As the owner of your own business, you know how much you rely on your customers to stay operational. Retaining customers requires you to offer quality customer service. There are a lot of different aspects of customer service that impact overall customer satisfaction, and shipping your products to your customers is one of them.
Fast Delivery
Thanks to the instantaneous nature of the internet and cheap, fast shipping options (looking at you, Amazon Prime), people have increasingly come to expect fast delivery when it comes to receiving things they order online. 80% of consumers want to have the option of same-day shipping. That can be a tall order for a small business, especially if it means you’re eating the cost. You may find it helpful to offer multiple delivery options at different price points to satisfy the customer’s expectation for fast shipping while balancing the cost associated with faster delivery rates.
Packaging Quality
How your products are kitted can affect your reputation. Few things are as frustrating as receiving a package you’ve been eagerly waiting for only to find that it wasn’t packaged properly and is broken. Proper packaging shows that you care about your product and how it is when it shows up at your customer’s door. Even if you mark a package as being fragile, you must take steps to pack the product in such a way that it won’t be damaged if it gets tossed around or dropped on accident.
Order Accuracy
Order accuracy is essential when it comes to shipping products to your customers. The hassle and cost of returning incorrect orders isn’t something your customers should have to deal with. A mistake here and there could be understandable. But bear in mind that if a customer’s order isn’t correct, you run the risk of getting some pretty negative reviews that will damage your reputation. Take steps to ensure order accuracy so neither you nor your customers have to deal with the headache of a poorly picked order.
Shipping your products to your customers is a little more involved than just dropping packages off at the post office and hoping for the best. You need to take into account the speed of delivery, the quality of your packaging, and order accuracy. If you nail these aspects of shipping, you’re more likely to have happy, satisfied customers who will feel good about ordering from you again in the future.
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