5 Winning Formulas for Profitable Deliveries This Free Shipping Day

Arya Bharti

5 Winning Formulas for Profitable Deliveries This Free Shipping Day

With global eCommerce sales revenue inching closer to USD 6.5 trillion in 2023, the potential of major purchase drivers like free shipping is both bankable and disruptive. While more than two-thirds of the consumers globally said that they wouldn’t buy from a retailer not offering free shipping, as much as one-third of the retailers outline the shipping costs to be the biggest challenge.

Furthermore, 62% of shoppers expect their purchases to arrive within 3 days and 56% would abandon their carts over delivery concerns. 

With logistics and shipping costs reaching skies and customer expectations giving them a hard chase, capitalizing on sales events like Free Shipping Day requires careful planning.

Here is a list of 5 solid strategies that will help retailers ensure customer delight with lightning-fast deliveries without thinning their bottom lines.

#1 – Automate Order Allocation for Efficient Deliveries

Advanced delivery management solutions come with intelligent AI/ML algorithms for automated order allocation among riders. The feature allows users to set a specific list of criteria, such as delivery location, delivery type, vehicle type, area restrictions, and more.

The businesses can auto-assign orders among riders of their own fleet, freelance riders, and third-party logistics providers. 

These solutions also consider complex delivery optimization parameters such as rider proximity, customer SLAs, quality and nature of consignment, etc.

Thus, businesses can unlock as much as a 12% reduction in order-to-ship time and increase the on-time dispatch by 28%. Automated order allocation also reduces the person-hours spent on manual order allocation and ensures highly efficient deliveries. 

#2 – Leverage Geocoding for Address Accuracy

Incomplete, vague, or wrong addresses make it difficult for riders to locate the delivery location. This can translate into delivery delays and ultimately, lost customers.

AI-powered address intelligence verifies addresses against a global database and provides correction suggestions for invalid addresses. It, auto-corrects postal codes and extracts precise latitude/longitude coordinates to eliminate address inaccuracies.

Advanced last mile logistics solutions come with in-built geocoding features to convert text-based addresses into latitude and longitude for improved accuracy. The geocoding feature also reduces the chances of delayed delivery and misrouting, leading to improved customer experience and man-hour savings.

#3 – Route Optimization for Faster and Accurate Deliveries

Driver idling, empty miles, misrouting, and poor rider/vehicle utilization are some of the major reasons behind delivery delays and high delivery costs. Sales events like Free Shipping Day can easily turn into a costly affair for retailers if they overlook these challenges.

AI-powered route planning and optimization platforms generate highly optimized and efficient routes and re-routes for real-time disruptions like traffic jams, weather-induced disruptions, and more. 

They also offer built-in capabilities to optimize vehicle capacity by integrating the vehicle and consignment data. Thus, retailers can drive more deliveries per driver per trip.

AI-powered route optimization and planning solutions can help reduce transportation costs by as much as 12% and reduce the number of miles per delivery via the in-built custom routing constraints. Hence, the retailers can deliver more number of orders per trip, optimize for real-time disruptions, and reduce the delivery time.

#4 – Offer Delivery Scheduling and Multiple Delivery Choices 

Enabling the customers to schedule their deliveries and offering multiple delivery options like curbside pickups, in-store pickups, etc., not only delight customers but also boost the first-attempt delivery rate (FADR).

The customers can schedule the delivery at a time they are sure to be available to receive it. Further, curb-side pickups help reduce shipping costs without disrupting the customer experience. 

AI-powered last mile delivery software empowers businesses with built-in delivery scheduling and a real-time driver-customer communication module. Clubbing it with advanced carrier-management software allows businesses to leverage their logistics network to the fullest and unlock greater serviceability, amplified reach, and reduced logistics costs.

As the customers can convey the updated instructions, the riders are able to complete the deliveries even if the customers are absent at the time of delivery. Customers can also add specific delivery instructions, such as address landmarks, contact numbers, and more to ensure seamless delivery. 

#5 – Real-Time Tracking and Analytics for Efficient Order Fulfillment

Retailers face significant challenges during events like Free Shipping Day, needing to balance high order volumes with maintaining profit margins and customer satisfaction. Real-time tracking and analytics can be a game-changer, unlocking several key benefits, such as anticipating peak traffic periods and proactively adjusting routes to avoid congestion and delays.

The retailers can easily gain real-time visibility into inventory levels across different locations, facilitating accurate picking and packing. They can also utilize historical data and real-time trends to forecast demand accurately, ensuring adequate inventory levels and preventing stockouts.

With reliable information about the real-time driver’s whereabouts, retailers can provide customers with real-time updates on their order status and estimated delivery times, increasing transparency and trust.

Events such as Free Shipping Day can be a gold mine for retailers, but navigating it requires a well-orchestrated plan. These 5 strategies can help businesses offer profitable deliveries.

By automating order allocation, ensuring address accuracy, optimizing delivery routes, offering diverse delivery options, and implementing real-time tracking, retailers can create a smooth and efficient delivery process that delights customers and drives profitability. In today’s competitive eCommerce landscape, these strategies are the key to delightful and profitable deliveries. 

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