You may have already heard of eCommerce logistics touchpoints. Well, but what is really meant by this term and, more importantly, how can they help you create value around your eCommerce?
If you’re looking for an answer to these questions, you’ve come to the right place!
What are logistics touchpoints
Let’s first start with a definition. Touchpoint means point of contact, so by logistical touchpoints we mean all those occasions in which direct contact is created, precisely, between a brand and its customers, for example, at the moment when a product available on an online store goes from the virtual shopping cart to the buyer’s hands, through shipping.
Valuing a logistics touchpoint, then, means – also – valuing the shipping phase of a product to its customers and, of course, also the eventual return phase, the so-called “reverse logistics.”
So, to summarize, shipping touchpoints are, for example:
- The receipt of the order
- The booking of the order pickup
- The choice of the courier
- The actual delivery and unboxing
Understanding customer needs to create value
How to best manage and value them to create more value for the brand and the online store?
The needs of customers, we have told many times on this blog, are becoming more and more important. Think for example about the timing of shipping. Users want to receive products ordered online in increasingly shorter time frames, the next day or even the same day the purchase is made. According to data from the Casaleggio 2021 Report, 62 percent of Italians put “delivery on a day other than the agreed upon day” as the top negative motivation in purchasing. In addition, users appreciate being informed in real time about the status of the shipment and, above all, they appreciate being able to choose where, how, and when they can pick up their purchases, in a scheduled slot directly at home, or at Lockers and Pickup Points that allow more freedom and less scheduling for the user. Demands regarding the eventual return phase are also increasingly important: for users, the handling of returns should be easy, fast and possibly free.
Here, then, in light of all these factors, optimizing logistics touchpoints to create more value for the brand or eCommerce is not exactly such an easy task. It is necessary, though, to build one’s online reputation-great, that is-and to build customer loyalty, with all the benefits that come with it, first and foremost in terms of increased revenue.
What can help an eCommerce business improve all these aspects? Here are some useful tips.
Three useful tips for optimizing logistics touchpoints
1. Listen to your customers and ask their opinion
We don’t have to tell you this at GEL Proximity: the basis of successful relationships is listening to each other. This is also true if you sell online and therefore in your relationship with your customers. Inform yourself about what your customers’ and potential customers’ needs and requests are and, based on their feedback, organize to solve any critical issues you detect. You will gain not only in terms of satisfaction from your users, but you may also avoid some negative reviews and, on the contrary, gain some excellent ones. In fact, we have already covered how important online reputation is and what role reviews play in this process.
2. Update your customers on the progress of their order
As we mentioned, customers like to be updated in real time on the progress of their order. Waiting anxiously in front of the home window for the courier to arrive has never appealed to anyone! That’s when you can implement order tracking services, informing your customers via email or whatsapp.
3. Give them more delivery and return options
After years of pandemic and restrictions, no one likes to be locked in their house waiting for the courier anymore. Sure, home delivery is still one of the preferred solutions for online shoppers, but there are more practical and sustainable solutions that are starting to take off and are just waiting to be implemented, much to the delight of customers, the environment, and even online stores!
Lockers and Pickup Points, for example, are solutions that can guarantee 100% delivery at all times (optimizing time and travel for the courier) and greater flexibility for shoppers who can choose the location and time best suited for them to pick up – or return – goods.
If you are an eCommerce manager and would like to find out how to integrate thousands of already active Pickup Points and Lockers throughout the country to your eCommerce sales channel, so you can offer your customers a unique and personalized shopping experience, contact us! GEL Proximity, the first aggregator of Pickup Points, has the solution for you.
