Shipping is a given for companies involved in eCommerce. Though some customers shop online and still arrange for in-store pick up, most of the goods purchased through eCommerce sites get shipped directly to customer locations. This suggests that your choice of shipping partners is important. It also suggests that inadequate shipping could be driving customers away.
A 2019 research survey from BigCommerce demonstrates that 77% of online shoppers are willing to abandon a shopping cart due to unsatisfactory shipping options. A surprising 58% have stopped doing business with a particular eCommerce retailer because of a negative shipping experience. If those numbers are not alarming to you, perhaps you don’t fully understand how much stock people put in shipping.
Customers Have Evolving Expectations
Back in the earliest days of eCommerce, shipping expectations were pretty basic. Ecommerce buyers were willing to go with the cheapest option more often than not. But customer expectations have evolved. Price is still important, but it is not the whole ballgame.
There are certain carriers – they will remain nameless for this post – with a fairly poor reputation among U.S. consumers. It stands to reason that the same scenario exists in other countries. As an eCommerce operator doing your fair share of cross-border business, it may be in your best interests to learn about the reputations of local shippers likely to handle last-mile delivery for your customers.
Let’s say you are shipping to a European destination whose post office doesn’t get stellar reviews. It is possible that sticking with a shipper that utilizes the post office may chase customers away. If there is another shipping partner available in the area, making the switch could be a good move. At the very least, offer customers choices.
Speed and Reliability
Two things that matter above and beyond price are speed and reliability. The speed issue is easy to wrap your brain around when you acknowledge that we live in an on-demand world. People are no longer willing to wait for anything. In terms of eCommerce shipping, a fair number of consumers are willing to pay extra to get the same or next-day delivery.
Reliability is important in the sense that customers want to know they can trust the companies tasked with delivering their purchases. If they have had a problem with a particular carrier in the past, they may find it very difficult to trust that same carrier in the future. Abandoning a shopping cart because that carrier was the only option is apparently not uncommon.
Offer the Big Names
The best bet for most e-commerce operators is to look into offering all of the big-name shipping services. One of the most recognized names in international shipping is DHL. Based in Germany, DHL relies on its own infrastructure along with a network of authorized resellers to provide services. Sugar Land, TX is home to one of those resellers: Preferred Shipping.
Preferred Shipping offers DHL International Ecommerce Shipping, DHL Import Express, DHL Export Express, and other branded services. The key to what they do is upholding DHL standards. They must do business the way DHL wants them to. Preferred Shipping essentially acts as a surrogate so that DHL doesn’t have to operate an office in Sugar Land.
It is clear that eCommerce customers are increasingly picky about their shipping options. If more than half are willing to stop doing business with a company due to a poor shipping experience, entrusting shipping to just anyone is a bad move. It is in the eCommerce operator’s best interests to offer the best possible shipping options capable of meeting customer expectations.