On the other hand, some ecommerce giants have managed to nail the delivery experience (DX), putting pressure on the rest of the market. With customer expectations skyrocketing, we continually see growing customer frustration at those retailers who struggle to keep their delivery promises.

These impacts are felt by both large and small retailers alike. With dominant brands setting the bar high, retailers must find a way to offer stellar delivery experiences to compete. Big or small - innovative technology can enable all brands to attract and retain new customers. From proactive communication to seamless returns, the customer experience must be front of mind.  

Mastering your returns

A parcel reaching a customer’s front door doesn’t mean the post-purchase experience is finished. Businesses need to be ready if customers decide to return their items.

The importance of a superb returns journey is clear. Eighty nine percent of consumers identify the ease of returns as a top priority when purchasing online. A further 81% claimed they would avoid ordering from a company again if they had experienced issues when trying to return something.

Returns management software can automate the manual aspects of the returns process, saving valuable time and money for retailers. This also boosts customer retention; if a customer’s expectations are met, then it will increase their chances of shopping again.

Acquiring valuable data

Around two thirds of returns are easily preventable with streamlined processes in place. No doubt, customer returns are inevitable, but there are still more businesses can be doing to keep them to a minimum. This is where data becomes important.

Gathering relevant data unlocks more insights on customer behaviour. This delivers a mutually beneficial outcome, whereby customers have clear visibility on their order, and teams have access to valuable information to make key decisions.

For example, say a particular product is seeing a high return rate. With an online returns portal, customers can cite the reason for a return. As such, an organisation will be able to see this data and identify any problems like high defectivity or ineffective packaging causing damage during delivery.

Data-based retail software doesn’t have to be exclusive to corporate giants. Almost four out of five consumers agree that their loyalty to a brand increases when more personalisation tactics are used, highlighting how data can be used to create more upsell opportunities and boost customer retention.

Tracking packages, for instance, allows brands to personalise their ads for customers and learn more about them in the process by acquiring certain data. This offers customers a unique experience that encourages a stronger connection to the brand and increases revenue from upselling.  

Every retailer should have access to data to understand their customers’ behaviours and their operational performance. This is how growing businesses can attempt to stand out and compete with corporate retailers.

Make your post-purchase experience seamless

Having a high-quality post-purchase experience is no longer a ‘nice to have’, it’s expected. Our recent neuroscience report discovered that brands such as Adidas and Nike are setting the benchmark standard in this area.

The study highlighted that the average customer journey score for a fashion retailer is 80.7 out of 100, demonstrating that being ‘good’ isn’t good enough anymore. Small to medium businesses need to go above and beyond to stay competitive in a crowded market.

Customers want to be informed at every point of the delivery experience. Therefore, brands must be proactive in their communications. Not only does this solve the issue of WISMO queries, but it reduces the stress placed on contact centres.

Established retailers have already mastered this process. With branded tracking, musicMagpie saw a 63% reduction in WISMO queries.

The bottom line

All retailers should have customer satisfaction as a major business objective. By focusing on achieving a strong level of customer satisfaction, organisations will retain more customers, but also improve their customer acquisition through positive feedback. With commercial giants setting new standards in the delivery experience, it has never been more important for growing retailers to hone their customer journeys to stand out in this competitive market.