With only 49 shopping days left until Christmas, retailers will be gearing themselves up to their busiest time of the year.
2014 looks like it is going to be another bumper year for online retailers, with a number of research reports pointing to a continued growth in ecommerce in the run up to Christmas – and the importance of effective delivery management for eRetailers.
Ecommerce still on the rise
IMRG-Capgemini eRetail sales index is predicting a 17% growth in spending online by UK consumers in 2014 from £91 billion spent in 2013 to £107 billion. In 2013, 12.1% of that £91 billion tool place in December alone.
In their research entitled ‘Delivery Matters’, the Royal Mail says that 67% of consumers are buying more online than they used to with the average adult spending £274 online per annum. Conducted by Hall & Partners, the research surveyed 1,539 UK consumers about their attitude to online shopping.
In a separate report, NetDespatch says that a massive 88% of UK consumers are going to use the internet for their Christmas shopping this year.
Visibility and flexibility delivers customer satisfaction
Providing consumers with a mechanism to view and track their orders through every step of the process has proved to be a great way for organisations using STREAM to improve customer satisfaction with their customers – and encourage repeat business.
These is backed by research conducted by the Royal Mail which found that 73% of online shoppers said order and delivery visibility improved their confidence in making online purchases.
NetDespatch reports that 85% of consumers still want their purchases to be delivered at home despite the fact that three-quarters of the 2,000 respondents said that they worked full-time. It is perhaps unsurprising therefore that a quarter of those surveyed said that missing a delivery was their major problem with shopping online.
As discussed is our last blog, a major benefit that Scandinavian House has found with STREAM has been the ability to instantly update orders in the system and let the delivery company know to leave their package with a neighbour or an alternative safe location.
It is the efficiency of the order management and delivery management mechanism that is ensuring that Scandinavian House retail customers and consumers remain happy with their online and retail shopping experiences.