crucial role in the success of an e-commerce store. If fast delivery can enhance customer experience, a delay in delivery can force the customers to look for other alternatives, and it might also create possibilities of return.
E-retailers are bringing new trends and ideas to improve the shipping flow. In this article, I am going to talk about some prevailing shipping trends that you should start following along with what the future of ecommerce shipping holds.
E-commerce Shipping: Trends to Follow
1. Bulky Products Shipping
With significant growth in the eCommerce industry, the ease of online product purchase & doorstep delivery has taken the retail market to a whole new level. While the shipment for small and light items seems quite convenient, the same isn't the case for bulky items.
With consumers' desire to purchase heavy and large items such as furniture, the shipping industry is trying to make sure that bulky items are also delivered as conveniently as the other items.
As per Bloomberg, giant shipping provider FedEx has started delivering bulky items and on top of that, they are also providing the installation service. "Demand for these types of delivery services has grown in recent years and we expect that trend to continue,” said FedEx spokeswoman Bonny Harrison.
2. Reformed Packaging Strategy
We have seen over the years that the product doesn't reach the customer in the same condition as it was during the transit. It is largely because of the extra space available in the packaging that used to cause movement of the product, resulting in the damage.
Keeping this in mind, there has been made a change in the boxing & packing strategy before letting it out for delivery. The vacant space is now being eliminated to avoid rough movement of product, ensuring its safer reach.
Now, let's talk about the future of E-commerce shipping.
E-commerce Shipping: Future Vision
Fortunately, these trends are no-stopping here. In the field of eCommerce shipping & delivery, the future beholds a lot more. The world is going to witness further advancements in the shipping industry. Here, I present three e-commerce shipping trends that are likely to transform the way product purchase & delivery is done globally.
1. Same Day Delivery
Nowadays, customers look forward to faster delivery even if it involves some additional charges. The users expect delivery to take place within single or maximum two days. Many brands are promising one-day delivery, but receiving product on the same day is something which we have always wondered about. Will it be possible anytime soon?
Well, yes, same-day delivery looks possible in the nearby future. A research says that customers are ready to pay even an extra amount if they get the product delivered on the same day. This would even be lucrative for the sellers with increased sales & revenue.
2. Robots and Drones will take over
Drones and Robots could bring a massive change in the shipping sector after infiltrating other industries successfully. With ever growing advancement in technology, it wouldn’t be a surprise if we see drones or robots delivering the products at a customer's doorstep.
Companies like Just Eat and Pronto are currently working on self-driven robots that would make the delivery process way too easy and automated.
With drones or robots coming into action, we will witness a heavy cut-down in the delivery time and the shipping system would become completely automatic.
3. Preferred Shipping Provider Choice
Along with users demanding same-day delivery, there are others who look forward to choosing their own carrier choice. A customer may have a good experience with certain shipping service provider and this could be the reason why they want to stick with the same even if it costs them a little extra amount. This is why providing multiple shipping services holds a lot of importance.
E-retailers are making sure that a consumer gets the flexibility to choose the desired carrier facility.
Conclusion
The delivery time plays a major role in the customer's decision-making process. Today, any brand which takes more than 2-3 days for product delivery is more likely to get ignored by the customer. This is quite a compelling reason behind speeding up the shipment process.
If you are failing to provide quick delivery, you might face a downfall in the future. And I would not like that to see that happen. Catch up the shipping trends and be prepared for the future. That’s all about trends & future of the eCommerce shipping industry.
